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The College of International Security Affairs

DoW flagship for irregular warfare education & partnership capacity-building at the strategic level.

09/30/2026

🎖️ Celebrating 36 Years of Service | COL David Rapone

CISA was proud to celebrate COL David Rapone as he marked his retirement from the U.S. Army after 36 years of dedicated service to the Army, and to the United States.

COL Rapone began his military career as an enlisted Soldier in the airborne infantry in 1990 before commissioning as an Armor Officer in 1996. Since 2010, he has served as an Army Strategist, with assignments spanning operational planning, strategic policy, and professional military education—including three deployments in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and, most recently, as Deputy Director for Strategy and Plans for Combined Joint Task Force–Operation Inherent Resolve.

While we congratulate COL Rapone on his military retirement, we’re especially pleased that he will continue his service to the CISA community as our Associate Dean of Academics, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair, and Assistant Professor.

We are grateful for COL Rapone’s 36 years of service, leadership, and expertise—and look forward to all he will continue to contribute to the next generation of national security leaders at CISA. 🇺🇸👏

09/29/2026

🌏 ACES 2026 | A Revolution in Military Affairs

Technology can create an advantage, but does technological change alone constitute a revolution in military affairs?

The final plenary of ACES 2026, “A Revolution in Military Affairs, and Impacts on the Joint Force,” examined how technological advances, doctrinal innovation, and organizational adaptation interact to reshape military power.

Using recent and ongoing conflicts as case studies, participants explored whether an RMA is occurring today and what emerging technologies mean for military doctrine, organizational structures, and the future joint force.

The conversation considered a critical question for military leaders: How can nations translate technological advantage into lasting military and strategic advantage?

09/28/2026

📚 Chancellor’s Lecture Series | Sir Hew Strachan

The College of International Security Affairs was privileged to welcome Sir Hew Strachan, Professor of International Relations at the University of St Andrews and an internationally recognized military historian, for CISA’s first Chancellor’s Lecture Series event of the academic year.

Sir Hew brought decades of scholarship and expertise in military history and strategy to a thought-provoking discussion centered on a fundamental question: How do wars end?

Drawing on historical examples, the conversation explored how history can serve as a lens for understanding the present and how lessons from past conflicts can inform the strategic challenges leaders face today.

CISA students engaged Sir Hew in a thoughtful discussion, connecting historical lessons to the complex questions of war, strategy, and leadership they are studying in the classroom.

CISA is grateful and privileged to have welcomed Sir Hew and to provide our students with opportunities to engage directly with leading scholars and thinkers in international security.

09/25/2026

💡 Faculty Spotlight | Dr. Dayna Barnes

Dr. Dayna Barnes represented CISA in a roundtable discussion hosted by H-Diplo's Jervis Forum, contributing to a scholarly dialogue on recent research examining democratic transition, post-conflict stabilization, and the U.S.-Japan security relationship.

In addition to the discussion, Dr. Barnes wrote a book review on "Cultures of Modernity and the U.S.-Japan Cold War Alliance."

Through engagements like these, CISA faculty continue to contribute to important academic and policy conversations that advance understanding of complex global security challenges.

🔗 Read more here: https://issforum.org/roundtables/jervis-forum-roundtable-17-50-on-kimura-cultures-of-modernity-and-the-u-s-japan-cold-war-alliance

09/24/2026

🌏 ACES 2026 | The Future of Irregular Warfare

The security challenges of the 21st century are increasingly complex, ambiguous, and irregular, often unfolding below the threshold of conventional conflict while shaping competition among states and non-state actors.

The “Future of Irregular Warfare” plenary explored three interconnected challenges shaping the character of conflict: the evolution of information and influence operations, the convergence of criminal, political, and insurgent networks, and the continued evolution of insurgency and counterinsurgency.

Participants examined how emerging technologies, including AI-enabled tools, are changing the information environment and how hybrid actors and gray-zone competition are challenging traditional security paradigms.

The discussion reinforced the need for adaptive partnerships, integrated strategies, and innovative approaches to compete and prevail in an increasingly contested irregular warfare environment.

09/23/2026

📰 Introducing The Long View: a new annual publication from the National Defense University’s College of International Security Affairs.

What happens when you bring together the ideas, experiences and perspectives of a community whose members go on to lead countries, shape military organizations, teach the next generation of security professionals and tackle some of the world’s most complex challenges?

You get a conversation worth preserving.

The Long View is intended to be that conversation. A place for CISA leadership, faculty, students and alumni to share ideas, reflect on their experiences and explore how the CISA experience continues to shape the work they do today.

The inaugural issue brings together four perspectives that reflect the breadth of our community:

✨ A Letter from the Chancellor | Chancellor Gregg P. Olson

✨ A Guide to Collaborating with AI in the Military Classroom | Dr. Matthew Woessner, Dean of Faculty and Academic Programs

✨ How CISA Shapes Resilience Thinking for a Complex Security Environment | Ambassador S***a Gvineria, Vice Chair of the Alumni Executive Board, CISA McNair Class of 2015

✨ On Curiosity, Mice, and Group Wins | LTC Mike Karlson, CISA JSOMA Class of 2019

Together, these pieces illustrate what The Long View is about: scholarship and experience, professional expertise and personal reflection, and the many ways the CISA community carries its education forward.

But this magazine is about more than the stories published in any single issue. It is about creating a lasting record of the people, ideas and experiences that make CISA what it is.

Each year, The Long View will offer a new snapshot of our community and the security environment in which we operate, preserving the conversations happening today for the CISA community of tomorrow.

We’re proud to share the inaugural issue and excited to see where this conversation goes.

Read the first edition of The Long View here: https://canva.link/ejlkcjk3z535gpb

09/22/2026

🌏 ACES 2026 | Resourcing Security

A strong security partnership requires more than shared interests; partnership requires the resources and capabilities to act on shared interests.

The “Resourcing Security” plenary examined the challenges facing nations as they work to strengthen defense industrial capacity, secure supply chains, develop skilled workforces, and keep pace with increasingly sophisticated technologies.

Participants explored opportunities for allies and partners to work together through co-production, technology transfer, co-innovation, and bilateral and multilateral partnerships, while considering how nations can improve access to weapons, mu*****ns, and other critical capabilities.

The discussion highlighted the importance of strengthening national security resourcing while building systems that allow allies and partners to contribute to, and benefit from, a more resilient defense industrial base.

09/21/2026

🏛️ Practitioner Engagement Course I | Visit to Congress

Students in CISA’s Practitioner Engagement Course I (PEC I) recently visited Congress for an inside look at one of the key pillars of the U.S. government and its role in national security.

During the visit, students heard from congressional practitioners about irregular warfare and the ways Congress contributes to addressing challenges in this domain, while gaining a deeper understanding of the authorization and appropriations processes that shape national security policy and resources.

The experience also exposed students to the broad network of practitioners who support the work of Congress and the diverse roles they play in the legislative process. Through tours and firsthand immersion in the historic halls of the congressional buildings, students gained a greater appreciation for the history, institutions, and processes that underpin the U.S. government.

Experiences like these connect classroom learning with the practitioners and institutions shaping today’s security environment—helping prepare CISA students to think critically and operate effectively across the national security landscape.

09/18/2026

🌏 ACES 2026 | Strengthening Ourselves, Strengthening Each Other

How can allies and partners build the capabilities that make coalitions faster, smarter, and more resilient in a rapidly evolving and contested environment?

The first plenary of ACES 2026, “Strengthening Ourselves, Strengthening Each Other: Building Shared Strategic Capacity for Security and Resilience,” explored how nations can strengthen resilience and capability at home while leveraging alliances and partnerships to build networked advantage.

Participants examined how intensifying great power competition, rapid technological change, and resource constraints are reshaping security partnerships, and discussed how nations can prioritize investments, share burdens, modernize capabilities, and strengthen societal resilience.

The conversation underscored a central theme of ACES 2026: stronger national capabilities and stronger partnerships are mutually reinforcing.

09/17/2026

How can defense institutions adapt at the speed of AI-driven warfare?

On September 30, CISA Professor Dr. Sean McFate will join an international panel for a CSS Web Talk, “Caught Between Traditional Defence Bureaucracies and the Rise of AI-Driven Warfare.”

The discussion will explore how drones, AI-enabled targeting, autonomous systems, commercial space infrastructure, and other emerging technologies are transforming warfare—and how defense institutions can adapt doctrine, procurement, force structures, and organizations to keep pace.

📅 September 30, 2026
⌚ 15:00–16:20 CEST
💻 Online via Zoom

Registration is free and open to CISA alumni and others interested in the future of warfare.

🔗 Register here: https://www.bi.id.ethz.ch/KontaktDB-WebAnmeldung2/css-web-talk-260930

Address

Abraham Lincoln Hall, Ft Lesley J McNair
Washington D.C., DC
20319

Website

http://cisa.ndu.edu/

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