Officers

President

Gregory D. Vuksich

US Army (ret)
Greg has broad military, US defense industry and congressional experience. He served as Army General Staff political-military staff officer and US Senate Budget Committee international programs professional staff. Formerly he was adjunct staff for the RAND Corporation and is currently enrolled as a PhD candidate in International Relations at the University of New Mexico.

Past-President

Emile Nakhleh, PHD

Dr. Emile Nakhleh is a former Senior Intelligence Service (SIS) Officer (CIA), a Founding Director, Political Islam Strategic Analysis Program at CIA, a former Research Professor and Founding Director, Global and National Security Policy Institute (UNM), a Life Member, Council on Foreign Relations, and a Consultant on the Middle East, political Islam, radicalization, terrorism, and intelligence. Dr Nakhleh writes frequently for Responsible Statecraft.

Past-President

Hon. James Browning

United States District Court Judge for the District of New Mexico. Appointed by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts to serve on the Judicial Conference Committee on Codes of Conduct. Deputy Attorney General, State of New Mexico. Law clerk to US Supreme Court Justice Lewis Powell, Jr.

Past-President

Ambassador William H. Itoh

Ambassador Itoh is a Senior Advisor to McLarty Associates and Professor of the Practice in the Department of Public Policy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. During his career as a Foreign Service Officer Ambassador Itoh served in the U.S. Embassy in London and as the U.S. Consul General to Western Australia in Perth. He was Deputy Executive Secretary of the Department of State, and Executive Secretary of the National Security Council at the White House 1993-1995. From 1995-1999 he served as U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Thailand. He is a graduate of the University of New Mexico and served in the U.S. Air Force as a Logistics officer. He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

Treasurer

Andrew Pascoe

Business Advisor working in acquisitions for the Department of Defense. Extensive background in accounting, federal acquisition regulation, and professional writing. Graduated with Master of Accounting (MACCT) from the University of New Mexico May 2019. Participated in Global Business Program from 2015–2016 at Fachhochschule Joanneum (Graz, Austria). Beta Alpha Psi (ΒΑΨ) alumni.

Program Officer

Robert S. McGuire

Lt. Col (ret) USAF, financial management positions at bases in US, Spain, Germany, Thailand, Turkey. Chief of Finance, US House of Representatives (ret). Participated in New Mexico-based import agency representing several European manufacturers.

Recording Secretary

Susan McGuire

Former Staff Director, Committee on Education and Labor, US House of Representatives. Former New Mexico State Director, Senator Jeff Bingaman, US Senate. Analyst, US Central Intelligence Agency.

Directors

Munaf Syed Aamir

Principal Member of the Technical Staff, Sandia National Laboratories.
Munaf works in the Strategic Futures and Policy Analysis Department under the Office of the Chief Engineer for Nuclear Weapons. In this role Munaf supports executive decision-making through quantitative and qualitative research and analysis. Relevant projects have included: leading and supporting workshops to better understand uncertainties and potential futures in the areas of non-proliferation, deterrence, information, innovation, and Earth systems; supporting Sandia’s National Security Speaker Series; and anticipatory studies in information advantage and changing space policy. In previous posts Munaf led and supported analyses for various U.S. agencies in a variety of national security areas including critical infrastructure protection, conflict, and defense. Munaf received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in computational modeling from the Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Jim Baten

USAF (ret.)  Air Force assignments included:  Navigator, Route Briefing officer, Computer Systems Analysis, Instructor at Department of Defense Computer Institute, and Chief of computer Center at Defense Nuclear Agency Field Command.  After Air Force retirement became Chairman of Computer Systems Department
 at Amarillo College.

Michael Daly

Mike is a small business owner and Former President, Arrow Engineering, Gallup NM. Geophysical work carried him to the Caribbean, Eastern and Western Canada Lower English Channel and Africa from Capetown to Points Noir, Congo.

Robanne Harrison

Robanne Harrison has taught at Manzano High School in Albuquerque since 2000. Originally from Atlanta, Robanne moved to New Mexico to attend graduate school at UNM. She has taught a variety of Social Studies and Language Arts classes, most notably World History (on-level and Advanced Placement), Anthropology and AP Art History. She is a Nationally Board Certified Teacher and a Fullbright Teachers for Global Classrooms fellow. Robanne’s professional goal is to promote global education in public schools.

Jami Nelson-Nunez

Jami Nelson-Nuñez is an associate professor and Chair of the Department of Political Science at the University of New Mexico. She studies the politics of service provision in developing countries with particular attention to the challenges of water security in Latin America. Her work focuses on the barriers rural and poor communities must overcome to increase water security and the role of governments and philanthropic organizations in bolstering water security. At UNM, she teaches comparative politics, development and the politics of poverty and inequality. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Robert St. John

Attorney in private practice. Of counsel with the Firm of Rodey, Dickason, Sloan, Akin & Robb, P.A.

Aaron Velasquez

Aaron is owner and CEO of Theta Plate Inc, a precious metals electroplating company. He has been a strong advocate for international trade and investment, recognizing the important role that global affairs play in the success of small businesses, He has participated in trade missions and built partnerships with businesses in Mexico, Canada and Italy.