Professor George Lopez wasn’t without trepidation when, swamped with various research needs, he decided to offer a research seminar for undergraduates this spring. The stakes were high. He would be counting on inexperienced students to contribute to research aimed at revitalizing the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC).

Lopez, Kroc Institute senior fellow, and David Cortright, a Kroc research fellow, had funding for the project from the Danish government and the U.S. Institute of Peace.

Cortright described counter-terrorism as a red-hot issue that could not be more relevant to peace students and international relations. He was pleased to involve students, both for their research contributions and as an audience that would stimulate the professors’ thinking. But would enough qualified students be interested? Lopez had modest expectations given that the spring course registration period had long since passed.

“I hoped to get five or six students,” he said. “I put out the word about what I wanted to do and I was stunned to receive more than 30 applications. We chose 20 and called them to a high level of performance, making the case that we were a working think tank.” The experiment paid off, both in research findings and enthusiasm. Students liked the practical knowledge and research skills they obtained, which could help them find work. One student declared the seminar to be “the best class I have taken at Notre Dame.” One of the few criticisms was that the professors hadn’t been critical enough of their work.

The students signed up despite the seminar’s late hour: Monday evenings, from 8 to 10:30 p.m. They were required to produce papers on topics of their own choosing, as long as they were relevant to the task at hand. Leslie Deveraux, a senior political science major, researched a hotly debated issue: What is terrorism? Without a solid definition, she said, the CTC isn’t as effective as it could be.

The seminar met Deveraux’s expectations and then some.

“Professors Lopez and Cortright respected our work as if we were experts in our area. You felt like your work actually served a greater purpose other than gaining a better grade.”

The CTC project is funded with $50,000 from the U.S. Institute of Peace and $150,000 from the Danish government. The researchers’ assignment was not only to evaluate the work of the Counter-Terrorism Committee, but also develop policy recommendations for enhancing UN counter-terrorism efforts. They have interviewed experts on issues that are either an integral part of the CTC’s work (terrorist financing; regional and sub-regional organizations; and legislation and other national capacities), or that have not been addressed in as much detail by the committee (travel restrictions; border security; cooperative law enforcement; the relationship between development and technical assistance, and human rights).

Sophomores Julia Fitzpatrick and Jessica Heringer researched efforts to stop terrorist financing by freezing assets. Fitzpatrick was grateful for the effort that her professors put into making sure the students were kept up-to-date on the workings of the United Nations committee.

“What impressed me most about the course was the highly relevant topic and rigorous method of research and analytical thought about the CTC and the overall counterterrorism effort,” she said.

What impressed Cortright most was the quality of the students’ work.

“The research findings and the insights of the students greatly aided our own research. To give an example, when I interviewed the senior staff person for the Financial Action Task Force in Paris, I was fortified with the latest information, thanks to a research paper on FATF by one of our students (Kate Lewall) … In return, I shared with her the answers and notes from my interview, which she incorporated into her final paper.”

The students’ excitement was palpable and infectious, Cortright said. He’d love to repeat the seminar experience — though possibly at an earlier hour.

Stephanie Ahern, who delved into counterterrorism practices of the European Union, was one of four graduate students in the course. She said her classmates really wanted to make a difference with their work. She’s not alone in wondering how much of that effort will show up in the final report.

— Julie Titone

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