Mr. Errol Smith

NCTC Chair

Mr. Errol Smith is an experienced manager at the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC), within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) and is a 2020 graduate from the National Defense University/College of International Security Affairs (NDU/CISA).

Mr. Smith has served in various roles within the ODNI, to include leading NCTC’s screening & vetting mission, responsible for ensuring foreign individuals seeking to enter the US or obtain a US immigration benefit don’t have a nexus to terrorism. He served as the Chief of Staff for NCTC’s Directorate of Intelligence (DI) throughout numerous challenging events in the CT mission, to include the aftermath from the attack on our Consulate in Benghazi, the Boston Marathon Bombings, aviation threats from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), and the persistent global threat from the Islamic State of Iraq & Syria (ISIS). He has also served within the ODNI’s Foreign Language Program Office, tracking linguistic capabilities across the community and as an Interdiction/Disruption manager at the National Counterproliferation Center (NCPC). Externally he served on a Joint Duty Assignment (JDA), as the Assistant Section Chief for Language Services at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), where he oversaw and managed all FBI linguistic operations, to include their covert operations foreign language program. 

Prior to the Intelligence Community, Mr. Smith served in various government functions within the Department of Defense, to include the US Army staff, where he served as an Executive Officer for the Army office recovering from the recent direct attacks of September 11, 2001. In 2004, he was instrumental in the creation of a pilot language program, managing the recruitment, training, and deployment of native speakers of foreign languages into the military, as they supported operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Mr. Smith was born in the United Kingdom and raised around the world, as his parents were in the Foreign Service. He is proficient in speaking Turkish. He holds a bachelor degree in Government Administration and two master’s degrees, one in Strategic Intelligence with a concentration in Counterterrorism and the second in Strategic Security Studies.

Mr. Smith and his wife, live in Virginia and they have three children.