Captain Audrey Smith

Serving in the U.S. Armed Forces as an Intelligence Officer in the Alaska National Guard, Audrey Smith is concurrently pursuing her PhD in applied mathematics at Utah State University in Logan, Utah.

Growing up in Chugiak, Alaska, gave Audrey a healthy love of the outdoors, allowing her to compete in mountain running, biking, cross country skiing, biathlons and triathlons. This love of the outdoors eventually led her to join the Alaska National Guard in March of 2001 as a command post controller where one of her key tasks was to help coordinate search and rescue missions throughout the State of Alaska with the elite 210th Rescue Squadron.

After serving several years in this role, Audrey was given the opportunity to commission and become an Intelligence Officer serving three search and rescue
squadrons and two airlift squadrons. Since then, she has deployed and provided time sensitive intelligence briefings to squadrons of aircrew in Germany, Kosovo, Djibouti and Afghanistan, as well as, gaining invaluable experience and respect for her fellow soldier, sailor and airman.

Currently, as a student, Audrey is studying applied mathematics and will focus on modeling the Mountain Pine Bark Beetle population with the hope of helping scientists gain a better understanding of the beetle’s spread which will one day allow the reduction of its effects, thereby preventing future forest fires and destruction.