MDAA is honored and excited to announce The USC SHIELD Executive Program ’24; Global Defense and Deterrence – Developing leaders in Policy, Space, and Technology for National Security.
This is a joint program with the University of Southern California’s Price School of Public Policy and Viterbi School of Engineering, and is an 8-month program designed to educate aspiring senior leaders from the military, government, and innovation technological communities about the intersection of public policy and engineering. It is designed to close the widening gap between theory and the practical application of National Security constructs, including new challenges from the burgeoning use of space for both civilian and military uses by the United States and its allies and adversaries.
“I need your help. We’re in a decisive decade, 10 year window that is our opportunity and necessity to tackle this era’s defining challenges. Look, we have government here, civilian and military. We have think tanks, we have academia, we have business, we have industry. So here’s what I respectfully ask you to help us go do. First, revise the theory of strategic deterrents. This is a long term effort that is going to take the best minds across government, academia and private industry. We have to grow the next generation of strategic deterrents thinkers to think about these problems.”
– Admiral Charles A. Richard | Commander, STRATCOM
The USC SHIELD Executive Program ’24 is led by USC’s renowned faculty in public policy and engineering, along with guest speakers from current and former senior defense officials, military leaders, and experts in defense policy, strategy, operations, and innovation. The program’s hybrid design leverages innovative technology and in-person sessions that fully prepare students to lead in the field. The capstone exercise, which will be presented during the final session in April 2024, will consist of group projects in which participants tackle some of the toughest problems facing government and military leaders in space and defense.
MDAA is led by Riki Ellison, a 1983 graduate of the USC School of International Relations and a recipient of a certificate in Defense and Strategic Studies at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Art and Sciences. Mr. Ellison was also presented the Scholar-Athlete Award of Honor by the David X. Marks Foundation. During his time at USC, he started at middle linebacker on the football teams that won the 1978 national championship and 1979 and 1980 Rose Bowls.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who Should Apply?
Participants are drawn from a unique cadre of aspiring senior leaders from the military, government, industry, and innovation communities to develop the executive and leadership skills needed to grapple with today’s increasingly complex security environment. While each application will be reviewed and given careful consideration, the program is intended for executives and leaders with roughly 20 years experience in national security or defense, related to strategic deterrence or missile defense.
How Does the Hybrid Model Work?
The program will be conducted over the course of seven months from September 2023-April 2024, with a mix of in-person and online instruction two or three days per month.
Instruction will typically occur on Friday and Saturday to facilitate participation by working professionals. Two in-person sessions will be held on USC’s campus in Los Angeles, California to provide networking opportunities critical for professional development.
The capstone exercise of the course will consist of group projects in which participants will tackle some of the toughest problems facing government and military leaders in space and defense, and will be presented during the final session in April 2024.
SHIELD Alumni & Network
The SHIELD program has a robust network of alumni dedicated to advancing our nation’s national security through their roles in both the public and private sector. Some of our past SHIELD alumni have come from:
- National Guard
- Air National Guard
- US Army
- Space Force
- United States Strategic Command (STRATCOM)
- United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM)
- MDA
- Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and other industry partners
Program Schedule
Week 1: September 21 – 23, 2023 (USC Residency)
Thursday, September 21, 2023
- 8:00am – Check In and Breakfast
- 8:45am – USC and MDAA Program Welcome
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Leading Complex Systems through collaboration and ecological organization – Peter Robertson, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- MDAA Guest Speaker: Vic Mercado (Speaker Bio)
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Workshop: Leading Complex Systems through collaboration and ecological organization – Peter Robertson, PhD
- 5:00pm – Welcome Reception
Friday, September 22, 2023
- 8:00am – Check In and Breakfast
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Intercept 1961. From the First Intercept of a Long-Range
Ballistic Missile to Soviet Missile and Space Defense – Mike Gruntman, PhD
- Intercept 1961. From the First Intercept of a Long-Range
- 10:30am – Faculty Lecture
- Leveraging Interactive Storytelling in Model-Based Systems Engineering: A Transdisciplinary Systems Engineering Approach – Azad Madni, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- MDAA Guest Speaker: Mark Montgomery (Speaker Bio)
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- The Engineering Life-Cycle, and Which Life-Cycle Stages are Most Influential On The Success of Missile Defense Projects – Neil Siegel, PhD
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
- 6:00pm: OPTIONAL – ‘Get to Know Your Cohort’ Dinner (not hosted)
- El Cholo Restaurant: 1037 Flower St., Los Angeles, CA 90015 – MAP
Saturday, September 23, 2023
- 9:00am – 2:00pm: Capstone Convergence & Teaming
- Location: Ralph and Goldy Lewis Hall, RGL 101, 650 Childs Way, Los Angeles, CA 90089 – MAP
- Past SHIELD alumni will be in attendance to help with capstone development
Week 2: October 20 – 21, 2023 (Online Interactive)
Friday, October 20, 2023
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Collaboration Through Engagement: Processes and Practices for Effective Problem Solving – Tara Blanc, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Break
- 12:30pm – Lunch Forum
- MDAA Guest Speaker: Lt Gen Jamie Jarrad Army Deputy Commander US Army Pacific (Speaker Bio)
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Workshop: Collaboration Through Engagement: Processes and Practices for Effective Problem Solving – Tara Blanc, PhD
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Saturday, October 21, 2023
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Common Errors in Engineering Assessment, and How to Avoid Them – Neil Siegel, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- MDAA Guest Speaker: Former Undersecretary for Policy for the Department of Defense John Rood (Speaker Bio)
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Big Data Management with Distributed Computing – Seon Ho Kim, PhD
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Week 3: November 15 – 17, 2023 (USC Residency)
Wednesday, November 15, 2023
- Space Systems Command, El Segundo – Site Visit Coordinated by MDAA
Thursday, November 16, 2023
- 8:00am – Check In and Breakfast
- 8:45am – USC and MDAA Program Welcome
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Institutional Design and Policy Evaluation- Policy Design Concepts & Analytics – Rym Kaki, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Break
- 1:00pm – Lunch Forum
- MDAA Guest Speaker: Gen Glen D. VanHerck (via zoom) – Speaker Bio
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Inventive Thinking – Berok Khoshnevis, PhD
- 5:00pm – Welcome Reception
- Moreton Fig (MAP)
- 7:00pm – Conclusion
Friday, November 17, 2023
- 8:00am – Check In and Breakfast
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Policy Formulation: Creating Credibility In A Set of Recommendations – Neil Siegel, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch
- 1:00pm – Capstone Collaboration Part I
- 2:00pm – MDAA Guest Lecture: General David Thompsom – (Speaker Bio)
- 3:00pm – Capstone Collaboration Part II
- 4:30pm – Conclusion
Week 4: January 25 – 27, 2024 (Washington D.C. Residency)
Thursday, January 25, 2024
- 8:30am – Congress 2045 Rayburn Bldg
- 1:00pm – Pentagon 1E744A Air Force Briefing Center (Check in to the Pentagon visitor center at 12:30pm)
- Hon John Plumb, Major General Whitney, Alexia Borkowski, and Mike Songer as guest speakers
Friday, January 26, 2024
- 8:00am – Check In and Breakfast
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- AI-Enabled MDO & JADC2: Securing Through Autonomy – Randy Hill, PhD and Ryan McAlinden, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Potential of in-space 3D printing for constructive cleanup of orbital debris – Berok Khoshnevis, PhD
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Saturday, January 27, 2024
- 8:00am – Check In and Breakfast
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Capstone Review – Frank Zerunyan, JD & Michael Falkow
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – MDAA Expert Panel
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Week 5: February 23 – 24, 2024 (Online Interactive)
Friday, February 23, 2024
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Organizational Behavior and Survey Design – Howard Greenwald, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- Maj. General Nicholas Gentile -(Speaker Bio)
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Team-Building, Motivation, and Conflict Management on Complex Engineering Projects – Neil Siegel, PhD
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Saturday, February 24, 2024
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Case Studies in Space, Air Defense, and Missile Defense – Neil Siegel, PhD
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- LTG (ret.) Neil Thurgood guest speaker – (Speaker Bio)
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Week 6: March 22 – 23, 2024 (Online Interactive)
Friday, March 22, 2024
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Decision analysis, risk analysis, multi-attribute utility theory, information theory, Bayesian analysis, and data-based decision making – Ali Abbas, PhD
- 12:30pm – Lunch Forum
- MDAA Guest Speaker LTG Sean Gainey – (Speaker Bio)
- 1:30pm – Lunch
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Workshop: Decision analysis, risk analysis, multi-attribute utility theory, information theory, Bayesian analysis, and data-based decision making – Ali Abbas, PhD
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Saturday, March 23, 2024
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Risk and opportunity management for complex engineering projects – Neil Siegel, PhD
- 12:30pm – Lunch Forum
- MDAA Guest Lecture: Dr. Raymond O’Mara (Bio)
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Faculty Lecture
- Strategic Communications and Public Diplomacy – Robert Banks, PhD
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Week 7: April 25 – 27, 2024 (USC Residency)
Thursday, April 25, 2024
- Site visit coordinated by MDAA
- Location: SpaceWERX (details will be provided by MDAA)
Friday, April 26, 2024
- 8:00am – Check In and Breakfast
- 9:00am – Faculty Lecture
- Emerging Digital Technologies – Neil Siegel
- 12:00pm – Lunch Forum
- 1:30pm – Break
- 2:00pm – Capstone Project Collaboration
- 5:00pm – Conclusion
Saturday, April 27, 2024
- 8:30am – Breakfast
- 9:00am – Capstone Introduction and Presentations
- 12:30pm – Lunch Forum
- 2:00pm – Capstone Presentations
- 5:30pm – Certificate Ceremony
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