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Today's Featured Biography
Lydia Pozzato
After graduation, I attended SFSU where I earned a BA in Ancient History and a BA in Classical Languages (Useful, eh?). I then enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve as an Intelligence Analyst (96B) and was assigned to the 223rd Civil Affairs Battalion (PSYOPS).
I went back to SFSU for a Master's Degree in History, while concurrently attending USF's ROTC program, through which I received my commission as a Second Lieutenant (Tactical Intelligence Officer, 35D). Unfortunately, I could not complete my MA at that time, on account of the Persian Gulf War. And, because my unit at the Presidio of San Francisco had just been decommissioned, I joined the 353rd Military Intellience Battalion (Linguist) California Army National Guard, with which, over the next few years, I spent quite a bit of time on "Active Duty for Special Work"(ADSW), in a variety of interesting and challenging assignments, including some overseas work. I also served as a Platoon Leader and Spanish, German, and Chinese Mandarin linguist (among other responsibilities) with the 353rd, and later, was appointed Executive Officer, then ultimately, the (Acting) Comany Commander of A Company.
In 1994, while I was attending the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California, I met two, female FBI agents who were also studing Chinese (Mandarin). They convinced me to apply to the Bureau, and three years later, in 1997, I was on my way to the FBI Academy, in Quantico, Virginia. After training, I was assigned to the San Diego Division, where I worked a number of violations, including alien smuggling, public corruption and foreign counterintelligence (to name a few). I also served on the Tactical Operations Command Center (TOC) team, which deployed in support of the SWAT team.
Also while I was in San Diego, I attended National University at night, and graduated with an MA in Human Behavior in 2002.
After serving in the field for a few years, and working with a lot of great people from many diverse agencies, I was selected to join the FBI's elite, Hostage Rescue Team (HRT) as their TOC Team Commander and Intelligence Officer. Although I loved being at the center of all the action and getting to fly on chartered planes, my goal had always been to teach at the Academy, and in 2003, the opportunity arose for me to apply for a teaching position. I was then promoted to Supervisory Special Agent and was assigned to the Investigative Training Unit, in which I taught New Agent Trainees how to conduct investigations, and the "exciting world of FBI paperwork!" Ooooh!
After doing that for a few years, I finally got my "dream job," in the FBI's famous Behavioral Science Unit (BSU), where I remain to this day, teaching National Academy students who are high-ranking law enforcement officers from around the world, as well as New Agent Trainees. I started out in the BSU, teaching "Stress Management in Law Enforcement" and finally "graduated" to teaching the "Managing Death Investigations" Course, which includes the use of "Criminal Investigative Analysis" priciples, of which criminal profiling is one part. I am currently developing a new course called "Reading People: Identifying people's behaviors, attitudes and lies as revealed through their verbal and nonverbal communications." This will include classes on statement analysis, psycholinguistic analysis, kinesics, and other means of detecting deception.
This ties in nicely with a new project that I have started, in conjunction with some of my colleagues from the Law Enforcement Communications Unit. It is called, the Joint Communications Exploitation and Research (JCER) Project, and through it, we provide behavioral and statement analysis, as well as investigative, interviewing and/or trial strategies, personality assessments, etc. to our state and local law enforcement partners who have challenging cases that appear unsolvable. As a result of our successes, so far, the JCER has become the de facto "Cold Case Squad" for the Bureau. So cool! (Please forgive the pun!)
I cannot believe how lucky I am to have found my way into this job! Every day presents new opportunites to perform the BSU's mission of training, research and consultation in support of the FBI's law enforcement partners and to explore new ideas to advance the field of knowledge. (I won't go into it here, but the BSU, under the leadership of our visionary, new unit chief, has a lot of amazing - and very worthwhile - projects in the works!)
In addition to the research that I am doing as part of my job, I am also working towards my Ph.D. in Psychology. I look forward to teaching at the college level, and (hopefully) writing and travelling, after I retire from the Bureau in 2017.
I am still single, although my mother lives with me, which she has done for the past 13 years (ever since I got my orders to San Diego!)
I also serve as the "music minister" and choir director for the "family service" at Christ Church, which is a tiny, (and very historic) Episcopal church in "Spotsy." I lead a small band and play the mandolin, guitar, recorder, etc., in it. I am also studying towards my certification in hypnotherapy, in support of some ongoing research that I am doing. Among my many hobbies, really the only ones that I still find time for are music, singing, kayaking and sabre fencing. (I am teaching a class, for some colleagues at the Academy who wanted to learn.)
While I love my job and the exciting and endlessly interesting work that I get to do,(despite the 14-hour work days and two hour commutes) I don't care for living in Virginia very much, as I am a San Franciscan at heart, and hope to return to the cool and foggy Bay Area, someday!
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