CNAS Announces 2022 Shawn Brimley Next Generation National Security Fellows

Washington, January 28, 2022—The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) announced today the selection of the 2022 Shawn Brimley Next Generation National Security Fellows. Now in its 13th year, the Next Gen Program is a fundamental component of CNAS’ commitment to ensuring the United States develops a diverse cadre of talented individuals dedicated to preserving and strengthening its national security. After a highly competitive process, CNAS selected a bipartisan group of 24 emerging leaders from multiple sectors. This year’s fellows include members of the military; government professionals, including from the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and Congress; individuals from the private and nonprofit sectors; and think tank experts.

“Each year, this fellowship gets progressively more competitive. We’re proud to have such a diverse array of eye-watering talent in the 2022 cohort,” said Michèle Flournoy, CNAS Co-Founder and Chair of the Board, who will co-chair the program along with Stephen Biegun, former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, and Christian Marrone, Senior Vice President of Government Affairs at Lockheed Martin. “These emerging national security leaders are truly extraordinary, and their commitment to service should give us all hope for the future.”

Through this leadership development program and its monthly speaker series and small private discussions, the Next Gen Fellows will engage with those who have led before them, developing a deeper understanding of U.S. national security interests and policies, as well as leadership principles and best practices. Previous classes have met with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson, former National Security Advisor Susan Rice, former White House Chiefs of Staff Josh Bolten and Denis McDonough, General Stanley McChrystal, Admiral Cecil Haney, Ambassador Bonnie Jenkins, Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Congressman Mike Gallagher (R-WI), and many others. Fellows will also collaborate with CNAS experts and participate in events. Upon completion of the program, fellows remain connected to the Center through the CNAS alumni program.

“I am excited for the opportunity to work with such an impressive group of young, foreign policy and national security experts” said Biegun. “It is my hope that working together they will build lasting professional relationships that will pay dividends throughout their future careers.”

“I’m delighted to welcome this extraordinary cohort,” added Marrone, “and I look forward to working with them in the months ahead to continue crafting their career trajectory and leadership growth.”

The complete list of the 2022 Shawn Brimley Next Generation National Security Fellows is below. Their full biographies are available here.

CNAS 2022 Shawn Brimley Next Generation National Security Fellows:

• Mark Akpaninyie, Indo-Pacific Analyst, U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs
• Frederico Bartels, Senior Policy Analyst for Defense Budgeting, The Heritage Foundation
• Jamil Brown, Instructor of Political Science, U.S. Air Force Academy
• Ryan Bugas, Strategy Officer, USG
• Philip Caruso, Chairman, No One Left Behind
• Erin Corcoran, Foreign Affairs Specialist, Office of the Secretary of Defense
• Jessica Drun, Data Scientist Analyst, S&P Global
• Emily Elledge, Captain, U.S. Marine Corps
• Tina Huang, Policy Program Manager, Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence
• Sarah Istel, Deputy General Counsel, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
• Michael Keating, Director of Client Services, Deep Labs AI
• Leland Lazarus, Special Assistant and Speechwriter, U.S. Southern Command
• Izaak Mendoza, Director of Programs and Communications, Globally
• Eugene Mok, Attorney-Advisor, Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
• Kathryn Morisy, Strategist, The National Counterterrorism Center
• Jacob Morton, Lieutenant, U.S. Navy
• Margaret Mullins, National Security Advisor, Office of Senator Raphael Warnock
• Anna Rubinstein, Director of Test and Evaluation, MORSE Corporation
• Alexandra Schmitt, Foreign Policy Fellow, U.S. House of Representatives
• Jessica Shoemaker, Civilian Intelligence Officer, U.S. Air Force
• Hannah Smith, Captain, U.S. Army, and Instructor, Department of Social Sciences, United States Military Academy at West Point
• Joseph Tomczak, Special Operations Pilot, U.S. Air Force
• Simone Williams, Program Manager, LCWINS
• Nadine Zaatar, Economic Unit Chief and Senior Economic Advisor, U.S. Department of State

CNAS would like to thank its partners, Lockheed Martin and the American Express Foundation, for their generous support of the program.

For questions concerning the fellowship, please contact nextgeneration@cnas.org.