June Virtual Speaker Series

GUEST SPEAKER:

CAPT Kevin D. Barnard, USN
Commanding Officer, Nimitz Warfare Analysis Center; former CJCS J2 and DIA Liaison Officer to the US State Department Mission to the United Nations

GUEST SPEAKER'S BACKGROUND:

Captain Kevin Barnard is a native of Vestal, New York. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 2001 with a Bachelor of Science Degree in History. He obtained a lateral transfer to the Naval Intelligence Community in 2010 after serving the initial nine years of his career in the submarine force. He assumed command of Nimitz Warfare Analysis Center, Office of Naval Intelligence, in May 2025. 

Captain Barnard’s most recent sea-duty assignment was with Carrier Strike Group-12, where he served as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Intelligence and completed a nine-month global deployment onboard USS Abraham Lincoln in 2019-2020. His other operational sea-duty assignment as an intelligence officer was Assistant Intelligence Officer on the staff of Commander, Carrier Strike Group-3 embarked on USS John C. Stennis from 2013-2015. 

Shore duty postings include United States Naval Forces Central Command / U.S Fifth Fleet as the Director of Intelligence (N2) from 2023-2025, United States Africa Command Intelligence Directorate (J2) at RAF Molesworth in the United Kingdom from 2010-2013, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command / U.S. Fifth Fleet Senior Intelligence Watch Officer on the Maritime Operations Cell watch floor from 2015-16, Deputy Chief for Collection Management at the Office of Naval Intelligence from 2017-2018, and liaison officer for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs J2 and Defense Intelligence Agency at the US State Department’s Mission to the United Nations in New York City from 2021-2023. 

As a submariner, he completed his junior officer sea tour aboard USS Minneapolis - St. Paul (SSN- 708), deploying to the North Atlantic and helping the crew win the Battle “E” in 2003. He was subsequently assigned to Nuclear Prototype Training Unit (NPTU), Charleston as a Shift Engineer. While at NPTU, he was designated a Master Training Specialist and recognized as the 2007 Officer Instructor of Year for Nuclear Prototype Training Unit, Charleston. His last assignment as a submariner was with the submarine operational support division on the OPNAV N2 staff in Washington, DC as the Mission Highlights Officer. 

He is a recipient of the RADM Edwin T. Layton Award for Leadership and Mentorship, which recognizes outstanding leadership and mentorship in the furtherance of Naval Intelligence performance. Other academic degrees include a Master’s in Public Administration from the Harvard University School of Government as part of the Navy’s Pol-Mil Master’s Program and a Master’s of Science in National Resource Strategy from National Defense University’s Eisenhower School. He is married to the former Alice Dorman of Norfolk, Virginia and has three children, Jeb (20), Maddy (17), and Lucy (12).