Kyle Atwell,  Graduate Fellow

Kyle Atwell is an active duty U.S. Army Officer and a Ph.D. student in Security Studies at Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson School. His Army experience includes operational assignments in North and West Africa, Afghanistan, South Korea, and Germany. Prior to joining the Army, Kyle served as an intern at NATO Headquarters in Brussels and worked for a California state legislator. Kyle received B.A. degrees in Economics and International Relations from the University of California at Davis in 2006. His current research interests include military strategy, irregular and partnered warfare, alliance dynamics, and military effectiveness.

 

 

Stephanie Dimos,  Graduate Fellow

Stephanie was born and raised in Indianapolis, Indiana, and attended the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA, where she majored in International Relations. After graduating in 2015, Stephanie moved back to Washington, D.C. and began working for the National Security Council at the White House, where she served two administrations including heavy involvement in transition efforts to ensure foreign policy efforts continued amidst the changes. After graduating from the M.P.A. program at the Woodrow Wilson School, she hopes to continue a career in public service with the government or a multilateral organization, focusing on humanitarian assistance implementation and policy.

 

Kara Dowling,  Undergraduate Fellow

Kara Dowling is a senior from Spartanburg, South Carolina concentrating in Operations Research and Financial Engineering and pursuing a certificate in Applications of Computing. She is a 1/C Midshipman in Princeton’s crosstown Navy ROTC program with Rutgers University. In addition to completing her 1/C Navy Summer Training (Cruise), Kara spent last summer working on her independent research sequential decision missile problem with the help of her advisor from Princeton and the Naval Postgraduate School. She spent previous summers interning as a student teacher in Cambodia and as a DoD sponsored scholar immersed in Chinese language and culture in Beijing, China. Outside of the classroom, Kara enjoys Club Swimming, volunteering with Princeton Special Olympics Swimming, and serving as a Princeton Orientation leader. Upon graduation, Kara plans on commissioning as a U.S. Navy Ensign.

 

Katherine K. Elgin,  Graduate Fellow

Katherine is a fifth-year Ph.D. candidate in security studies interested in grand strategy, civil-military affairs, alliance dynamics, and national security decision-making processes. Her dissertation examines contemporary Sino-Russian relations and their effects on U.S. grand strategy. Regionally, she is particularly interested in Central Asia and Scandinavia. Before commencing her graduate studies at the Woodrow Wilson School, Katherine worked at the Foreign Policy Program of the Brookings Institution. While in D.C., Katherine also worked with a defense research firm. Katherine speaks Swedish, Russian and French. She grew up on a family farm near Middleburg, Virginia, and enjoys photography, tennis and traveling. Katherine holds an A.B. in Politics from Princeton University.

Noel Foster,  Graduate Fellow

Noel Foster is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Politics at Princeton University. His interests lie in military and strategic innovation, as well as the intersection of grand strategy and domestic politics, with a focus on hybrid conflicts. Noel received a B.A. and an M.A. from Stanford University in Political Science and Sociology, and an M.A. in E.U. International Relations and Diplomacy from the College of Europe in Bruges.

Sarah Gordon,  Undergraduate Fellow

Sarah Gordon is a senior in the Near Eastern Studies department and is pursuing a certificate in Arabic Language and Culture. Her research focuses on the bureaucracy of terrorist organizations, specifically the governance and administrative models of ISIS. During summer of 2019, Sarah worked at the Critical Threats Project of the American Enterprise Institute, tracking Al Qaeda's activities in Yemen and Eastern Africa. Before that, she spent a summer living in Jordan and working in Azraq Syrian refugee camp, collecting the stories of women displaced by the Syrian Civil War.  

 

 

Mindy Haas, Graduate Fellow

Mindy Haas is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Politics at Princeton University. Her research focuses on international security, with an emphasis on how domestic legal regulations affect the shape of covert action as U.S. foreign policy. Her dissertation uses qualitative empirical analysis through process tracing to demonstrate how the type of law regulating covert activity can predictably lead to patterns of covert behavior along a spectrum from diplomatic activity and propaganda to paramilitary action. Her other research interests include foreign policy decision-making, intelligence, and international and constitutional law. She is also interested in mixed-methods research, in addition to qualitative methods. At Princeton, she served as a teaching assistant for courses on research design, causes of war, leaders and the making of U.S. foreign policy, and constitutional law. Prior to Princeton, she worked at Duane Morris LLP as an associate in the trial practice group and the appellate subgroup. She also served as a law clerk on the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. She received a J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and a B.A. in mathematics and political science from Bucknell University.

Cory Isaacs, Graduate Fellow

A former police officer, prosecutor, and enlisted US Army infantryman, Cory is interested in American military professionalism and what we say about those who fight and die on our behalf. He and his wife Kristin live in Princeton and have three boys: Connor, Dayton, and Ulysses.

 

 

 

Shafaq Khan, Undergraduate Fellow

Shafaq Khan is a junior in the Woodrow Wilson School pursuing certificates in Values and Public Life and South Asian Studies. During summer 2018, Shafaq interned at the Criminal Defense Practice of the Legal Aid Society of New York City. On campus, Shafaq serves as President of the Princeton College Democrats and maintains involvement in the Religious Life Council, the James Madison Program, and the Pace Center for Civic Engagement. In her free time, Shafaq enjoys listening to Punjabi music and reading Sufi poetry.

 

 

Lynne Lee, Graduate Fellow

Lynn was born in South Korea, spent childhood in China and studied in the U.S. from middle school to college. Having been interested in security issues in Northeast Asia for over a decade, she studied International Politics and Asia Studies as an undergraduate at Georgetown and conducted research on China's memory of the Korean War and North Korea's domestic discourse on nuclear weapons. Upon graduation, Lynn received a full scholarship to pursue a Master's degree in China Studies in the Yenching Academy at Peking University in Beijing, China. For her thesis, she examined China's contemporary identity in the nuclear nonproliferation regime. At Woo, she will continue her research on nuclear issues in Northeast Asia. In addition to her academic work, she interned with the Korea Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations and at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center. In her spare time, Lynn enjoys playing squash and visiting art galleries.

Leo Li, Undergraduate Fellow

Leo Li is a senior concentrating in the History Department and is interested in U.S. foreign policy, security studies, and grand strategy. He is pursuing certificates in both Values & Public Life and History & Practice of Diplomacy. Leo is President of Princeton Mock Trial, an editor for the Princeton Historical Review, and a contracted cadet with the Tiger Battalion Army ROTC program. Upon graduation, Leo plans on commissioning as a 2LT in the U.S. Army. During his free time, he enjoys a good book or a game of Squash.

 

 

David Logan, Graduate Fellow

David Logan is a Ph.D. student at Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School. His professional interests include strategic nuclear stability, U.S.-China security relations, and security in the East Asia-Pacific region. He previously served as Director of the CISS Strategic Education Initiative. Prior to coming to Princeton, he spent three years living and working in China. He speaks and reads Mandarin, Russian, and Italian. He holds a B.A. from Grinnell College and an M.P.A. from Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School.

 

 

Anita Pan, MPP Associate Fellow

Anita hails from beautiful Vancouver, Canada and loves all things classical music. She works for the Canadian Foreign Service and has been on assignment in Tokyo, Japan and Seattle, U.S.A., covering a variety of trade and policy issues. Anita is interested in Asia Pacific policy and hopes to broaden her knowledge of U.S.-China bilateral relations at WWS. Like all Canadians, she cannot live without maple syrup and finishes her sentences with “eh”.

 

 

Josh Portzer, MPP Associate Fellow

Lieutenant Josh Portzer was born in Hickory, NC. After completing flight training, he reported to Patrol Squadron FOUR in 2012, completing two deployments to Europe/Africa. Lieutenant Portzer reported to the Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Weapons School in 2015, where he was the program manager for the maritime Maritime Weapons and Tactics Instructor program and the innovation cross functional team chair.In 2018, he deployed to the Mediterranean and currently serves on the USS George Washington as the Assistant Navigator. His personal awards include the Secretary of the Navy Innovation Award, Navy and Marine Association Leadership Award, and two combat air medals, among others. He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and a graduate degree from the University of Arkansas.

 

Ben Press, Undergraduate Fellow

Ben Press is a senior concentrating in the Department of History. He is pursuing certificates in History and the Practice of Diplomacy, French, and Medieval Studies, and will be focusing his senior thesis on judicial and parliamentary institutional formation in England. Ben has completed internships on a successful statewide campaign in his home state of Virginia, at the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance in Stockholm, and the United States Department of State's Bureau of Democracy, Rights, and Labor. Outside of his academic work, he competes on Princeton's Model United Nations Team, serves as the U-Council Chair in the Undergraduate Student Government, and as a tour guide with Orange Key.

 

 

Tajin Rogers, Undergraduate Fellow

Tajin is a senior in the Woodrow Wilson School. A Northern Virginia native, his academic interests include political economy, international development, infrastructure, insurgency, and the politics of nationality, especially in Iran and Inner Asia. He’s now spent two summers studying, researching, and traveling in post-Soviet Eurasia. At Princeton, he sings in the Glee Club, Chapel Choir, and Chamber Choir. In what free time he has, he loves playing (and watching) soccer.

 

 

Christopher Russo, Undergraduate Fellow

Christopher Russo is a junior and prospective Physics major from New York. He is also pursuing certificates in Quantitative and Computational Biology and Russian, Eastern European, and Eurasian studies. He speaks French and Russian, and spent a summer and a gap year in Eastern Europe as part of the NSLI-Y program before Princeton. Outside of CISS, Chris is involved in research on campus and (occasionally) writes for the Princeton Progressive.

 

 

Sajid Shapoo, Graduate Fellow

Sajid Farid Shapoo is a PhD candidate in Security Studies at the Woodrow Wilson School, Princeton University. He is a highly decorated Indian Police Service officer, a two star general with 20 years of progressively senior experience in high profile counter terror assignments. He has in-depth experience in Counter-terror Investigations and Intelligence Operations. He was the first officer chosen to serve in the National Investigation Agency, India’s federal counter terror agency, created in the aftermath of Mumbai Terror attacks of 2008. He has supervised many important terrorism related investigations including conspiracy in Mumbai Terror Attacks, Patna serial blasts case, Bodh Gaya serial blast cases and many more. He is among the rare officers who have been twice conferred with Gallantry Medal, the highest bravery award, by the President of India. He is also a recipient of the Police Medal for Meritorious Services conferred to him by President of India for his exemplary and unblemished service career. He served as an Adjunct Associate Professor in City University of New York where he taught a course on Terrorism and Politics to graduate students in the spring of 2018. He also served as an adjunct Instructor at Columbia University teaching a course for Summer Immersion Program. His areas of expertise include Terrorism and Counter-terrorism, Religion and Politics in Middle East and South Asia, Ideologies driving various Jihadi Organizations, Early Islamic Period (Shia-Sunni divide) and International Security Policy. He holds a Masters in International Affairs at Columbia University, New York with specializations in Middle East and International Security Policy. He has published a number of articles and papers in various international magazines and papers.

Eric Snyder, Graduate Fellow

Originally from College Station, Texas, Eric Snyder is a 2nd Year PhD student researching space security policy. He holds an M.Phil in Military Strategy from the USAF School of Advanced Air and Space Studies (2018), an M.S. in Systems Engineering from the USAF Institute of Technology (2010), and a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering from Texas A&M University (2004). Additionally, he is a graduate of the USAF Weapons School (2011). Eric is an active duty US Air Force officer (Lieutenant Colonel) with a background in space operations. He has had multiple deployments to the US Central Command area of responsibility and assignments have included operations, training, and system acquisition roles.

 

Anne Stickells, Graduate Fellow

Anne Stickells is a PhD student in Security Studies at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. Her research interest focuses on the intersection of conventional technology and nuclear policy. Prior to her time at Princeton, Anne worked as a research assistant at RAND in Santa Monica for several years. Anne graduated from Stanford in 2015 with a BA in Science, Technology, and Society, and a minor in Creative Writing.

 

 

Ayumi Teraoka, Graduate Fellow

Ayumi is a Ph.D. student in the Woodrow Wilson School and has particular interests in international security, U.S. alliance policy, and East Asia’s regional security. Prior to enrolling at Princeton, she worked as a research associate for Japan Studies program at the Council on Foreign Relations and for the Japan Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She holds a master’s degree in Asian Studies from Georgetown University and a BA in Law from Keio University.

 

 

Arturo Trejo, MPP Associate Fellow

A native of El Monte, California, Art was commissioned in 2005 as a Navy nuclear surface warfare officer. He is a Lieutenant Commander and has deployed on a variety of warships including aircraft carriers, a guided missile destroyer, and an amphibious assault ship. Additionally, he has served on two overseas tours; forward-deployed out of Sasebo, Japan and embedded with the Canadian Navy under an exchange program where he was their representative to NATO. He has been selected to be a captain of a Navy warship and looks forward to command-at-sea following his MPP studies at Princeton. Prior to enrolling at Princeton, he worked for two years as a nuclear reactor safety inspector for the U.S. Pacific Fleet Headquarters in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. He holds a B.S. degree in Astrophysics from UCLA.

 

Seyitcan Ucin, Undergraduate Fellow

Seyitcan is a senior from Central Florida in the Department of Comparative Literature pursuing a certificate in Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies. He's interested in representations of ethnic minorities in Turkish literature and the poetics of modernity. In addition to his role on the simulations team at CISS, he is a cadet in the Army ROTC program.

 

 

Alexandra Veyne, Undergraduate Fellow

Alexandra is a junior majoring in Near Eastern Studies. If you would like additional information, please email her at [email protected].

John Vrolyk, Graduate Fellow

John is a Master in Public Affairs candidate at the Woodrow Wilson School and a Captain in the Marine Corps Reserve. His interests lie in grand strategy, the intersection of great power competition with low-intensity conflict, and foreign internal defense. Prior to graduate school, he covered Congressman Panetta’s Armed Services portfolio as a legislative fellow. Before D.C., he served as an active duty infantry officer for four years, including deployments to Northern Syria and Australia. Prior to commissioning in 2013, John worked as an investment banker for three years and received a B.A. from Yale in Ethics, Politics and Economics.

 

Sam Winter-Levy, Graduate Fellow

Sam Winter-Levy is a Ph.D. student in comparative politics and international relations at Princeton University. Before joining the doctoral program, he was a staff editor at Foreign Affairs and a reporter at The Economist. His writing has appeared in publications including NewYorker.com, Foreign Policy, The New Republic, The Washington Post, Lawfare, The Los Angeles Review of Books, the Los Angeles Times, The Times Literary Supplement, and World Policy Journal. He received his undergraduate degree in English literature from the University of Oxford and was the Michael Von Clemm Fellow at Harvard University in 2014-15.

 

 

Anne Marie Wright, Undergraduate Fellow

Anne Marie Wright is a senior concentrating in the Woodrow Wilson School with a certificate in History and the Practice of Diplomacy. Anne Marie is a cadet in the Princeton Army ROTC’s Tiger Battalion and is interested in civilian-military relations. She has split part of the last two summer working in DC gaining knowledge about the civilian side of Defense policy and Veterans and doing ROTC training both in and out of the country. Outside of CISS, Anne Marie is involved in the Bogle Fellows program at the Pace Center and on the Club Soccer Team.

 

 

Kyle Zelenitz, Undergraduate Fellow

Kyle Zelenitz is a student in the Politics Department from Saint Clairsville, Ohio. He plans to pursue the History and Practice of Diplomacy program while continuing to take coursework in architecture. Kyle supported an education initiative for the US Embassy in Moscow, and later conducted research related to the conflict in Syria in support of the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, providing a daily written briefing to State Department staff. At Princeton, Kyle is involved with prison education programs and works as a faculty research assistant.