Frequently Asked Question's

Why is CIAG affiliated with the University of Virginia?

That question can best be answered in terms of our geography and history. As the founder of the University, Thomas Jefferson was the architect of its "academical village," located about 100 miles southwest of Washington D.C.

Jefferson designed the university to be a place where collaborative learning would inform future leaders. In order to do this, Jefferson contacted scholars in Europe and America, yielding an international perspective from philosophy, foreign languages, science, law, medicine and the arts. 

It is a history of leadership, crisis and public preparedness. Although central Virginia produced three founding fathers who went on to become U.S. presidents, Charlottesville has also been a witness to enemy detainees in Hessian barracks, a British attack on Monticello, and wounded Confederate soldiers who arrived by train within hours of the First Battle of Bull Run.

The mission of the University of Virginia’s Critical Incident Analysis Group - to ‘periodically examine the events and the incidents that really affect our democracy, that affect the bonds of trust between government and the public' – might have been written by our founder, Thomas Jefferson.

While CIAG’s focus on bioterrorism, violence in the schools, and other contemporary threats to our democracy would not have matched Jefferson’s list of concerns, the group's guiding principles are very similar to his own: preservation of life and the pursuit of truth.”

John T. Casteen, III
President, University of Virginia


What role did the 9-11 attacks have in your origin and development?

Although the 9-11 attacks certainly qualify as critical incidents, CIAG was created eight years earlier, and has been located at the University of Virginia since 1997. Even though the 9-11 attacks seem to have produced a cottage industry of terrorism and crisis specialists, a much smaller group of government leaders, managers and first-line responders have long shared a commitment on these issues with researchers and professionals in the private sector.

Since you are located at the University of Virginia, are you connected with the Miller Center of Public Affairs?

The Miller Center “gathers new knowledge about the American presidency and our government, shares that knowledge with scholars, officials and the public, and contributes to the contemporary debate about public policy.” As such, its mission is complementary to that of CIAG, with interests in leadership and government that intersect. We have identified shared interests and will collaborate in conferences on selected topics.

Does CIAG operate as a part of a government agency?

Although CIAG at the University of Virginia arose out of the government’s expressed need to reach out to international expertise in times of crisis, it has been multidisciplinary from the beginning, and has received grant and contract funding from a number of federal agencies, in addition to generous gifts from individuals and the private sector.