On Thursday, March 28, 2019, AFCEA Quantico-Potomac hosted a luncheon at The Clubs at Quantico. The Guest Speaker was Col Frank Chawk, USMC. Col Chawk is the Commanding Officer< Marine Corps Information Operations Center (MCIOC).
Check in: 1100
Lunch: 1130
Speaker Remarks: 1130-1300
Col Frank Chawk, USMC
Commanding Officer, Marie Corps Information Operations Center (MCIOC)
Colonel Frank Chawk is a Marine Corps intelligence officer, a Western Europe foreign area officer (FAO) and a Middle East regional affairs officer (RAO) via experience. He is also a MAGTF planner, an advanced Information Operations (IO) planner, and a foreign security force advisor. He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in International Studies, Western Europe, from the University of Dayton and began his career as a ground intelligence officer.
Col Chawk’s command assignments include the Scout- Sniper Platoon, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment (3/5); Company Commander, 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion; and as the Commanding Officer, Region Five (Western Europe, Scandinavia, and the Eastern Mediterranean), Marine Corps Embassy Security Group. He is currently serving as the Commanding Officer of the Marine Corps Information Operations Center (MCIOC) in Quantico, VA.
His staff assignments include battalion intelligence officer (S2) with 3/5 and current intelligence officer for the US Navy’s 6th Fleet (N22) in Gaeta, Italy. As a Major, he served as a Signals Intelligence Collection Manager in the Central Command (CENTCOM) J2, was the Aide de Camp to the CENTCOM Commanding General, and served in the J2X (Human Intelligence) directorate. He deployed as the S3 future operations planner for Combat Logistics Regiment-2, Marine Expeditionary Brigade-Afghanistan (MEB-A) and served as the (G3) Plans Officer for 2nd Marine Logistics Group. As a Lieutenant Colonel, he deployed as the Deputy G2 for 2d Marine Division (Forward) in Afghanistan and served as the Regional Command (Southwest) / Task Force Leatherneck Liaison Officer to US Special Operations Forces at Bagram airfield. He served as a Branch head at HQMC Intelligence Department (I Dept) and completed a 6 month deployment as the Deputy J2 for the CJFLCC in Baghdad, Iraq. As a Colonel, he served as the Division Chief for Intelligence Operations Division at HQMC, I Dept.
Colonel Chawk was a distinguished graduate of the Marine Corps’ Amphibious Warfare School (AWS), Command & Staff College, and the National Defense University’s College of International Security Affairs (formerly a Counterterrorism fellowship). He is also a graduate of the MAGTF Intelligence Officer Course and the USMC Command and Staff non-resident program. He completed the Joint Forces Staff College Joint PME Phase II, the Marine Corps’ School of Advanced Warfighting, the Joint FAO skills sustainment program (Europe) at Monterey, and the Air War College (distance education program). He also attended a FAO course at George Washington University, completed MIT’s Seminar XXI Program as a Marine Corps fellow, and he completed the Advanced MAGTF IO planner’s course before joining MCIOC.
He has earned Master’s degrees in Military Studies, Operational Studies, and Strategic Security Studies with a concentration in Counterterrorism. In addition to various campaign and personal awards, he was the 2010 recipient of the Navy League’s John A. Lejeune Leadership award.
Colonel Chawk and his wife have been married for more than 20 years and are the proud parents of two beautiful daughters.