DIAL is Real World Experience
Founded in 2022, DIAL functions as a cross between an EOC and a Fusion Center - and there is something new each week. DIAL Interns and Analysts work with EMHS faculty and staff to set daily objectives, collect data and information, create intelligence products, and distribute them to interested and affected stakeholders. Students gain knowledge and experience in intelligence collection and writing, often working on short deadlines and under pressure from partner agencies. There are no two-week deadlines in DIAL - products often go out the door within minutes or hours of requests.
This workflow and rapid pace - all managed by undergraduate and graduate students - impresses on Interns and Analysts the types of work and conditions expected in law enforcement, the intelligence community, and emergency management.
Using a variety of tools and systems, the DIAL team reviews and processes a deluge of data each day - always focused on 'what do my stakeholders NEED to know?' Our products have been utilized in EOCs, Florida's Fusion Centers, and local law enforcement and public safety offices to understand what's happening, where is it happening, why is it happening now, and what comes next?
DIAL also activates to support the State of Florida on request. Embedded with ESF-14 (SERT Public Information), DIAL tracks resources, community needs, rumors, and official information to help the State Emergency Response Team make informed decisions during a disaster or incident. Students work in the Bellamy building, but have been activated in the State EOC for major events - a unique opportunity that goes well beyond a tour or visit.
DIAL has a history of supporting the State of Florida in disasters. In 2012, EMHS founded a Voluntary Operations Support Group (FSU VOST) to do some of the first social media monitoring and open source intelligence work in the state. Techniques and procedures created by FSU VOST became the basis of state and local emergency management social media engagement across the state.
The Disciplines
DIAL practices open-source intelligence (OSINT) and geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) every day, from planning through collection and analysis, to distribution of products.
- OSINT
- Intelligence produced from publicly available information that is collected, exploited, and disseminated in a timely manner to an appropriate audience for the purpose of addressing a specific intelligence requirement.
- GEOINT
- "The exploitation and analysis of imagery and geospatial information to describe, assess, and visually depict physical features and geographically referenced activities on the earth. Geospatial intelligence consists of imagery,
imagery intelligence, and geospatial information." (Statutory definition codified in Title 10 of the U.S. Code, Section 467 (5)).
Stakeholders
DIAL is academic - students will learn valuable skills outside the classroom - but also practical. The lab partners with local, state, and Federal agencies to collect, analyze, and distribute real-world products focused on real-world problems.
