Leigh Rowland studied Political Science and Military History at the University of Michigan prior to accepting a position in 2010 with the Institute for Social Research (ISR) in Ann Arbor. At ISR, Leigh assisted with the design and implementation of data collection protocols for the Army Study to Assess Risk and Resilience in Servicemembers (Army STARRS), the largest study of mental health risk and resilience ever conducted among military personnel. During her time at ISR, Leigh also worked closely with veteran populations in the Ann Arbor area as part of her volunteer activities at both the local VA Hospital and the International Red Cross’ Services to the Armed Forces program. In July 2012, Leigh relocated to Washington to pursue her M.A. in Security Policy Studies at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs, where she is focusing on defense analysis and strategic force planning. Leigh is also continuing her work on Army STARRS as an analyst for the Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for the Army.
Category: Spotlight
Spotlight on: Ben Nelson
Ben Nelson is a second year Elliott School graduate student in the International Affairs program, focusing on U.S. national security policy in the Middle East. His areas of interest include U.S.-Egypt relations, democratization, and the Arab-Israeli conflict.
A Richmond native, Ben attended Virginia Commonwealth University where he studied international relations, Middle East politics, and Arabic. During his first year at GW, Ben completed internships at Search for Common Ground, a conflict-resolution organization, and at the U.S. State Department's Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, where he hopes to work after graduation. He recently concluded an internship on Capitol Hill in the office of Senator Tim Kaine.
Ben also serves as a managing editor of the International Affairs Review, where GW graduate students publish policy-oriented essays on current international issues. Always an advocate for graduate students who want to publish, he is happy to talk to students about submitting their work to the Review's website.
Spotlight on: Marjorie Wass
Marjorie Wass is a first-year student in the Master of International Affairs program; she is focusing on Gender and Development. As an undergraduate at Appalachian State University in North Carolina, she studied theatre and linguistics and graduated with high honors. While in school, she travelled to England, Scotland and Italy and spent a summer in France. Pursuing her love of foreign destinations, Marjorie lived in Rabat, Morocco for two years after graduation, teaching English at the American Language Center and running the school’s drama club. She vastly expanded her knowledge of French and gathered a small command of Arabic, both Modern Standard and Darija.
Marjorie returned to her native California and began working in Public Relations and Communications. She had the privilege of working with many NGOs including Direct Relief International, Seeing Eye Expeditions (SEE) International and the American Red Cross. In 2010, she was chosen by Rotary International to participate in a professional exchange in Bangladesh. She spent one month there, travelling around the country and meeting with professionals from UNICEF, BRAC and other organizations. She is currently a tutor with the International Dialogue program at the Elliott School.
Spotlight on: Florian Decludt
Florian Decludt is a second year student in the International Affairs program, with a concentration in Security Policy and Transnational Security Issues. Prior to attending the Elliott School, Florian graduated in 2012 with a Bachelor in Business Administration from ESSEC Business School located near Paris, France. Throughout his studies, he had the chance to travel to more than 45 countries and live in France, the United Kingdom, the Dominican Republic, Australia and Singapore. He is fluent in French and Spanish and is currently learning Thai.
While at the Elliott School, Florian studied abroad at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (Nanyang Technological University) in Singapore. Florian is currently interning at the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. As a current Elliott School Graduate Student Ambassador (GSA), he is happy to answer any questions from incoming students, particularly regarding study abroad opportunities and the International Affairs program.
Spotlight on: Julia Collins
Julia Collins is a Research/Program Assistant for the Women and Water, South and Central Asia Project at the Elliott School of International Affairs. Julia is a first-year Master’s Candidate in the International Affairs program, focusing on Conflict Resolution and Security Policy Studies. Her particular areas of academic interest include Post-conflict reconstruction, memory politics and dealing with the past, and promoting good governance in transitional democracies – specifically, Myanmar.
Julia graduated from UCLA in 2009 with a B.A. in Political Science, and minors in Environmental Geography and German. Prior to attending the Elliott School, Julia worked on Guam, lived in Hungary, taught along the Thailand-Myanmar border at a political training school for democracy activists, and advocated for refugees at a Californian refugee resettlement agency.
Involved on campus, Julia is the Alumni/New Student Chair on the Graduate Student Forum (GSF), Vice President of PEERS (Professionals in European, Eurasian, and Russian Studies), and a Residence Director at the Center for Student Engagement. After completing her program, Julia hopes to become a Conflict Resolution consultant at a federal agency or international organization.
Elliott School Graduate Student Featured in the Chosun Ilbo for Work in South Korea
Elliott School graduate student, Alyssa Abraham, was recently featured in The Chosun Ilbo-- one of the most widely read newspapers in South Korea (think the New York Times of South Korea), for her internship at Cafe Grace. Cafe Grace employs North Korean refugee women who have difficulty finding jobs in South Korea. Alyssa teaches English to a North Korean refugee while helping out in other ways (like making coffee on occasion!).
Alyssa's efforts to help North Korean refugees extends beyond the walls of the cafe. She assists with tutoring an English class for North Korean children and attended a Peace Conference last week. Alyssa spends a lot of her time building relationships with the people she works with-- many of whom have been very supportive of her efforts.
You can find a translated summary of the article here: "Helping Serve Refugees" -The Chosun Ilbo
Spotlight on: Alex Golden
Alex Golden is an M.A. candidate in Asian Studies at The George Washington University. Alex first studied Japanese at Colgate University and developed a passionate interest in Japan and its culture. While at Colgate, Alex was a reporter for the student newspaper and a volunteer classroom assistant at the local elementary school. Alex participated in the Colgate Japanese Study Group, Colgate's semester abroad program, which solidified Alex's passion for East Asia. As part of this program Alex studied in at the Kyoto Institute of Culture and Language in Kyoto while living with a host family in the city of Otsu on Lake Biwa. While on this trip, Alex also spent time in Tokyo where he interned at a fish market, and Chichijima in the Ogasawara Islands where he interviewed and wrote a biographical sketch of a Chichijima native, Frederick Savary (a Japanese-speaking, direct descendant of one of the original New England whalers who originally settled the island).
After earning his undergraduate degree, Alex returned to Japan to teach English in Elementary and Middle school in Osaki. The earthquake in March 2011 forced Alex to leave Japan earlier than he intended. Upon returning to the US, Alex spoke about the earthquake around the Philadelphia area and interned at the Hudson Institute, as a foreign affairs researcher. He then joined the Elliott School in Fall 2011 and intends to pursue a career as an East Asia specialist upon graduation.
Spotlight on: Tristan Bramble
Tristan V. Bramble will complete a foreign policy graduate certificate this summer 2013. He is a licensed attorney and Ethics Specialist for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Office of Ethics. Tristan’s interests in good governance, international corruption prevention, and foreign policy analysis led him to the George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs certificate program, and his coursework has furthered his research and insight.
In November 2012, his USDA office hosted the People’s Republic of China, Ministry of Agriculture, Bureau of Disciplinary Supervision and Investigation for an ethics and corruption prevention program review and exchange. Tristan has volunteered, studied abroad, and independently traveled in a number of countries, primarily Central America and Europe.
Open Hour Conversation with the Deans of Academic Programs from the Elliott School
Associate Dean Mochizuki and Assistant Dean Stephenson would like to invite you to have an open conversation with them and share your opinions about your experience here at the Elliott School. This open hour conversation will be held on April 19 from 4:00pm - 5:00pm in the Suite 401 conference room of 1957 E St and is open to all Elliott School Graduate students, so feel free to tell your friends!
Please click HERE to RSVP and let us know if you can attend as soon as possible, but by no later than April 12. The deans look forward to meeting with you!
Spotlight on: Kaylan Geiger
Kaylan Geiger is an M.A. candidate in the Middle East Studies program at The George Washington University. She was born in New Orleans, LA and obtained a B.A. in International Studies from the University of New Orleans. She has studied abroad at the American University in Cairo, the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and Birzeit University in the West Bank. Between 2007 and 2012, she traveled to Egypt, Israel, and the Palestinian Territories several times in order to study Arabic and gain an accurate understanding of the region. The focus of her studies has primarily been on the dissemination of information within society, particularly as the process relates to journalism.
Her M.A. capstone, co-written with Fraus Masri, focused on the status of press freedom in post-Mubarak Egypt and under the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces. She has interned for the New Orleans Citizen Diplomacy Council and the World Affairs Institute, and worked at the Palestinian American Research Center from 2012-2013, which promotes doctoral and post-doctoral research in the field of Palestinian Studies. She currently works for Tadween Publishing, a subsidiary of the Arab Studies Institute at George Mason University, as a copy-editor and blog writer. Kaylan plans to move to Cairo in the next few months in order to begin her career as a freelance journalist.
