Sergeant Major (SGM) Robert Hyatt, the NCI Agency's Senior Enlisted Advisor, has recently been thanked for his service as the first Visual Information Visiting Chair at United States Defense Information School (DINFOS) by Colonel Martin Downie, Commandant DINFOS.
SGM Hyatt has been working in Brussels since April 2016, and has been fundamentally changing the approach towards non-commissioned officers by enhancing the communication between military and civilian staff. However, before he took on this challenging mission he had been the guy with the camera in combat. As a US Army photographer he has deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as standing behind the lens and in the first row of the inaugurations of US Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush.
"I'm truly humbled, and honored to have been able to serve as the visiting chair. I tried, and will continue to try, to share as much as I can of what I've learned over my years of service as a visual communicator. I'm very excited for the Defense Information School and how they are moving into the future." -said SGM Hyatt.
The Defense Information School is designated by the Secretary of Defense as the organization responsible for public affairs and visual information training for the Department of Defense. It trains more than 2,500 U.S. military, DoD civilian, interagency and international military students per year across 32 different courses at the basic, intermediate and advanced levels.
His achievements in the Army, and his degrees in Communications and Photojournalism made him the Defense Information School Visual Information Department's choice to be Visiting Chair for 2015-2016. In this capacity he participated in lectures, colloquia, panel discussions, site visits and other engagements to interact with students and faculty, sharing the most recent communication trends, techniques and strategies, and increasing the understanding of the dynamic communication environment.
The goal of the Visiting Chair program, which is part of the US Defense Media Activity, is to partner with highly experienced and esteemed public affairs and visual communication professionals to enhance the overall effectiveness of DINFOS training programs.
Colonel Martin Downie, Commandant of DINFOS said: "You have been a dedicated champion for DINFOS by advocating for our vital training mission in the various forums in which you engage. Your efforts on behalf of DINFOS will be carried on by the multitude of service members and civilians you have mentored for years to come."