Schar School Student Spotlight

Schar School News for December 2024

BA International Security and Law

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Funda Çakmak: Mother, Entrepreneur, and Schar School Junior

Andrew J Schappert — Tue, 03 Dec 2024 17:34:42 +0000

Funda Çakmak: Mother, Entrepreneur, and Schar School Junior Andrew J Schappert Tue, 12/03/2024 - 12:34

Embracing a new chapter: Funda Çakmak displays her certificate at her citizenship ceremony in August. Photos provided.

Funda Çakmak’s journey is anything but ordinary. A transfer student from Northern Virginia Community College, she’s now navigating her first semester as a junior at ��AV’s Schar School of Policy and Government, majoring in international security and law, an innovative undergraduate degree program that’s one of the first of its kind in the nation.

Funda Çakmak

Born and raised in Germany to Turkish parents and transplanted to the United States in 2011, Çakmak is a newly minted American citizen, having been naturalized in August. And on November 5, at her first opportunity, she found profound satisfaction in casting her first vote in a U.S. election, at an elementary school near her home in Haymarket, Virginia. Her milestone vote drew the attention of an ABC news program curious about first-time voters. (You can see her interview on this page.)

Çakmak once envisioned herself wearing a badge or a uniform, working in law enforcement or the military. At 20, however, she took a detour—a one-year au pair position for a family in Virginia.

“I wanted to travel and improve my English, and my goal was to spend a year on the East Coast and a year on the West Coast and then visit other countries, like Australia. But I came here and then ended up staying,” she said with a laugh. “Which was not the plan.”

Çakmak met former Virginia governor and Distinguished Visiting Professor Terry McAuliffe at a Schar School event in November.

Divorced since February 2023, the single mother of three—twin 11-year-old boys and a 9-year-old daughter—Çakmak stays busy with her family and her studies while also managing a limited liability corporation.

In 2021, she ventured into entrepreneurship, founding FC International GMBH, a Germany-based company specializing in fiber optic cable infrastructure.

But what she really wants to do, she said, is use her Schar School degree to work for the government in some capacity, ideally for a national security or diplomatic agency that would offer opportunities for travel once her children are grown.

As she works toward her goals, she imagines a day when she’s not just traveling the world but leaving a mark on it, a legacy her children can be proud of.

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Terry McAuliffe

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Drones and Terrorism: Graduating Senior Bahceci Shines at Criminology Conference

Andrew J Schappert — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 15:56:17 +0000

Drones and Terrorism: Graduating Senior Bahceci Shines at Criminology Conference Andrew J Schappert Thu, 11/21/2024 - 10:56

Presenting a research poster at a major conference is a big deal for a student, particularly for an undergraduate.

Poster presentations create networking opportunities with experts and peers who often provide constructive feedback; summarizing complex ideas and data enhances communications skills; and, in addition to building confidence, it makes a significant addition to resumés and CVs.

Ayse Selma Bahceci with her poster: ‘Presenting at this level gave me firsthand insight into the many opportunities to further enhance our research.’ Photos provided.

For Ayse Selma Bahceci, presenting her poster in mid-November at the American Society of Criminology’s 79th annual meeting in San Francisco, a conference that draws more than 4,000 attendees from more than 40 countries, was not only thrilling, but also nostalgic.

“I was incredibly excited, as this was my very first conference,” the graduating senior said. “It was also a nostalgic experience because I was born and raised in San Francisco.”

Bahceci presents her poster to a conference attendee.

The government and international politics major in the Schar School of Policy and Government at ��AV had her dream fulfilled just in time: She graduates in December. It’s an opportunity she was happy to have experienced.

“I had the chance to network with a diverse group of talented individuals in their respective fields, which was truly inspiring,” she said. “Presenting at this level gave me firsthand insight into the many opportunities to further enhance our research.”

The poster was titled “Changing Weapon Types in Terrorist Organizations: Which Groups Have Used Drones?” and reflected the work accomplished at George Mason’s Terrorism, Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC) and its affiliated organizations and tools.

“In this presentation, I analyzed drone use within terrorist organizations using data from the Global Terrorism Trends and Analysis Center [GTTAC] and the Incidents Database [GRID], shedding light on how drones are shifting weapon and logistic strategies among these groups,” she said.

Bahceci, left, with Mahmut Cengiz at the conference: ‘I’m excited to see how the Schar School is preparing young experts to fight terrorism around the world,’ he said.

“Many attendees were intrigued by our Global Terrorism Trends and Analysis Center data collected at the Schar School, and my presentation on drones received excellent feedback,” she said, adding that the data is open for all to use.

“This was Ayse Selma’s first conference, and she gave an exceptional poster presentation on drones, a timely and important topic,” said Associate Professor Mahmut Cengiz, director of the GTTAC. Cengiz accompanied Bahceci to California.

“Her presentation was excellent and she was very well received,” he said. “I’m excited to see how the Schar School is preparing young experts to fight terrorism around the world.”

Presenting at a conference, Bahceci said, “has always been a goal of mine, and I am especially grateful to my mentor and advisor, Professor Cengiz, who supported me every step of the way in reaching this milestone in my career.

“I made many connections during my time at the conference, both from the United States and abroad,” she said. “I believe these networks are valuable moving forward in my career after I graduate.”

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Mahmut Cengiz

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Passion for International Development Drives Double Alum

Andrew J Schappert — Mon, 28 Oct 2024 12:36:49 +0000

Passion for International Development Drives Double Alum Andrew J Schappert Mon, 10/28/2024 - 08:36

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From a young age, Annie Tulann always had her sights on ��AV. As a resident of Arlington, Virginia, she was familiar with the school and its reputation.

“I remember thinking early on when I was younger, ‘I am going to go to George Mason,’ which seems funny looking back now,” she said. “But it was a great school—close to D.C., close to my family, and really diverse. I just knew I’d feel comfortable there.”

‘I’m thrilled that I got my MPP. It’s really set me on the right path forward and it’s become such a huge stepping stone for my career.’

After graduating in 2014 with a degree in biology, Tulann realized that she no longer wanted to pursue a career in medicine. Instead, she joined the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and began working as a program assistant. Within two years, she moved to a new position in the Office of Afghanistan Affairs and the Office of Pakistan Affairs, where she assisted on gender issues, education, water sanitation, and hygiene, traveling to each country multiple times.

In 2018, while still working full time in the Afghanistan and Pakistan offices, Tulann enrolled in the Master of Public Policy program at the Schar School of Policy and Government. At first, she felt nervous entering the program given her science background.

“I didn’t take any development classes or any of that like my peers did,” she said.

Attending orientation and hearing other students talk about their experience helped quell her nerves. A consultation with Jill Deering, senior assistant dean for student and academic affairs at the Schar School, eased any remaining jitters.

“She just made it so comforting for me and made sure that I would have everything that I need,” Tulann said. “It was such a validating experience in the sense of like, you will be OK and you will get through and you will do what you need to do.”

Once classes began, the connection between her coursework and her job was immediate.

“Every single class I had completely correlated to the work that I was doing,” she said. “I took a terrorism class and I was working in Afghanistan and Pakistan, which really worked out well for me, and I started understanding issues deeply.”

When COVID-19 hit in 2020, Tulann was recruited to work on the agency’s COVID-19 task force to make sure rules and regulations were in place.

“At the time I was taking an emergency preparedness class, so every single thing that I was doing was completely aligned,” she said.

In 2021, Tulann graduated with her master’s degree and transitioned from the Office of the Administrator working directly with Administrator Samantha Power to the Executive Secretariat as a program analyst. In her position, she daily navigates through multiple high-stakes projects and works with the agency’s multiple bureaus to ensure that Power has everything she needs.

“I work with the bureaus to make sure that she’s well prepared,” she said.

Tulann’s position affords her the extraordinary chance to attend most of the agency front office and administrator meetings. She has been in rooms with presidents, prime ministers, CEOs, and celebrities.

“It’s a really great opportunity that not everybody in the agency gets to experience,” she said. “I learn directly from the administrator but also from other leaders around the world.”

Earning her MPP, while difficult, was worth it and one of the greatest experiences she’s had, Tulann says.

“I’m thrilled that I got my MPP,” she said. “It’s really set me on the right path forward and it’s become such a huge stepping stone for my career.”

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Transforming Access to Justice: Students Tackle Language Barriers at Fairfax Courthouse

Andrew J Schappert — Tue, 22 Oct 2024 15:17:21 +0000

Transforming Access to Justice: Students Tackle Language Barriers at Fairfax Courthouse Andrew J Schappert Tue, 10/22/2024 - 11:17

From left, Schar School Jurisprudence Learning Community students Mohammed Ibrahim Al Zubaidi and Sharanya Maddukuri, a government and international politics major and Honors College student, flank General District Court Judge Dipti Pidikiti-Smith in her courtroom. Photo provided

Going to a court of law as plaintiff, defendant, witness, juror, or a spectator in the gallery can be stressful and confusing if you don’t know where to go. What floor is the right office on? Which clerk at which window do you need to visit? Which courtroom do you need to be in and when do you need to be there? And which way to the bathroom?

Mohammed Al Zubaidi presents the Court Signage Survey Project to an attorney who advocates at the Fairfax General District Court. Photo provided

The Fairfax General District Court conducts its business at the Fairfax County Courthouse, not far from ��AV’s Fairfax Campus near the City of Fairfax. It shares the facility with the Fairfax Circuit Court, the largest trial court in Virginia. Understandably, the hallways of the campus can be confounding even to those who frequent the complex, much less those who have business there only occasionally.

Now imagine you need to visit the General District Court but do not speak English as your native language. All the signage is in English. You can see there might be a problem.

Members of a team of 15 volunteer students from the Jurisprudence Learning Community (JPLC), one of five learning communities in the Schar School of Policy and Government, are spending time in the hallways and offices of the busy court complex conducting a survey project aimed at helping the court understand the accessibility needs of court users.

The students visit the courthouse in shifts each weekday for a month to administer surveys to those who use the court, including judges, attorneys, deputies, bailiffs, and visitors. When the survey period is over, the students will compile the results to gain an understanding of the steps the court should take to increase accessibility for individuals, particularly language and translation accessibility.

“The results of the Court Signage Survey Project will be sent to the District Court for review and ultimately compiled into a larger report that will go to the Virginia Supreme Court,” said Assistant Professor Shea Holman, director of the JPLC.

From left, Sathvika Kolluru, Sharanya Maddukuri, and Abigail Harmon wield survey clipboards in the courthouse hallway. Photo provided

General District Court Judge Dipti Pidikiti-Smith reached out to Holman for the project.

“She specifically wanted to connect with George Mason students,” Holman said. “We are such a diverse campus and the JPLC is a place where students from many different backgrounds have the opportunity to experience the legal field firsthand. This is an amazing experience for students to interact directly with individuals attempting to navigate our legal system and to spend time in a courthouse setting.”

For Schar School junior Mohammad Ibrahim Al Zubaidi, that’s exactly what has happened.

“The most memorable experience has been engaging with court users directly,” the government and international politics major said. “Listening to their stories about the communication barriers they face in such a crucial setting has been eye-opening. It reinforced the importance of the work we’re doing and the impact this project can have on improving access to justice for everyone.”

Al Zubaidi’s degree program includes a concentration in American Institutions and Processes and a minor in criminology, law, and society. His visits to the courthouse, he said, will help him gain hands-on experience in legal processes, particularly in improving access to justice for underrepresented communities.

“This project allows me to connect my academic knowledge of government and law with real-world applications," Al Zubaidi said. "Balancing classwork and off-campus duties has been a challenge, but it's also helped me develop strong time management and organizational skills. By staying organized and setting clear priorities, I’ve been able to manage both effectively."

Walking the hallways of the bustling courthouse is a new experience for some of the students.

“I haven't spent much time in [a courthouse] up until this point, so it has been interesting to see the innerworkings,” said Abigail Harmon, an integrative studies major with a legal concentration. “I also feel that making the courtroom more accessible to all kinds of people is a really important cause, and I am proud to be helping out with that. I hope that the information collected in the surveys can help with this.”

Among all the court users she’s met, it’s the interpreters who work there that have made a significant impression.

“They are passionate about helping people who don't speak English navigate and understand our legal system,” the Twin Falls, Idaho, native said. “One of the interpreters stressed how important it is to have interpreters, because if you don't speak English and don't utilize one, you might be unable to get the justice you deserve.

“I feel that this was relevant in our survey, because non-English speaking individuals might find it difficult to get around the courtroom, and the courthouse should find ways to fix that. I've had the opportunity to see a couple of the interpreters in action, and without them their clients may have had a different outcome and experience in their case.”

“This project allows me to submerse myself in the exact environment I am striving to be in postgraduation,” said government and international politics senior April Cornelius from Aliso Viejo, California. “The best experience I have had thus far has been surveying people on the third floor, which is the domestic cases. I had a mom with her two daughters fill out a survey, and was nice to connect with her older teenage daughter.

“Nobody likes to be bothered with a survey,” she added, “but it is nice to take someone’s brain off the reason why they are there—most times not for a good reason.”

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Shea M. Holman Kilian

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Schar School Research Project Explores How to Encourage Student Voting

Andrew J Schappert — Thu, 17 Oct 2024 15:51:03 +0000

Schar School Research Project Explores How to Encourage Student Voting Andrew J Schappert Thu, 10/17/2024 - 11:51

‘In Virginia, every year is an election year, since we have state elections in the off years, so it presents a wonderful opportunity every fall to run an election study.’

Turnout among younger voters is lower than for any other age group. In the 2020 election, which had an unusually high turnout among young people, just under half of eligible voters between the ages of 18 and 24 participated, compared to 63% of all eligible voters. Civic groups have launched digital mobilization campaigns, from texting to Instagram spots, targeted toward these younger voters.

According to Schar School of Policy and Government at ��AV associate professor Jennifer N. Victor, relying on electronic communication and social media is misguided. The most effective way to promote greater turnout in this group is by having students make personal appeals to other students directly, face to face. This is the finding of a research project called “You’re the Voter” that Victor conducted alongside doctoral candidate Tim Bynion and several undergraduate volunteers from the First-Year Democracy Lab residential learning community.

“I began this project as a way to engage students both in research—the ‘lab’ part of our name—and the political process—the ’democracy’ part,” said Victor. “In Virginia, every year is an election year, since we have state elections in the off years, so it presents a wonderful opportunity every fall to run an election study.”

Democracy Lab students live together on the Fairfax Campus, take class together, and visit area government institutions for tours and lectures. Victor recruited students for the project both from the Democracy Lab community and across the university to serve as Mason Voting Ambassadors.

Now in its third year, Victor has used the project to help her students better understand how to conduct social scientific research surrounding questions about elections and voting while also contributing to the scholarship on voter turnout and encouraging more young people to vote.

Under Victor’s direction, the research team has refined their methods each year in their search to discover the most effective way to encourage college students to vote. In the first year of the project, they administered a panel survey before the election, asking several students about their intention to vote. Survey respondents were then either sent an email with information about how to vote or were contacted by Democracy Lab students for a one-on-one meeting to provide guidance on how to vote. However, the team found problems with this approach. Responses to their post-election survey were disappointingly low, making it challenging to assess which communication strategy yielded greater results.

Arina van Breda, of the League of Women Voters of Fairfax, training Democracy Lab students on how to register voters in fall 2023. Photo provided

The following year, Victor switched to a field experiment approach in which they recruited faculty partners to engage their classes in the survey. Students either heard a brief presentation about voting during class or were sent an email with the same information, alongside a control group that received no voting information at all. Using a grant from the Students Learn Students Vote coalition, Victor purchased access to the Virginia Voter File, allowing the team to see which participants had voted. “In that experiment,” Victor said, “we found that peer-to-peer presentations moved the needle, making students 11% more likely to vote, whereas emails had the same impact as absolutely no contact at all.”

According to Victor, this demonstrates that there is a trade-off between cost and efficacy in encouraging voter turnout among young voters. Digital communications might be cheaper and reach more potential voters, but are ultimately of little, if any, effect. In contrast, sending out volunteers to have face-to-face discussions with potential voters, especially peer-to-peer, while more costly and time-consuming, achieves far greater results. This means that effective voter engagement, unfortunately, cannot be scaled up without significant expense, a finding that comports with the existing literature about voter engagement more generally.

“Voting ambassadors—students talking to students—work best,” said Arina van Breda, director of voter registration for the Fairfax, Virginia, League of Women Voters (LWV). “My group’s volunteers are mostly older women with clipboards, and when it looks like a group of mothers standing around campus, we don’t make much progress in getting students to respond to us. That’s why we love partnering with Professor Victor and her students.”

Students in the Schar School’s First-Year Democracy Lab assisted with a research project to find the most effective way to promote voter turnout among young people.

LWV leaders train George Mason students not only in the rules surrounding voter registration, but also in the challenges college students might face in registering to vote.

“It’s fun watching the students become effective advocates for voting,” van Breda said. “Information is power, and once they have the training, you can see the confidence they exude in getting their peers active in voting as well.”

“College students often have very different situations that affect how they vote” said Victor, “so you can’t just stand in front of a group and say, ‘Here's what you do.’”

Many students are first-time voters and are unsure of how to register; others are unsure if they should vote at home or on campus. Since universities draw students from all over the country, and the laws governing absentee ballots differ from state to state, it’s difficult to offer generalized information to a large group.

“And so, when there is no one single set of instructions to give all students, it's really helpful to sit and have a conversation with individual voters, figure out what their situation is, what their goals are, and help them figure out the best plan for their own voting,” Victor said.

“Being able to practice public speaking, participate in civic engagement, and work on something I'm passionate about has made for one of the best college experiences I've had so far,” said government and international politics major Maxwell Castner, one of the undergraduates who worked on the project.

Bynion, a doctoral candidate in political science, was equally enthusiastic about the project, explaining that “we learn about experiments and the methodology behind them in our doctoral training, but working with Dr. Victor to create and implement a project like this was invaluable in building my research skills. I feel much more prepared to conduct this kind of research in the future.”

This year’s project, “The Choice is Yours,” is focused primarily on civic engagement in the next few months, more than research design.

“After two years of focusing on teaching how to conduct a social science research project, this year our attention is on activating the campus community,” Bynion said. “Given the high interest in the presidential election, we want to direct our energy to voter turnout, putting our research findings into action.”

In addition to their partnership with LWV, the Democracy Lab is engaging other campus groups in voter turnout efforts including student government, campus housing, and George Mason’s Office of Community Engagement and Civic Learning.

LWV’s van Breda explains why outreach like this is so important: “If a young voter’s first registration experience is a negative one, they may never try again. One bad interaction may turn them into a lifetime nonvoter. They will be affected most by the policies that are created now, so it’s essential that they register and vote at a rate that reflects their longer future as citizens.”

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Jennifer N. Victor

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Schar School Freshman, Honors College Student Defers Admission for Life-Changing Year in Kyrgyzstan

Andrew J Schappert — Fri, 11 Oct 2024 18:35:25 +0000

Schar School Freshman, Honors College Student Defers Admission for Life-Changing Year in Kyrgyzstan Andrew J Schappert Fri, 10/11/2024 - 14:35

Anusha Chaluvadi could have come to ��AV a year earlier than she did, but the new freshman deferred admission to study Russian in the Kyrgyzstan Republic.

Anusha Chaluvadi in Fairytale Canyon, Kyrgyzstan: ‘Having the U.S. education is good, of course, but it's dangerous to only have that perspective.’ Photo provided

Her participation in the nine-month National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) program, sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, that sent her to the Central Asian country in her first year after high school “truly differentiated her as an applicant” to George Mason, said Eva Bramesco, director of the University Scholars program in the Honors College.

“Pursuing experiences like this in which students experience new and challenging ways of learning are perfect examples of the qualities we seek in University Scholars," Bramsco said.

As a University Scholar, Chaluvadi is among a small number of the most motivated incoming Honors College freshmen “selected through a competitive process to join a four-year cohort of student leaders, receive a full-tuition scholarship, and participate in enhanced academic and professional development programming,” Bramesco added.

Additionally, Chaluvadi is one of the first students to declare a four-year major in International Security and Law at the Schar School of Policy and Government. The one-of-a-kind bachelor of arts degree prepares graduates to become leaders in the face of crisis and to confront major threats affecting lives of millions around the globe every day.

Chaluvadi was well acquainted with George Mason. Her sister, 2021 biology alum Pratyusha, also a University Scholar, is now in her final year of medical school at Virginia Commonwealth University. The Richmond, Virginia, native came to the school not only for the financial assistance but also for the proximity to Washington, D.C., where she hopes to land significant internships at key institutions.

As for deferring college to live and learn in Kyrgyzstan, Chaluvadi said she was inspired to learn Russian after being exposed to Russian literature.

“But when I read Russian literature, I don't think that I have a cultural context because I'm reading works in translation, so that loses a lot of the historical and cultural context that it would have if I read it in Russian,” she said. “And also, Russian-American relations are very complicated, and I think it's really dangerous to go into a government field or international field when you don't have both perspectives. So, I figured having the U.S. education is good, of course, but it's dangerous to only have that perspective.”

While learning the Russian language and enjoying the literature, Chaluvadi’s study-abroad experience also exposed her to the people living in the mountainous nation. What she learned from them resonated deeply.

“I got more of a post-Soviet perspective living there,” she said. “Talking to people there was really interesting because I think in the U.S. we hear that the Soviet Union was bad for everyone and no one liked it, which it has truth to it. But when you speak to the older generation in KYrgyzstan, a lot of them actually say that they preferred life in the Soviet Union, which is an opinion I would've probably never gotten if I didn't live there.”

A college year deferred? Clearly it was life-changing.

“It was the greatest experience of my life,” she said. “I miss it so much every day.”

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George Mason’s Student Body President and Vice President are strengthening campus community

Sarah Holland — Wed, 25 Sep 2024 17:27:17 +0000

George Mason’s Student Body President and Vice President are strengthening campus community Sarah Holland Wed, 09/25/2024 - 13:27

When Student Body President Maria Alejandra Romero Cuesta and Vice President Colin McAulay were looking at universities, ��AV’s proximity to Washington, D.C., and Schar School of Policy and Government’s strong reputation made it a top choice for them both.

Photo by Eduardo Macedo/Office of University Branding

And for both of them, joining Student Government just made sense: Cuesta, an international student, plans for nonprofit work in support of her home country of Colombia, and McAulay dreams of a future in diplomacy.

Now, the two of them are leading with a vision of an empowered and interconnected campus community.

Cuesta, a double major in Government and International Politics and economics and in the Honors College, was inspired by her peers to run for president. “As an active member of the Hispanic Leadership Alliance, Honors College Connects, and the First-Gen+ Center, I got to know what was happening on campus, what students needed, and that understanding inspired me to pursue a pathway of helping other students,” she said. Her connections also gave her a wide platform from which she could launch her political career.

For McAulay, a senior international security and law major, three years in Student Government gave him a strong understanding of the university, its structure, and how to best organize people to accomplish a shared vision. When election season came around, Cuesta and McAulay thought their combination of connections and institutional knowledge made a winning ticket.

Cuesta and McAulay worked hard over the summer to start constructing the groundwork for their term. One word stands at the core of their vision: community.

“We want to build bridges between the diverse organizations at George Mason,” Cuesta said. “We want to set that foundation, not only to create community but to then sustain community so it continues for generations to come.”

Cuesta wants to see a campus where groups are less siloed. “We have so many student groups for a wide range of identities, and we see a trend of students just sticking with their groups. And while we want students to have those spaces, we also want the groups to connect with each other more, to work together to achieve their shared goals and to continue to develop an interconnected and supportive campus community.”

“When I first came to George Mason,” McAulay added, “it was right out of COVID-19, and the community wasn’t able to thrive. But with each year, we’re restoring that sense of community, and it’s important to keep it growing for each new class that comes in."

President Cuesta and Vice President McAulay hit the ground running, starting the semester off with events to bring the campus community together such as tailgating a recent women’s soccer game. Both hope that their lasting mark on the university will be one of community.

“There are many resources here, so many opportunities to socialize, make friends, network, find your community, and build your career,” Cuesta said. “I hope George Mason continues to be a place where students can be authentically themselves and feel like they belong.”

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Schar School Adjunct Professor Lee Roberts is ‘Teacher of Distinction’

Andrew J Schappert — Thu, 15 Aug 2024 19:22:09 +0000

Schar School Adjunct Professor Lee Roberts is ‘Teacher of Distinction’ Andrew J Schappert Thu, 08/15/2024 - 15:22

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Schar School of Policy and Government adjunct professor Lee Roberts was recognized as a 2024 Teacher of Distinction by ��AV’s Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning. Roberts is a U.S. Army strategic intelligence officer in his 17th year of active-duty service.

Schar School adjunct professor Lee Roberts receives his Teacher of Distinction award from E. Shelley Reid, executive director of engaged teaching at George Mason’s Stearns Center. Photo by John Boal Photography.

The Stearns Center, which promotes and develops innovation in teaching among the university’s faculty, recognizes Teachers of Distinction as those who have been finalists for Teaching Excellence Awards and are known for their commitment to teaching and teaching-related activities.

As an active practitioner in the field, it’s important to Roberts that the subject of international security—I-SEC—is taught the right way.

“First and foremost, students in the [Schar School’s] I-SEC program are talented, driven, and conscientious future—and in some cases current—practitioners whom it is my privilege to work with,” he said. “I want to do everything I can to help them clear a path into this professional field whether as a government servant or in an adjacent field such as think-tank analysis or security journalism.”

Roberts, who has been teaching at the Schar School since 2018, is assigned to the Joint Staff from the Defense Intelligence Agency and works in the Pentagon, located not far from the Schar School’s Mason Square Campus. That proximity allowed him to earn a master’s degree in international security in 2017—he was also a fellow at the Center for Security Policy Studies—and a PhD in political science in 2022.

His academic pursuits, as well as his teaching, inform his profession.

“Essentially, I direct the design and delivery of joint studies into future military intelligence capabilities that establish the requirements used by armed services, defense agencies, and the defense industry to develop and build those capabilities,” he said. “I primarily focus five to 15 years in the future, and I really love my job—it makes excellent use of the educational experience I got at the Schar School.

“By keeping a foot in both worlds, I am able to help students realize their goals, and students’ fresh perspectives and the seminar content from the classes helps me to be a better practitioner.”

While receiving the Stearns Center’s Teacher of Distinction recognition is gratifying, it’s the success of his students that Roberts finds truly rewarding.

“I have on multiple occasions run into recent alumni in the halls of U.S. government agencies implementing America's intelligence, national security, and foreign policy priorities, and I cannot adequately describe the pride I feel in having played even a small part in their journey,” he said.

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Schar School News for August 2024