Syllabus
Great Decisions 2016
PLS 240-001/ PLS 441-001
UNCW
Lectures: Morton Hall
Assigned Classes and Tutorial Leaders
Tuesdays and Thursdays - 7-8:45 pm
Instructor:
Dr. Remonda Kleinberg
Office:
Leutze Hall 269
Telephone:
(910) 962-4254
Office Hours:
Tuesday-Thursdays: 1-2pm or by appointment
Email:
kleinbergr@uncw.edu
Please feel free to email me with concerns or questions.
Course Description: What Is Great Decisions?
Great Decisions (GD) promotes student awareness and discussion about timely foreign policy
issues. Run by the Foreign Policy Association in New York, it is the oldest and largest grassroots
educational program on world affairs of its kind in the country, with about 350,000 overall
participants. Great Decisions is one of the five Flagship Programs of the World Affairs Councils
of America. A Flagship Program is one that is broadly supported throughout the council system
and that builds the name and impact of the system and its councils. Great Decisions celebrated its
50th anniversary in 2004. Councils around the country helped celebrate its tradition and history.
At UNCW, the purpose of Great Decisions is to educate all students from all Majors about issues
of vital importance to American foreign policy, to provide you with the information to make
informed decisions about the topics covered, and to be able to participate in the foreign-policy
process. During the fall semester the student steering committee and course instructor, Dr.
Kleinberg, work hard to find experts that can speak on the topics chosen by the Foreign Policy
Association. Each year eight topics are chosen by a panel and in-depth articles on each subject are
prepared by experts. The articles go into the 100-page softbound Great Decisions briefing book
that appears with new content every January and will serve as your text for the course. Our
speakers will give their own twist and focus to the topics at hand. This way you will have a good
overview of the issues plaguing our globe presently.
The main requirements for making and keeping an A is to read your articles and attend tutorials
and lectures listed below. All the lectures will take place at Morton Hall on the designated
dates. All tutorials will take place on Thursdays in your assigned classroom with student leaders
to discuss topics related to the lectures, the readings and other international issues which may
arise. It is all very informal and meant to enhance your understanding of the crucial global events
facing us presently.
Please read the following meeting dates and places carefully. All meetings begin at 7 pm, so
please be there between 6:30 and 7:00 to sign in and take your seat. Please note that attendance
will be taken in both lectures and tutorials. Please keep laptops and electronic devices in your
backpack or at home; any violation of this rule will lead to an exam given to the entire lecture at
the end of the semester.
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
1
Grading: Students will be graded on attendance in both lectures and tutorials. Make sure to
contact your Tutorial Assistant if any problems emerge to keep you from attending either session.
You will be provided with all the contact information.
Course Text: Great Decisions 2016: You will find your text in the UNCW Bookstore, or buy a
copy on-line. Other Sources include the Foreign Policy Association webpage:
http://www.fpa.org/
Grading Scheme: There are 18 meeting times throughout the semester including both lecture and
tutorial: Each absence is the equivalent of minus half a grade: KEEP YOUR “A”!!!
Full Attendance and Participation =
One Absence: =
ATwo Absences =
B+
Three Absences =
B
Four Absences =
BFive Absences =
C+
Six Absences =
C
Seven Absences =
CEight Absences =
D+
Nine Absences =
D
A
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
2
Schedule of Lectures
Date: January 12:
Topic: Cuba and the U.S.
Place: Morton Hall
Guest: Dr. Richard Kilroy
Summary of Lecture:
The U.S. announced in December 2014 that, after decades of isolation, it has begun taking major
steps to normalize relations with Cuba, its neighbor to the south. The announcement marks a
dramatic shift away from a policy that has its roots in one of the darkest moments of the Cold
War — the Cuban missile crisis. Although the U.S. trade embargo is unlikely to end any time
soon, American and Cuban leaders today are trying to bring a relationship once defined by a
crisis in the 1960s into the 21st century
Dr. Richard Kilroy Jr. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Politics and Geography at
Coastal Carolina University, where he teaches courses in the Intelligence and Security degree
program and has served as the Assistant Director of Military Programs. He was previously
Professor of Regional and Analytical Studies in the College of International Security Affairs,
National Defense University at Ft. Bragg, NC campus, where he also taught classes in Latin
American Regional Studies. Dr. Kilroy spent 23 years in active-duty U.S. military service as an
Army Military Intelligence and Latin America Foreign Area Officer. His operational assignments
included tactical and strategic intelligence deployments in Europe, and political-military
deployments throughout Latin America including the U.S. Embassy, Mexico City. After the
terrorist attacks of 9-11, LTC Kilroy was detailed to the U.S. Joint Forces Command as the
Information Operations Supervisor for the start-up Homeland Defense Division, which eventually
became U.S. Northern Command. Dr. Kilroy is the editor of Threats to Homeland Security: An
All Hazards Perspective, published by J. Wiley and Sons (2007); co-editor of Colonial Disputes
and Territorial Legacies in Africa and Latin America, published by the Northeast Asian
Historical Society (2010); and co-author of North American Regional Security: A Trilateral
Framework? Published by Lynne Rienner (2012). He has also published articles in several
Journals.
January 14: Proceed to Tutorial
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
3
Date: January 19th
Topic: The Middle East
Place: Morton Hall
Guest: Dr. Lisa Pollard
Summary of Lecture:
From a proxy war in Yemen to an ongoing civil war in Syria, a number of ongoing conflicts have
shaken the traditional alliances in the Middle East to their core. As alliances between state and
non-state actors in the region are constantly shifting, the U.S. has found itself between a rock and
a hard place. In a series of conflicts that are far from being black-and-white, what can the U.S. do
to secure its interests in the region without causing further damage and disruption?
Lisa Pollard completed her Ph.D. at the University of California at Berkeley in 1997, where she
was trained in the history of the modern Middle East, the history of modern imperialism and
colonialism, and modern Arabic literature. Her current research considers the nineteenth-century
Sudanese Islamic movement, the Mahdiya, as a response to European and Egyptian imperialism.
The work illustrates the various ways in which the Mahdiya was appropriated, championed and
denounced by contemporary analysts and observers, and how its meaning was understood and
distorted by realpolitik and the international media. Dr. Pollard is also doing research on changes
in the Egyptian family between the revolutions of 1919 and 1952, the period during which Egypt
made its transition from colonialism to independence.
Dr. Pollard is the author of Nurturing the Nation: The Family Politics of Modernizing,
Colonizing and Liberating Egypt, 1805-1923 (Berkeley and Los Angeles: The University of
California Press, 2005). She is co-editor of Families of a New World: Gender, Politics and StateBuilding in Global Perspective (New York and London: Routledge Press, 2003). She is author
of numerous articles, including “Reading, Writing and Revolution: The Home, The Family and
the Schoolroom in the Construction of Turn-of-the-Twentieth-Century Egyptian National
Identity,” in Amira Sonbol, ed., A History of Her Own: Muslim Women and the Deconstruction
of Patriarchy (Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 2005); “Working by the Book: Houses,
Homes and Modernity in nineteenth-century Egypt,” in Relli Shecter, ed., Transitions in
Domestic Consumption and Family Life in the Modern Middle East: Houses in Motion (New
York and London: Palgrave Press, 2004); “The Habits and Customs of Modernity: State
Scholarship, Foreign Travel and the Construction of New Egyptian Nationalism,” Arab Studies
Journal, VII:2 Fall 1999/Spring 2000; “The Family Politics of Colonizing and Liberating Egypt
(1882-1919), Social Politics, Vol. VII, Spring 2000. Dr. Pollard teaches a variety of courses on
the history of the Middle East and Islam.
January 21: Proceed to Tutorial
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
4
January 26th
Topic: The Rise of ISIS
Place: Morton Hall
Guest: Dr. Joseph Fitsanakis
Summary of Lecture:
Born out of an umbrella organization of Al Qaeda in Iraq, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria
(ISIS) burst onto the international stage after it seized Falluja in December 2013. Since then, the
group has seized control of a number of critical strongholds in the country and declared itself a
caliphate, known as the Islamic State. Still, the question remains: What is ISIS, and what danger
does it pose to U.S. interests?
Dr. Joseph Fitsanakis specializes in intelligence and national security with an emphasis on
international espionage. He has taught and written extensively on subjects such as
communications interception, cyber espionage, intelligence reform, and transnational criminal
networks. His writings have been translated into several languages and referenced in media
outlets including The Washington Post, BBC, ABC, Newsweek, The Guardian, Le Monde
Diplomatique, and Wired. Dr. Fitsanakis received his PhD from the Department of Politics and
International Relations at the University of Edinburgh through a scholarship from the Economic
and Social Research Council of the United Kingdom. Before joining Coastal Carolina University
in 2015, Dr. Fitsanakis built the Security and Intelligence Studies program at King University,
where he also directed the King Institute for Security and Intelligence Studies. At Coastal, he
teaches courses on national security, intelligence communications, intelligence operations, and
espionage during the Cold War, among other subjects.
January 28th : Proceed to Tutorial
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
5
Date: February 2
Topic: Migrants
Place: Morton Hall
Guest: Dr. Nadia El-Shaarawi
Summary of Lecture:
As a record number of migrants cross the Mediterranean Sea to find refuge in Europe, the
continent is struggling to come up with an adequate response. Although Europe’s refugees are
largely fleeing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and parts of Africa, their struggle is hardly unique. Today,
with the number of displaced people is at an all-time high, a number of world powers find
themselves facing a difficult question: How can they balance border security with humanitarian
concerns? More importantly, what can they do to resolve these crises so as to limit the number of
displaced persons?
Dr. Nadia El-Shaarawi completed graduate work in Anthropology at Case Western
Reserve. While there she received the Canadian Institutes for Health Research Doctoral
Research Award and CWR’s Ruth Barber Moon Award. After leaving CWR Dr. ElShaarawi began work for Duke University’s Islamic Studies Center and was a
postdoctoral fellow of the Keenan Institute for Ethics. Recently Dr. El-Shaarawi took a
position as an assistant professor of Global Studies at Colby College in Mane, where she
teaches a number of courses including “Global Displacement: Understanding Refugees
and Refugee Policy.”
February 5: Proceed to your tutorials
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
6
Date: February 9
Topic: Kurdistan
Place: Morton Hall
Guest Speaker: Dr. Joseph Arlinghaus
Summary of Lecture:
Kurdistan, a mountainous region made up of parts of Turkey, Iraq, Iran, Armenia and Syria, is
home to one of the largest ethnic groups in West Asia: the Kurds. Now, most in the West know
them for their small, oil-rich autonomous region in northern Iraq called Iraqi Kurdistan — one of
the U.S.’ closer allies in the Middle East and a bulwark against the expansion of the so-called
Islamic State. What does the success of Iraqi Kurdistan mean for Kurds in the surrounding
region?
Dr. Arlinghaus has lived, worked and traveled in South Asia (Nepal, India, Pakistan, and
Afghanistan) teaching English, studying Hindi, Urdu and Pakhtun while doing dissertation
research on the early history of the Pakhtun (or Afghan) tribes. He defended his dissertation at
Duke University in 1988 while working as a cultural analyst for the U.S. Army at Fort Bragg,
North Carolina. Dr. Arlinghaus’ academic pursuits and his work with the U.S. Army focused on
South Asia and the Middle East. Alongside his work on the history of tribal societies (Afghans,
Turks, Arabs, Kurds and Berbers), Dr. Arlinghaus has conducted extensive research on
comparative Islamic empires (Pathan, Mughal, Safavi, Shaibanid and Ottoman) in the early
modern period, and patterns of Islamic expression in regional contexts. Work with the U.S.
Army included research, writing and briefings in several areas including the Islamic Republic of
Iran, the anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan, Islamic political expression and sectarianism in the
Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Taliban movement in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Dr.
Arlinghaus also conducted studies on ethnic groups in Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, the Kurds
of northern Iraq, and issues in the newly independent states of Central Asia. Dr. Arlinghaus
frequently briefs deploying U.S. soldiers on Islam and Muslim cultures (especially with regard to
Afghanistan) focusing on Islamic extremism, and elucidating the links between militant Islam and
international terrorism (especially al-Qaeda). In the last two years before his retirement, Dr.
Arlinghaus was directed to investigate the Sunni insurgency against the Assad regime in Syria
and to analyze the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, ISIS), an al-Qaeda
offshoot. Dr. Arlinghaus deployed eight times with soldiers to Turkey, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
February 11: Proceed to your tutorial
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
7
Date: February 16
Topic: United Nations
Place: Morton Hall
Guest: Suhail Khan
Summary of Lecture: On the eve of the international organization’s 70th birthday, the United Nations
stands at a crossroads. This year marks a halfway point in the organization’s global effort to eradicate
poverty, hunger and discrimination, as well as ensure justice and dignity for all peoples. But as the
UN’s 193 member states look back at the success of the millennium development goals, they also
must assess their needs for its sustainable development goals — a new series of benchmarks, which
are set to expire in 2030. With the appointment of the ninth secretary-general in the near future as
well, the next U.S. president is bound to have quite a lot on his or her plate going into office.
Suhail Khan started his UN career in 2005 in New Delhi with an
internship with the United Nations Information Center for India and Bhutan. There he was responsible
for liaising with the media, organizing events and supporting public information officers. His
assignments also included the high-level India visit of Secretary-General Kofi Annan and Special
Envoy for Tsunami Recovery President Bill Clinton. Upon completion of his internship, he joined All
India Radio as a Journalist and Producer, covering youth and development issues. In 2006, he moved
to New York to pursue another internship with the UN Department of Public Information (DPI). In
DPI, he was responsible for the Jay-Z: Water for Life campaign and collaborated with MTV, UNDP
and UNICEF on the Diary of Jay-Z: Water for Life documentary, which premiered at the UN
headquarters. He also organized the 2006 Global Youth Summit and Youth Against Malaria Concert.
At the end of his internship, Suhail was offered a position at the UN headquarters. As a Public
Information Specialist, he interacted daily with students and educated them on the work of the UN. In
addition, he organized the 2007 Reham al-Farra Journalism Fellowship Programme, the UN Day
Concert and worked closely with the Vatican press during the UN visit of Pope Benedict XVI. In
2008, he moved to the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) where he collaborated on the
planning and deployment of six peacekeeping missions to East Africa. He was also part of the team
that established the United Nations Office to the African Union, and the Office of the Special Envoy
for Sudan and South Sudan. In mid-2012, he joined the Office of the Special Representative of the
Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict. A year later, he took on new responsibilities as an
Advocacy and Communication Adviser to the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and to
the Team of Experts on Rule of Law/Sexual Violence in conflict. In this position, he spearheaded
political advocacy and outreach initiatives; implemented campaigns; lead negotiations on furthering
engagement with the Middle East and North Africa region; and developed strategic partnerships with
the private sector, research institutions, and civil society. Currently, he is working as a Women, Peace
and Security Officer in Department of Peacekeeping Operation’s Division for Policy, Evaluation and
Training. Suhail holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University.
February 18: Proceed to your tutorial
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
8
Date: February 23
Topic: Climate Change
Place: Morton Hall
Guests: Dr. Cahoon, Dr. Cutting
Summary of Lecture:
In the past few years, the American public has become more aware of the damage wrought by
climate change. From droughts in the west to extreme weather in the east, a rapidly changing
climate has already made its footprint in the United States. Now, it’s expected that the
presidential election in 2016 will be one of the first ever to place an emphasis on these
environmental changes. What can the next president do to stymie this environmental crisis? And
is it too late for these efforts to be effective?
Dr. Lawrence Cahoon is a biological oceanographer and limnologist at UNCW. His basic
research interests include primary production, grazing, and nutrient dynamics, and applied
research interests include various aspects of water quality analysis and remediation. A major
focus of Dr. Cahoon’s research has been the role of benthic microalgae in oceanic, estuarine, and
freshwater ecosystems. He is interested in studying the basic processes regulating benthic
microalgal distribution and production, nutrient cycling, grazers in near-bottom habitats, and
human impacts on sediment-water interface processes. Dr. Cahoon is also interested in evaluating
water quality management practices in coastal areas, interactions of water quality with
community function in estuarine habitats, and effects of climate variation on coastal features. His
teaching interests include biological oceanography, limnology, forensic environmental science,
and climate change processes and effects. Dr. Cahoon has a PhD in Zoology from Duke
University and a B.S. in Biology from Washington & Lee University.
Professor Robert Cutting is an Attorney and an Associate Professor in the Department of
Environmental Studies and the Cameron School of Business where he teaches courses in
Environmental Law and Policy. He has several publications on the legal and policy implications
of global warming, water quality and air pollution, to name a few. Professor Cutting has a J.D
from the Martin Luther King, Jr., Hall School of Law at U.C. Davis with an emphasis on public law
and policy and environmental law, and an A.B. from U.C. Santa Barbara in Political Science with an
emphasis on political thought and public policy
February 25: Proceed to tutorial
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
9
Topic: The Koreas
Date: March 1, 2014
Place Morton Hall
Guest: Dr. Charles Armstrong
Summary of Lecture:
At the end of World War II, Korea was divided in two. The northern half of the Korean peninsula
was occupied by the Soviet Union, the southern by the United States. Today, North and South
Korea couldn’t be further apart. The North is underdeveloped, impoverished and ruled by a
corrupt, authoritarian government, while the South advanced rapidly to become one of the most
developed countries in the world. With such a wide gap, some are asking if unification is
possible, even desirable, anymore?
Charles K. Armstrong is The Korea Foundation Associate Professor of Korean Studies in the
Social Sciences in the Department of History and the director of the Center for Korean Research
at Columbia University. A specialist in the modern history of Korea and East Asia, Armstrong
has published several books on contemporary Korea, including Tyranny of the Weak: North
Korea and the World, 1950-1992 (Cornell, 2013), The Koreas (Routledge, 2007), The North
Korean Revolution, 1945-1950 (Cornell, 2003), Korea at the Center: Dynamics of Regionalism in
Northeast Asia (M.E. Sharpe, 2006), and Korean Society: Civil Society, Democracy, and the State
(Routledge, second edition 2006), as well as numerous journal articles and book chapters. His
current book projects include a study of North Korean foreign relations in the Cold War era and a
history of modern East Asia. Armstrong is a frequent commentator in the US and international
media on Korean, East Asian, and Asian-American affairs. Armstrong teaches courses on modern
Korean history, the international history of East Asia, the Vietnam War, and US-East Asian
relations, among others. He received his BA from Yale, MA from the London School of
Economics, and PhD from the University of Chicago. He joined the Columbia faculty in 1996.
See more at: https://www.wilsoncenter.org/person/charles-k-armstrong-0#sthash.8qULK9Lg.dpuf
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
10
Tutorial Teams
Group One Meets in LH 134: Tutorial Leaders: Glenn Hartzog, Christen Jones
G1
Student Name
1
Alligood, Cody G.
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
Anglin, Veda L.
Barnes, Justin T.
Bissette, Michael R.
Booton, Thomas R.
Brown, Leslie
Bruce, David E.
Caprara, Basil C.
Castagno, Peter R.
Chisholm, Yujiemi S.
Coggins, Catherine E.
Collie, Kevin M.
Davidson, Katelyn D.
Dorsey, Kristi R.
Dubois, Tamara S.
Group Two: Meets in LH 111: Tutorial Leaders: Paige E. Marsicano, Skylar K. Thompson,
G2
Student Name
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
Enright, Jamie M.
Farmer, Jessica M.
Fernandez, Lauren E.
Flynn, Jason P.
Fox, Sarah G.
Fuge, Krystina M.
Gallagher, John O.
Garcia, Jose M.
Gurley, Kayla E.
Honeycutt, Thomas R.
Hunter, Sessalie R.
Jaber, Vandela M.
Jacobs, Holly S.
Johnson, Patrick A.
Keller, Lucy L.
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
11
Group Three: Meets in LH 143: Tutorial Leaders: Joel Cartner, Jillian Kreimer
G3
Student Name
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
Kelly, Chelsea M.
Knodel, Kyle
Lindenauer, Chloe J.
Lomax, Andrew J.
May, David C.
McCloskey, Samantha A.
McDermott, Chris A.
Mills, Jacob W.
Morillo, Nicholas
Pacini-perez, Bianca
Paulson, Thomas J.
Peed, Jenny L.
Sanders, Lisa H.
Sarubbi, Sabina J.
Group Four: Meets in LH 141: Tutorial Leaders: Connor, Jacob A., Gerdes, Katie M.
G4
Student Name
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
Shaw-Taylor, Ryan A.
Surles, Isaiah O.
Tellman, Emily R.
Throne, Jacob S.
Todd, Austin M.
Turner, Jacob B.
Usey, Zachariah J.
Walton, Jamie L.
Wease, Kaitlyn D.
Williams, Abigail K.
Winesette, Caroline G.
Worrell, Shawn R.
Yang, Alex
Zweigart, Jana M.
Great Decisions 2016, Dr. Kleinberg/
12