Staff

Cynthia Pritchett – NESA Strategic Plans and CENTCOM Liaison
Email: Cynthia.A.Pritchett.civ@mail.mil // Phone: (813) 827-5253

Cindy Pritchett is the strategic planner for the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies and serves as their Liaison to U.S. Central Command in Tampa. Ms. Pritchett joined the NESA Center in 2010, and is responsible for planning, coordinating and synchronizing the Center’s annual program plan consisting of over 70 events in support of Department of Defense objectives.

Ms. Pritchett was formerly a Soldier in the United States Army, retiring as a Command Sergeant Major after over 36 years of active service. She served for two years, as the Command Senior Enlisted Leader of Combined Forces Command –Afghanistan and principle advisor to the Commander on all matters concerning the health, morale, welfare, and support and force sustainment of all U.S and coalition forces assigned. She holds a master’s degree in International Relations Global Studies from Troy University and a bachelor’s degree in administration and management from Excelsior College.

Sam Marrero – Executive Officer
Email: Samuel.Marrero@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 685-2490

Sam Marrero is the Executive Officer at the NESA Center. Prior to NESA, he served as the Special Assistant to U.S. Ambassador Wanda Nesbitt and Research Analyst at the Department of Defense’s Conflict Records Research Center (CRRC). Mr. Marrero graduated from Wake Forest University in 2006 with a Bachelor’s degree in History and received a Master’s degree in International Trade & Security from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in 2010. He was honored to receive a Critical Language Scholarship for Arabic in 2009, a Boren Fellowship in 2010 to research labor unrest and democratization in the Middle East, an Honorable Mention for the Saul Linowitz Federal Service Award in 2013 for his work archiving captured Al-Qaeda documents with CRRC, the Aspen Security Forum Scholarship in 2016 and the German Marshall Fund Manfred Wörner Seminar Fellowship in 2018.

Kathryn Pearce – Registrar Manager
Email: Kathryn.A.Pearce.civ@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 433-7389

Kathryn Pearce is the Registrar Manager at the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies. She works with the U.S. Embassies, local Embassies, and partners to register all nominees for various NESA courses. She also works in DSAMS, SANweb, and RCPAMS. Her biggest joy is building relationships with the country teams, embassy representatives, and participants. Ms. Pearce joined the NESA Center as the Registrar Manager in December 2018, after serving as the Participant Programs Manager. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Studies from Berry College and a Master’s degree in International Relations from American University.

Emily Santucci – Deputy Registrar
Email: Emily.R.Santucci.civ@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 423-6446

Emily Santucci is a Deputy Registrar at the NESA Center. Prior to her current role, she also served as a Participant Programs Assistant for the NESA Center. Emily gained extensive exposure to the study and research of the Middle East and North Africa region through internships with the NESA Center, Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, and the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of International Affairs for the MENA Division. While studying Arabic abroad in Amman, Jordan, she also acquired first-hand experience with living in the region. Emily holds a B.A. in International Affairs and Middle East Studies (with a minor in Arabic Studies) from the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University.

Dakota Prince – Deputy Registrar
Email: Dakota.A.Prince.ctr@ndu.edu

Dakota Prince is a Deputy Registrar at the NESA Center. Dakota Prince graduated from George Mason University in 2022 with a B.A. in Government and International Politics. During his undergraduate studies, Dakota worked as a Research Intern at the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies in 2021. Prior to joining NESA as a Senior Events Program Planner, Dakota worked in higher education as the Student Life Advisor at Northern Virginia Community College. At NVCC, he gained invaluable experience supervising and working with students from various regions across the world. Dakota is excited to further grow his career in international relations at the NESA Center.

Nancy Luong – Media & Communications Manager
Email: Nancy.M.Luong.ctr@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 685-9467

Nancy Luong is the Media and Communications Manager at the NESA Center, where she develops promotional and informative materials for the Center. Her role extends to conducting media research and strategies to enhance the Center’s visibility throughout the NESA region. With expertise in graphic design, publication/print production, marketing, multimedia, web, and more, Nancy brings a diverse skill set to her position. Her most recent background includes serving as a Virtual Education Specialist and Adjunct Faculty at the Art Institutes, and as a Webmaster and Photographer at the Africa Center. Nancy holds a B.F.A. in Communication Arts and Design from Virginia Commonwealth University, with a minor in Religious Studies.

Peter Klu – Information Technology Specialist
Email: Peter.S.Klu.ctr@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 316-5882

Having earned his Bachelor’s degree in Physics, Minor in Mathematics, and armed with MS in Electrical Engineering, Peter’s goal was to complement his natural technical savvy with a strong foundation in Software and Web Development, Networking, VOIP and Ethical Hacking. In order to understand the ever-changing IT field, Peter needed to gain extensive experiences. The best way to do this, he felt, was to join a Big 8 firm within the IT consulting practice. He accepted a position with Booze Allen & Hamilton where he gained extensive software development and RDBMS experience.

Peter left and went consulting for different software companies through his established business. Peter consulted for the likes of Booze Allen & Hamilton, Price Water Cooper, Ernest and Young, Microsoft, IBM, National Defense University and other small technology companies. Peter also worked for Africa Center and Near East South Asia Center as an Information Management Officer (IMO).

Gillian Hurtt – Education Technology & Distance Learning Coordinator
Email: Gillian.E.Hurtt.ctr@ndu.edu

Gillian Hurtt is the GlobalNET Content Manager at the NESA Center. She is responsible for developing and supporting virtual educational goals, recommending design and communication trends to implement into the school’s learning environment, and assisting faculty and staff with developing and implementing course content. Prior to joining the NESA Center, Ms. Hurtt spent over 5 years in the local television news industry as a newscast Producer and Director. These roles allowed her to develop and hone her technical and communication skills, which are of paramount importance in her current position at the NESA Center. Ms. Hurtt graduated from Virginia Tech in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication/Multimedia Journalism and a minor in Business Leadership.

Christopher Muller – Alumni & Outreach Coordinator
Email: Christopher.R.Muller.ctr@ndu.edu

Christopher Muller is the Program Manager, Outreach & Engagement at the NESA Center. He is the senior coordinator for all NESA alumni events and is responsible for supporting alumni affairs and professional education goals, developing and implementing outreach strategy, and assessing NESA’s mission impact. Christopher is a Russian speaker with over six years of experience managing language acquisition programs, professional training, and research fellowships throughout Eastern Europe and Western and Central Asia. He gained exposure to the NESA region through prior roles with American Councils for International Education and NBC Sports and Olympics and has worked as an educational consultant and project manager within U.S. higher education. He holds a B.A. in International studies with a specialization in International Communication and a regional focus on Russia and Eurasia from American University’s School of International Service.

Magoumba Dieye – Operations Management Specialist
Email: Magoumba.Dieye.ctr@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 433-1030

Magoumba Dieye is Senior Event and Program Planner at NESA. Prior to NESA, he worked in the private sector, in the fields of business development, outreach, and events, including as Assistant Office Manager at the D.C. location of the law firm Finnegan. Mr. Dieye holds a B.A. in Public Administration from George Mason University.

Benjamin Allgor – Operations Management Specialist
Email: Benjamin.J.Allgor.ctr@ndu.edu // Phone: (908) 488-5044

Benjamin Allgor is a Senior Events Program Planner at the NESA Center. As a 2022 James Madison University graduate, Benjamin majored in International Affairs with a concentration in Asian Studies and minored in Chinese. He has worked in Chengdu, China, and studied Mandarin Chinese for over ten years. Most recently, Benjamin worked as a research associate intern for the global advisory sector of Edelman, an American public relations and marketing consultancy firm focusing on climate change. Benjamin enjoys traveling and looks forward to finding his way across the world and visiting various places in his position.

Mahshid Khavari – Operations Management Specialist
Email: Mahshid.Khavari.ctr@ndu.edu

Mahshid Khavari is the Participant Programs Manager at the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies at the National Defense University in Washington, D.C., where she manages participant experience and assists with program logistics and outreach. Mahshid has an extensive teaching and academic administration background at the college/university level. Her formal education includes a Master of Science degree in Global Affairs from New York University and Master and Bachelor degrees in Environmental Engineering from Stevens Institute of Technology. One of Mahshid’s areas of expertise is sustainable development in developing countries, environmental security, climate change and gender, and geopolitics of water. Her particular region of geographic interest is Africa and the Middle East. She has strong knowledge of and interest in international affairs. In her free time, she enjoys learning about different cultures and languages and traveling internationally. Mahshid is fluent in Farsi, Dari, and English and is developing proficiency in French and Spanish. She is an avid reader and a lifetime learner of the human experience and making a positive impact in the World.

Frejus Bakpe – Operations Management Specialist
Email: Frejus.D.Bakpe.ctr@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 509-1571

Frejus Bakpe is the NESA Center’s Operations and Travel Specialist. With experience spanning five years, Frejus has been an integral part of supporting the U.S. Government, where he has worked with the Africa Center, the NESA Center, and the Perry Center, fulfilling roles in operations and program support. Before his current position, Frejus served as a Logistics Officer and Travel Coordinator at the Africa Center. His expertise extends to program support, finance, budgeting, and operations, garnered from his private and federal sector experiences. Frejus holds a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Public Finance from the National Institute of Economics in the Republic of Benin. Building upon this foundation, he completed the Project Management Professional (PMP) program at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. Currently, he’s expanding his horizons by pursuing an accelerated master’s degree in Information Security and Assurance at Strayer University with the long-term goal of holding a doctorate in the field. Frejus is fluent in English, French, and several African languages.

Monas Kpakpa – Chief of Resources
Email: Monas.C.Amoussou-Kpakpa.civ@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 685-2428

Monas is the NESA Center’s Chief of Resources, reporting to the Deputy Director and the Chief Programs Support Branch. He is fully responsible for the policy, which includes communicating/writing guidelines affecting resources and operational functions for the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies. He also provides oversight and direction to conduct the formulation, presentation, justification, accounting, audit, execution, and financial reporting of requirements and resources to support the execution of the NESA Center’s programs.

Monas previously served as a Program Planning Manager and a Contract Manager supporting NESA and William J. Perry Centers. He previously worked at the NESA Center’s sister organization, the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, as a Finance and Contract Manager, a Program Support and Accounting Manager, and later as a Program Manager. Monas Kpakpa has proven expertise in program management, program planning, procurement, accounting, finance, budgeting, and operations experience within private companies and the Federal Government. He holds an M.S. in Accounting and an M.B.A. in Finance, both from Strayer University’s Graduate School of Business, and is fluent in English, French, and several African languages.

Scott Dorsey – Resource Specialist
Email: DorseyS@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 685-3847

Scott Dorsey is the Resource Specialist and subject matter expert for security and travel at the NESA Center. As the Defense Area Security Officer (DASO), he is responsible for ensuring the NESA Center’s operations comply with National, DoD, and NDU security directives and policies. Mr. Dorsey previously served as the Program Planning Manager at the NESA Center for 15 years. He worked at the NESA Center’s sister organization, the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, as the Program Support Manager. Before working for the NESA Center, Mr. Dorsey was a branch manager for 10 years at Suntrust Bank (Capitol Hill). He has proven expertise in program management, program planning, procurement, accounting, finance, budgeting. He holds an B.S. in Business Administration from Virginia Union University. Scott has several Federal Government Budgeting certificates as well as a Leadership and Planning certificate from George Washington University.

Quynh Nguyen – Budget Analyst 
Email: Quynh-Tram.Nguyen.civ@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 685-4994

Quynh Nguyen is the Budget Analyst at the NESA Center.  She is responsible for the program planning, budget, and execution of the funding associated with the NESA Center mission. Quynh comes to the NESA Center with over 17 years of financial management experience including budget and accounting at various Department of Defense agencies.  She earned her bachelor’s degree in accounting from Liberty University.

Susan Yang – Program Analyst
Email: Susan.Yang.ctr@ndu.edu

Susan Yang is a Program Analyst at the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies.  Previously, Yang served as a Program Participants Manager, where she oversaw the participant experience and assisted with program logistics and outreach. She previously worked at a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization, World Learning, where she administered the U.S. Department of State’s professional and academic exchange programs. Susan also has extensive experience working directly with domestic and international students of all ages. She taught English in French Guiana through the Teaching Assistant Program in France (TAPIF) and in South Korea at Branksome Hall Asia. She also led educational tours in Southeast Asia through Rustic Pathways and worked in data and evaluation at the Girl Scouts – River Valleys.

Fahad Malaikah – Academic Specialist, In Country Events & Alumni Affairs Coordinator
Email: Fahad.Malaikah.ctr@ndu.edu // Phone: (202) 685-4995

Fahad Malaikah serves as the NESA Center’s In Country Events and Alumni Affairs Coordinator. He additionally serves as Program Manager of the Strategic Studies Network, a unique NESA Center initiative that serves as a consortium of over 65 strategic studies centers from across the NESA region and Europe. Mr. Malaikah joined the NESA Center in 2010 as a Research Associate. He has published articles on Middle East security issues in outlets including The National Interest, The Washington Times, and the Small Wars Journal.

Mr. Malaikah received a BA in Political Science and Middle East Studies from Georgia State University, and an MA in Arab Studies from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and Center for Contemporary Arab Studies.