March 14, 2007
Clark students test decision making in national security crisis simulation
Visiting students, faculty from the U.K. will join in 48-hour exercises
Worcester, Mass. - More than 30 students studying Government and International Relations at Clark University are about to feel the heat of crisis decision-making as they engage in a 48-hour national security crisis simulation, March 19 and 20.
Undergraduates enrolled in special directed research courses, taught by Clark Government and International Relations Professors Brian Cook and Kristen Williams, will confront a significant and complex national security crisis. The exact scope and nature of the crisis is top secret, but students will have two days to handle it as events unfold and seek to resolve the crisis in a way least damaging to lives, property, and the national interest. For the first time, the simulation will include two instructors and seven students from the University of Northampton in the United Kingdom. The U.K. team will be in residence at Clark, operating as U.K. national security counterparts to the U.S. team. The simulation will take place at several campus venues and will involve a significant combination of information technology resources, including simulated media websites, internet audio and video, and video conferencing.
The professors describe the project as a very distinctive learning experience for their students, with considerable depth and sophistication in the design of the simulation and the content of the simulation scenario.
Students will work in groups corresponding to the key actors and agencies in the national security system, including the president, chief of staff, national security advisor, director of national intelligence, and secretary of defense. The teams have so far spent the semester researching their roles and preparing for the simulation. They must compete and cooperate to steer the president and prime minister toward a defensible response to the crisis.
Clark seniors Brian Burns and Peter Stein will assist the simulation this year. "While our job is primarily to oversee what goes on, we do get a chance to play various characters throughout the day," says Burns. "We have prepared for the simulation in meetings with the professors, and research on the situation that the students will be facing. As for actual preparation to be ready for national security crises, it's impossible; you just try to stay calm and make sound decisions."
The U.S. and U.K. teams will evaluate the extent and quality of their preparation and effectiveness in advocating their preferred course of action in a joint simulation post-mortem. They will consider the extent to which their ideas and arguments ultimately shape the final decision, and they will consider to what extent the sequence of choices and the final decision mirrors reality.
The simulation is also supported by the Clark University Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning. For more information, contact the Government and International Relations Department, 508-793-7155.
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