I am an Assistant Professor in the School of Public Policy at the University of Maryland, College Park where I direct the Military Perspectives Speaker Series and am a Research Fellow in the Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland (CISSM).
My research looks into sub-state conflict, with a particular focus on the internal dynamics of non-state armed actors. My book, Rebels in the Field: Cadre and the Development of Insurgent Military Power (forthcoming at Oxford University Press), investigates the determinants of insurgent military power by drawing upon extensive archival materials. It includes an in-depth examination of the Taliban in Afghanistan after 2001 and 17 organizations in Iraq (2003-present) and Vietnam (1945-1975). Beyond sub-state conflict, some of my other work focuses on military effectiveness and civil-military relations. My research has been supported by the Department of Homeland Security's National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE), Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School, the Institute for Security and Conflict Studies at George Washington University, the Modern War Institute at West Point, the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation, the Smith Richardson Foundation, and the Tobin Project.
I hold a Ph.D. in Political Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where I was an affiliate of the Security Studies Program and a B.A. in Government from Colby College. Previously, I worked for a USAID implementing partner conducting business development for assistance programs in Afghanistan and the Middle East.
My research looks into sub-state conflict, with a particular focus on the internal dynamics of non-state armed actors. My book, Rebels in the Field: Cadre and the Development of Insurgent Military Power (forthcoming at Oxford University Press), investigates the determinants of insurgent military power by drawing upon extensive archival materials. It includes an in-depth examination of the Taliban in Afghanistan after 2001 and 17 organizations in Iraq (2003-present) and Vietnam (1945-1975). Beyond sub-state conflict, some of my other work focuses on military effectiveness and civil-military relations. My research has been supported by the Department of Homeland Security's National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE), Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at the Harvard Kennedy School, the Institute for Security and Conflict Studies at George Washington University, the Modern War Institute at West Point, the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation, the Smith Richardson Foundation, and the Tobin Project.
I hold a Ph.D. in Political Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where I was an affiliate of the Security Studies Program and a B.A. in Government from Colby College. Previously, I worked for a USAID implementing partner conducting business development for assistance programs in Afghanistan and the Middle East.