IN TRUE FACE | A CONVERSATION WITH JONNA MENDEZ

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April 25 @ 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Michael V. Hayden Center | In-Person & Virtual

WHO:

  • Jonna Mendez, former Chief of Disguise, Central Intelligence Agency, and author
  • Moderator: David Priess, Senior Fellow, Michael V. Hayden Center for Intelligence, Policy, and International Security
WHAT: IN TRUE FACE: A CONVERSATION WITH JONNA          MENDEZ
WHEN: Thursday, April 25, 2024, 7:00 pm E
WHERE: Van Metre Hall Auditorium at Mason Square, 3351 Fairfax Dr, Arlington, Virginia & YouTube livestream
Join the Michael V. Hayden Center for Intelligence, Policy, and International Security on April 25th at 7 pm for an intimate conversation between Jonna Mendez, who served as Chief of Disguise at the Central Intelligence Agency, and Hayden Center senior fellow David Priess. Mendez, author of the new memoir In True Face: A Woman’s Life in the CIA Unmasked (2024), began her career at the CIA as a “contract wife,” performing secretarial duties for the CIA as a convenience to her husband, and eventually rose to management within the Office of Technical Services.

Throughout her 27-year career at the CIA, Mendez navigated the gendered culture of sexism while never wavering in her patriotism and witnessed the effect this gendered culture had on the women who served at the CIA and the overall mission. Her experience includes overseeing disguise operations throughout the Cold War in hostile environments from Moscow to Havana to Beijing, and later taking cutting-edge technology into the Oval Office!

Since retiring more than 20 years ago, Mendez has contributed greatly to the development of the International Spy Museum and has cowritten books like The Moscow Rules (2019), ARGO (2012), and Spy Dust (2002).

Those who attend our event in person will have the opportunity to speak directly with this remarkable intelligence officer and get a signed copy of In True Face.

There will be time for audience questions. The event will be recorded and posted on our website and YouTube channel. Immediately following the event, there will be a reception for all in-person attendees on the Mason Square Plaza.

The Hayden Center is located at George Mason University‘s Schar School of Policy and Government in Arlington, VA. General Hayden, our founder, has been a distinguished visiting professor at Schar School for 15 years. David PriessDirector of Intelligence for Bedrock Learning, former publisher of Lawfare & chief operating officer of the Lawfare Institute, author, and a former CIA analyst and briefer, has also taught at the Schar School.

For more about the Hayden Center, visit our website at haydencenter.gmu.edu. Please visit our YouTube channel at youtube.com/c/haydencenter for videos of all of our past presentations.

Details

Date:
April 25
Time:
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

Organizer

The Michael V. Hayden Center

Venue

Van Metre Hall Auditorium 3351 Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia