Meeting Terrorists, Making Movies, and Mentoring Students: Prof. Stern Brings Real Experience to Pardee
When Nicole Kidman portrayed Jessica Stern in the 1997 film “The Peacemaker,” Hollywood dramatized just one chapter in the Pardee School professor’s remarkable career. The movie focused on Stern’s role at the National Security Council during the Clinton administration, where she directed Russian, Ukrainian, and Eurasian affairs and led a nuclear weapons smuggling response unit.
But that was just the beginning. For more than two decades, Stern has sat across from terrorists and war criminals in prisons and field locations, conducting interviews few other scholars would attempt. Her work has taken her from Belgium to Pakistan, from India to Indonesia, from Jordan to Palestine and Israel. Her mission? Understanding what drives people to commit acts of terror.
Right now, Pardee students are learning directly from her experiences in a special seven-week course running October 21 to December 2. “Terrorism and Targeted Violence” examines when protected speech becomes dangerous incitement, how social media shapes extremist behavior, and what methods actually work to prevent terrorism. This half-semester format offers students a unique opportunity to dive deep into critical issues with one of the field’s most experienced scholars.
“Professor Stern has assembled an unbelievably interesting course in terms of relevant readings, intricate class debates, and fascinating guest speakers,” says Sean Aul, her graduate assistant. Among those speakers is David Kirkpatrick from The New Yorker, who will discuss his investigation of far-left groups infiltrating white supremacist organizations.
Stern’s impact on students extends far beyond graduation. Her former student Diana Hughes (MAIA ’21) landed a position at Moonshot after connecting with a guest speaker from one of Stern’s classes. This kind of mentoring earned Stern the Templeton Award for Excellence in Student Advising—an honor given to just three professors out of 800 in the College of Arts & Sciences, based on student nominations.
“The opportunity to help our students with their academic and career choices is one of the greatest joys of my life,” Stern says. “It is a privilege and a gift to play even a small role in students’ development as citizens of the world.”
Her credentials span disciplines: a bachelor’s in chemistry from Barnard College, a master’s in chemical engineering and technology policy from MIT, and a doctorate in public policy from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. She serves on the Hoover Institution Task Force on National Security and Law and advises the Secretary of Homeland Security through the Aspen Homeland Security Group.
The Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation recently recognized her work with a grant to study mental distress, loneliness, ideology, and warning signs in violent extremism intervention data. Her books include “ISIS: The State of Terror,” “Denial: A Memoir of Terror,” and “Terror in the Name of God: Why Religious Militants Kill.”
Daniel L. Byman of the Brookings Institution notes that “Jessica began writing and working on terrorism at a time when there was little research… She quickly emerged as deeply knowledgeable and as someone willing to take on extremely tough topics that required hard research.”
Students interested in understanding terrorism and targeted violence can join Professor Stern’s discussion-based course (CASIR 600) on Mondays from 2:30-5:15 PM in 64-86 Cummington Mall PSY 212. The seven-week course, running October 21 to December 2, tackles pressing questions: What is extremism? Under what circumstances does First-Amendment protected hate speech slip into dangerous speech or incitement? How does social media affect the potential for incitement?
The course readings offer conflicting interpretations of theory and history, with students expected to identify, compare, evaluate, and contest arguments. Topics range from the rise of lone actors to risk factors at societal levels, featuring readings from current events and academic research. Beyond the classroom discussions, students will analyze terrorist groups and present their findings, write analytical response papers, and complete a research paper.
While this marks Stern’s first time teaching the material in a half-semester format, she has taught full-semester versions of this course many times before. Her former students have gone on to work in counterterrorism and security fields.
Professor Jessica Stern is a Research Professor at the Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. She is the coauthor with J.M. Berger of ISIS: The State of Terror; and the author of Denial: A Memoir of Terror; Terror in the Name of God: Why Religious Militants Kill; and The Ultimate Terrorists. Learn more about Stern on her faculty profile.