CNAS Announces First Make Room Mentorship Program Cohort

Washington, July 16, 2024—The Center for a New American Security (CNAS) announced today the selection of the Fall 2024 Make Room Mentorship Program cohort. The Make Room initiative aims to identify, empower, and amplify the voices of underrepresented communities in the national security and foreign policy spheres. This pilot cohort was created with the intention of carrying out CNAS’s commitment to develop a diverse cadre of talented individuals dedicated to preserving and strengthening our national security.

After a highly competitive process, CNAS selected 13 mentees with different backgrounds and experiences who, alongside their mentors, will build knowledge bases, networks, and skills that will help mentees better prepare for careers and professional opportunities in the national security space. The mentorship program will include check-in mentor-mentee sessions and a professional development workshop aimed at enhancing skills needed to succeed in this field.

The complete list of the Fall 2024 mentees is below. To read more on this Fall’s mentors and mentees, please visit the mentorship program page here.

CNAS Fall 2024 Make Room: Mentorship Program Mentees:

• Michael Brodo, Senior Program Associate, International Republican Institute
• Elana Caparco, Research Specialist, Jackson Stevens Global
• Paul Esau, Research Associate, Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control
• Jake Hulina, Government Relations Associate, GeoComply
• Daniel King, M.S. Candidate in Statistics and Data Science, Yale University
• Samantha Lucy, Senior Consultant, Booz Allen Hamilton
• Natalie McFadden, National Security & Intelligence Supervisory Analyst, Exiger Government Solutions
• Avyan Mejdeen, Policy Fellow, Congressional Hunger Center
• Hannah Miller, Dorot Fellow, Dorot Foundation
• Sabrina Pecorelli, Senior Program Associate, Dexis Consulting Group
• Alyssa Taylor, Recent Graduate, University of Maryland, College Park
• Kenny Vo, M.A. Candidate in Security Studies, Georgetown University
• Ray Wang, M.S. Candidate in Foreign Service, Georgetown University

For questions concerning the mentorship program, please contact [email protected].

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