Master of Biodefense

This Army major wanted to combine his military service with the hard science of biodefense. Read how Major Geoffrey Mattoon found his way to the Schar School’s one-of-a-kind graduate program—in the shadow of the Pentagon.

The Schar School’s Sonia Ben Ouagrham-Gormley was invited to speak at the conference commemorating 50 years of the Biological Weapons Convention. The treaty, the professor says, is not perfect. See what she says that could make the world safer.

Two Schar School biodefense PhD students won competitive fellowships with a renowned program. See who they are.

As a young policeman in Türkiye, Mahmut Cengiz witnessed the cruel effects of organized crime on communities and those who live in them. Now, the Schar School associate professor is a preeminent expert of terrorism and combats it on his own terms—as a teacher.

At a U.S. Senate Committee hearing, Associate Professor Gregory Koblentz advocated for the creation of a new federal agency to manage oversight of biological and pandemic risks.

Graduate student Nick Marko earned a master’s in biodefense and a graduate certificate while working full time as a neurosurgeon.

The odds of winning a Presidential Management Fellowship are low—4 percent of applicants are chosen each year. But Schar School grad Aurelia Berisha beat the odds and is making the most of her two-year federal government opportunity.

Biodefense graduate Janet Marroquin Pineda wins a significant award for answering “the most challenging U.S. security and science policy questions with objective analysis.”