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POTUS at Georgia Tech

Here are some pictures taken by Nunn School students and staff from President Obama's speech March 10th. Some students and staff even had the opportunity to volunteer and help coordinate the event! Such a momentous occasion here at Georgia Tech!

Watch the full speech here.

Nunn School Sees INTA, EIA and IAML Undergrads Receive Diplomas

Our graduating EIA, IAML and INTA undergraduate majors had their commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 2nd. We are excited to see the impact that our newly-minted graduates have on the world around them! Congrats on "getting out," alums!

Bankoff Named Chairman of the Midtown Alliance

The Nunn School is proud to announce that our Chair, Joe Bankoff, has been named the new Chairman of the Midtown Alliance.

From the Press Release:

“Midtown is now the innovation center of Atlanta,” said Joe Bankoff, the new Chairman of Atlanta’s Midtown Alliance. Bankoff’s perspective on the midtown “innovation zone” draws upon his experience in the arts, business, law, technology, and his role now in higher education as Chair of the Ivan Allen College Sam Nunn School of International Affairs. “We are building strong connections among technology research, education, and entrepreneurial enterprise. Anchor businesses and infrastructure are in place. Our efforts will be to further develop those synergies with a goal of fully realizing Midtown as hub for a work-live-play technology community.”

INTA Master's Students Celebrate Graduation

It's the bittersweet time of year when we have to say good-bye to our graduating students. We also have the joy of seeing them move on to exciting careers and share in their excitement for their accomplishment and future. We look forward to hearing all of the great things that our Nunn School MS graduates will do! Congratulations, graduates!

Roseen Wins IAC Undergraduate Legacy Award

Congratulations to Dillon Roseen on winning the Undergraduate Legacy Award from the Ivan Allen College! Roseen has served as undergraduate student body president for this past academic year, and he's a perfect example of how Nunn School students demonstrate leadership and have impact on campus.

EU Ambassador to the US Visits Tech

On Wednesday, Georgia Tech welcomed the Ambassador of the European Union, His Excellency David O’Sullivan. He discussed several European and international issues such as relations with Russia, negotiations with Iran, human trafficking, and energy but highlighted the Transatlantic Partnership. Ambassador O'Sullivan was welcomed by Nunn School Professor and Jean Monent Chair Dr. Alasdair Young as well as Dr. Vicki Birchfield, Co-Director for the Center for European and Transatlantic Studies (CETS) and posed with Nunn School students and faculty after the talk.

Undersecretary Gottemoeller Mentions Nunn School in Panel on Nuclear Policy

Rose Gottemoeller, Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, recognized the Nunn School in a panel held by the Carnegie Endowment on Nuclear Policy as a school that turns out excellent policy scholars. Undersecretary Gottemoeller recently visited the Nunn School in October and spoke on the future of nuclear policy and advancements in non-proliferation. You can watch her talk here.

Rubin Lectures at NATO Defense College

On March 8, Dr. Lawrence Rubin delivered a lecture, "The United States' policy toward ISIL in Iraq and Syria," at the NATO Defense College in Rome, Italy. The audience consisted of 40 military officers and government officials from NATO's Mediterranean Dialogue and from the Istanbul Co-operation Initiative, along with some NATO officials.

Clark Awarded Boren Scholarship

Nunn School third year student Lizzie Clark has been awarded a Boren Scholarship, a nationally competitive award to sponsor the study of critical languages in areas of the world important to US national security. Clark will spend 8 months intensively studying Arabic in Amman, Jordan in 2016. Her program will be entirely covered by the scholarship. Congratulations!

Bowman Lectures in Cambodia

Dr. Kirk Bowman, the Jon R. Wilcox Professor of Soccer and Global Politics, presented a lecture on “Soccer and Global Poltics: The Role of the Beautiful Game in Political, Economic, and Social Change” to a a crowd of 100 at PUC - Paññāsāstra University of Cambodia on Feburary 12th.

Best Appointed Director of UN Institute on Computing and Society

Michael L. Best, associate professor of international affairs and computing, has been appointed as director of the newly formed United Nations University Institute on Computing and Society (UNU-CS) based in Macau, China.

Commenting on his appointment Best said, “I am honored to have been selected to lead the UNU Computing and Society Institute. My goal is to develop the Institute as a center of excellence in the United Nation’s system effectively responding to the needs of the developing world in the crucially important areas of computing and information technologies.”

Model UN Team Wraps Up Season at Emory

The Georgia Tech Model United Nations (GTMUN) program competed at MUNE - Model United Nations at Emory in April as their last competition of the season! Congratulations to all the undergraduate and master's students who participated this year. The team is looking forward to next year's competition season and hosting a fantastic GTMUN Conference in the fall!

Bray Wins Distinguished Alumni Award

Scott Bray (INTA ’96) received the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs Distinguished Alumni Award on April 7, 2015 at the first Distinguished Alumni Awards Ceremony for the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts. He is currently the National Intelligence Manager for East Asia at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Lincoln to Observe Election in Guyana with President Carter

Dr. Jennie Lincoln will be traveling with former President Jimmy Carter for his 100th election observation (this time in Guyana) on May 11th. She was also there in 1989 for one of President Carter's first election observations in Panama. You can read her account of that observation trip here.

Meng Wins 1st Place in CRDIC Competition

PhD Student Amanda Meng won First Place in the Ivan Allen College Competition at the Career, Research, and Innovation Development Conference (CRIDC), a graduate-level symposium that combines academic panels and a writing competition. Congratulations, Amanda!

Students Visit DC for Career Trip

Nunn School students went on a two-day trip to Washington D.C. for career-related activities. This annual Washington DC Career Visit is a signature of our career development program, designed to provide students with connections and exposure to various professional networks. Students reported they found the visit to be extremely productive and beneficial, allowing them to consider career paths not previously considered, and granting them access to numerous alumni and potential contacts for internships, jobs, graduate school programs and additional networking.

Bowman Conducts Field Work in Brazil

Dr. Kirk Bowman, Jon Wilcox Term Professor in Soccer and Global Politics, spent 10 days in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil conducting fieldwork testing his hypothesis that the keys are having committed local leadership, organic local ideas and programs, an absence of advice or influence from international organizations, and especially the use of advanced level sports and performance such as badminton, music, circus, and dance. Bowman spent his time with Anderson Sá and Afro Reggae in the favela of Vigario Geral, Sebastião Oliveira and Miratus Badminton Club in the favela of Chacrina, Junior Perim and Vinicius Daumas of Crecer e Viver (social and professional circus), Lia Rodrigues of the Lia Rodrigues Companhia de Dança in the favela of Maré, and others.

The Sam Nunn School's Brazil Study Abroad Program will visit and work with some of these exemplary organizations in July.

Young Named EUSA Chair

Dr. Alasdair Young has been selected as the new Chair of the European Union Studies Association (EUSA) for 2015-17. EUSA is the leading U.S.-based interdisciplinary association for scholars studying the European Union. It has over 500 members from 38 countries.

Middle Eastern Politics Course Simulates Yemen Conflict

From April 20th to April 24th. Professor Lawrence Rubin's Middle Eastern Government, Politics, and Society class (INTA 2260) ran a simulation of the Yemen conflict. Students represented actors such as the Houthis, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), Hadi Government Forces, Saleh Loyalists, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United States and Iran.

Kosal Wins CETL/BP Junior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award

Nunn School Assistant Professor Margaret Kosal was awarded the 2015 CETL/BP Junior Faculty Teaching Excellence Award, for “empowering her students to understand the interactive causal, intervening, and determinant roles at play among science, technology, and policy that are necessary for solving the issues of today and in the future... and developing in her students the capacity to lead as well as understand.” Congratulations, Dr. Kosal!

Students Attend Dinner with Japanese Consulate General

In an event coordinated by the Atlanta Council on International Relations and the Consulate General of Japan in Atlanta, Nunn School students and faculty were invited to a dinner at the Residence of the Consul General of Japan with honored guest Ambassador Saito, the former Japanese Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, France, and Russia.

Fabry Speaks at UC Berkeley

Professor Mikulas Fabry was invited to speak at a symposium on the Ukrainian crisis at UC Berkeley​ School of Law in Berkeley, California on February 13, 2015.  His presentation focused on how to uphold the territorial integrity of Ukraine in the face of Russia's annexation of Crimea and continuing intervention in eastern Ukraine.

PhD Candidate Baxter Presents Research

Nunn School PhD student (now candidate!) Phil Baxter presented his research this semester on nuclear forensics, showing where the Nunn School's students excel: the nexus of science and policy.

INTAGO Hosts Spring Fling

On Saturday, April 11th, graduate students, families, friends, staff and alumni all got together on Saturday to celebrate the annual INTAGO Spring Fling. Fun, games, and food were on the menu, and a good time was had by all.

Now Offering Minor in Global Development

The Nunn School, in conjunction with our colleagues in the George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering, will begin offering a Minor in Global Development starting in Fall 2015. This minor will prepare students to be catalysts for improving the lives of the world’s vulnerable communities in a sustainable manner. It will combine engineering, technology, and design with the social sciences and humanities to solve practical problems in the developing world. Students will learn and apply analytical skills and practical problem-solving techniques, gain technical competence, become conscious of variations in local cultures and social conditions, and master the ability to collaborate across disciplines to solve problems in Global Development. Students will learn to define problems, facilitate and contribute to their solutions, and, in the process, become more objective, non-linear thinkers with the capacity to synthesize data and seek and value perspectives other than their own.

Moore, Nunn School Administrator, Announces Retirement

After three decades of dedicated service to the students and faculty of the Nunn School, administrator extraordinaire Wanda Moore announced she would be retiring at the end of May. Naturally the students, staff and faculty wanted to share their appreciation. A surprise party was planned and a packed house showed how much love her colleagues have for her. Congratulations, Wanda! Enjoy your time off! You've earned it.

Security Fellows Visit DC

The Nunn School Security Fellows were in Washington D.C. this March for a series of meetings with doctoral Tech alumni and staffers on Capitol Hill. They were able to chat with Congressman John Lewis just after a House session.

CLASS NOTES

As seen above, Scott Bray (INTA ’96) received the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs Distinguished Alumni Award on April 7, 2015 at the first Distinguished Alumni Awards Ceremony for the Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts. He is currently the National Intelligence Manager for East Asia at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Amira Choueiki (EIA ’11) accepted a new position in February as an Innovation and Project Management Specialist with the new White House Social and Behavioral Sciences Team in Washington, D.C.

Rebecca Coppedge (MSIA ’11) and husband, John, welcomed their daughter, Eleanor, on November 1, 2014. Eleanor joins sister, Evie, age 3.

Katherina Delgado (INTA ’14) accepted a position in February teaching English in Istanbul, Turkey for American Kultur.

Josh Krisinger (INTA ’09) accepted a new position as an international flight attendant for Delta Airlines.

Hayden Marsh (EIA ’14) accepted a new position as a sales analyst for Cardlytics Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia.

David T. Newton (INTA’03), who previously worked as an attorney with Maynard, Cooper & Gale, PC in Birmingham, Alabama, has accepted a position with the State Department as a Foreign Service Officer. He currently serves as the Economic and Commercial Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Lomé, Togo.

Austin Steed (IAML ’11) married Mary Nevaire Marsh on June 21, 2014 and is now working as a Business Analyst at Asurion in Hong Kong.

Send us news of your marriage, the birth of your children, new employment, and accomplishments to be included in the Sam Nunn School of International Affairs Newsletter: http://bit.ly/intaclassnotes