Practitioner-in-Residence: Elly Rostoum ’07, PhD

Course Overview: Intelligence is at the heart of US national security. This short term course examines the role of the intelligence community (IC) within the US national establishment. Student will explore the missions, structures, and modus operandi of the intelligence community and its interactions with policymakers and the executive branch of government. Special attention will be given to issues around the cyberspace as a determinant of geopolitical insecurity. Student will have the opportunity to explore key transnational issues through hand-on exercises simulating a real-life conflicts. Students will also explore some of the most pressing ethical and moral issues involving the intelligence community and US national security.  

This course is highly interactive and designed to mimic “a day in the life of an intelligence officer.” It is geared towards student interested in gaining greater understanding of intelligence, cyberspace and national security issues. This short term course will be most beneficial to students interested in careers in the intelligence community, the policymaking arena and/or the consulting and advisory research sectors. The course is formulated with no prerequisite in mind other than a healthy dose of intellectual curiosity about some of the most important topics globally.

Learning Goals: In this short term course, students will gain first-hand knowledge of the major methodological tools of intelligence statecraft:

1. simulate wargames, execute scenario planning, decision analysis and counterintelligence exercises
2. role-play (a country, president, national security advisor, military commander, activist, journalist, etc.) through a full-scale simulation
3. test, refine, and develop tactical and strategic solutions/options for real life conflicts
4. compile a Strategic Options Memo—the standard briefing document for decision makers in the executive branch and key policymakers
5. develop, present and defend strategy and policy recommendations

Class Schedule: Mon – Wed, 10-12 and 1-3PM

Elly is the Principal Investigator of the BULL DRAGON Project, which tracks Chinese capital flows, and uncovers and maps the incorporation of Chinese firms undertaking foreign direct investment. Elly’s research examines American national security vulnerabilities of foreign direct investment, with a focus on foundational and critical and emerging technologies in the AI, finance, biotech, and IoT sectors. Elly is an expert on the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ (CFIUS) governance. Her current book project, CFIUS in the 21st Century the Guardian of the Technology Revolution, examines the American and the Chinese conceptualizations of national security, and their implications on how each nation defines their grand strategies vis-à-vis one another.

Elly was the co-recipient of the 2024 Johns Hopkins Nexus Award in Teaching for the course: Biotech, Health Security, and Artificial Intelligence. She was also the recipient of the 2023 Johns Hopkins University Discovery Awards, which recognize researchers who are poised to arrive at important discoveries or creative works. Elly was formerly the founding Associate Director of the China Global Research Center at Johns Hopkins University, and a Hans J. Morgenthau Fellow in U.S. Grand Strategy at Notre Dame University. Elly speaks five languages and has conducted field research throughout Europe and the Middle East. 

Elly began her career in the private sector, forecasting oil prices and advising C-suite executives in the energy sector, covering supply and demand trends, geopolitics, above-ground risk management, and the electrification of the global drivetrain. Her research has been prolifically published in industry and policymaking circles.

Elly holds a Ph.D. in Global Governance and Human Security from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, a Master’s degree in Liberal Arts in Government from Harvard University, a Certificate in Decision Analysis & Risk Management from Stanford University, a Certificate in Energy Modeling from the International Energy Agency, and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Bates College.