The US Foreign Policy Association’s goals are to increase dialog on relevant foreign policy issues, build a community and expand the career options of students in the US Foreign Policy Graduate Program, Undergraduates in the US Foreign Policy concentration and all other students interested in foreign policy issues.

In order to achieve these goals the USFPA sponsors and co-sponsors three types of events:

• Career Events - Talks and panel discussions from professionals who have careers related to foreign policy.

• Foreign Policy Talks/Panel Discussions - Each semester the USFPA is involved in a variety of events related to a broad range of foreign policy topics.

• Social Events - Throughout the school year the USFPA offers several events geared towards increasing a sense of community amongst fellow students who are interested in foreign policy. These events have included social hours as well as a student/faculty barbecue.

Contact us at usfpassociation@gmail.com or at the USFPA Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/177871705582935/

Past Association Events

NAFTA: Successes, Failures, and Future

USFP Professor Robert Pastor and SIS Professor Manuel Suarez-Mier spoke with students on the landmark NAFTA trade agreement and its impact on the North American continent.

End of Year Dinner

The U.S. Foreign Policy Association sponsored an end of year dinner for students, faculty, and staff in the SIS Atrium. Students enjoyed the opportunity to relax after Finals and engage in casual conversation with faculty.

Coffee Talk on the Diplomatic Challenges of Regime Change with U.S. Foreign Policy Distinguished Diplomat-in-Residence Anthony Quainton

Students gathered in the U.S. Foreign Policy common area on the third floor of the SIS building to hear Ambassador Anthony Quainton discuss the challenges of regime change on diplomatic relations. Ambassador Quainton drew on his long career in the Foreign Service to discuss the recent regime changes around the world and how these changes will impact U.S. relations.

Coffee Talk on the U.S. Role in Libya with Professor Shadi Mokhtari

Professor Mokhtari discussed U.S. foreign policy in Libya, as well as human rights in the Muslim world.  She also examined how U.S. policies in Libya compared to those in Iraq. 

The Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review vs. Defense Budgeting

USFP Professors Gordon Adams and Anthony Quainton spoke on the newly-released Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review in February.  They drew on their years of experience within the U.S. government to critique the document, and fielded questions from U.S. Foreign Policy students.

Transformation in Egypt

USFP Adjunct Professor Hillary Mann Leverett joined SIS Professors Kristin Diwan and Boaz Atzili to discuss the recent revolution in Egypt and its effects on the broader Middle East.

Association Officers

Daniel MacDuff is the president of USFPA. He is an MA candidate in the US Foreign Policy program concentrating in transnational crime and terrorism. He focuses on the intersection of criminal and terrorist organizations, particularly in the cyber realm. He speaks Spanish and Russian and received the Critical Language Scholarship to study in Vladimir, Russia in the summer of 2012.

Leela Harpur is the Vice President of USFPA. She is a first year USFP student concentrating in International Peace and Conflict Resolution and Latin America. She speaks Spanish and Italian and continues to develop these language skills through multiple study, volunteer and work experiences in Mexico, Central America, Spain and Italy, including an internship in the U.S. Embassy, Rome with the U.S. Department of State. Leela is currently interning at the Organization of American States in the Inter-American Committee Against Terrorism.

Benjamin W. Lightle is the secretary of the USFPA and is in his final semester of studies at SIS. Formerly employed as a woodworker in New York City, he has since made the transition to studying US security policy. His studies are particularly concerned with security force assistance programs, as well as the intricacies of specific criminal/terrorist/insurgent networks, especially those operating in the area ranging from Central Africa to the Levant.

Will Daming is the treasurer of USFPA. Will is a second year graduate student studying USFP towards the Middle East. Since learning Farsi at the Defense Language Institute, Will is interested in working towards creating rapprochement between the U.S. and Iran. Will is currently interning at the Bureau of International Security and Nonproliferation at the Department of State.

Shantell Isaac is the Operations Officer of USFPA. She is a second year USFP student concentrating in International Economic Relations, with a particular focus on investment policy. For the past year she has been interning at the Department of Commerce, International Trade
Administration’s Select USA organization, where she has been able to directly assist in U.S. FDI promotion and attraction efforts. As a first generation Arab-American, Shantell is fluent in the Arabic language.