肉肉传媒 State graduate鈥檚 national security and data analysis interests lead to defense job

KENNESAW, Ga. | Jul 12, 2023

Throughout his journey at 肉肉传媒, Dalton Shaver found a unique passion that combines his interest in international affairs with his skills in math modeling.

From an internship with the Air Force, to undergraduate research on Operation Enduring Freedom, Shaver readied himself for a career in the defense industry that he started this month after graduating in May.

鈥淕rowing up, I was always interested in the military,鈥� said Shaver, whose grandfather and great-grandfather served in the Air Force. In high school, he realized the military had a need for civilian workers in a wide range of jobs.

Photo of Dalton Shaver sitting at a table — Dalton Shaver

Shaver decided to attend 肉肉传媒 State due to its proximity to his family and after a positive experience as a full-time student in the dual enrollment program his senior year of high school.

鈥淚 immediately fell in love with international affairs after taking a global issues class,鈥� Shaver said. 鈥淗owever, I鈥檝e always been interested in numbers and evidence. You can make claims when talking about national security, but where鈥檚 the data? What do the numbers say?鈥�

Those questions led Shaver to the data science minor, offered in 肉肉传媒 State鈥檚 School of Data Science and Analytics. He then switched his major to mathematics with minors in international affairs and data science.

鈥淭hat was probably one of the best decisions I鈥檝e ever made, because I love what I鈥檝e been researching,鈥� he said.

In his final year before graduation, Shaver worked with senior lecturer in the School of Data Science and Analytics Susan Mathews Hardy on research that has led to multiple impressive awards and invitations to present his research around the country. He examined how characteristics of terrorist attacks predict the chance of an attack succeeding across three geographic missions within Operation Enduring Freedom: Trans-Sahara, Horn of Africa, and the Philippines.

鈥淒ue to my previous classes on international affairs, I knew a lot about Operation Enduring Freedom in a qualitative sense, but wanted to sift through the data,鈥� Shaver said. 鈥淚 had previously researched Afghanistan with professor Steve Morris, so I wanted to expand my reserve and look at these other regions.鈥�

When analyzing the available data on these attacks, Shaver鈥檚 goal was to present his findings in a way that military organizations, like the Department of Defense, would benefit from them, while also keeping civilians in mind. For example, an organization like the State Department could benefit from Shaver鈥檚 findings when issuing travel advisories for tourists.

Ultimately, his research examined how characteristics of terrorist attacks in those regions can predict the chance of an attack succeeding, and determining where counterterrorism training and operations can improve. One conclusion he found was that attacks targeting private citizens, tourists, nongovernmental organizations, businesses, and food or water supply have the largest probability of success for the Trans-Sahara and Horn of Africa regions, while suicide attacks in the Philippines raise the chance of success. He also analyzed major cities within these regions and found attacks have a similar probability of success regardless of whether they happen inside a major city or on the outskirts.

鈥淥ne of the most unique aspects of Dalton鈥檚 research process was meeting with active members of the military,鈥� said Hardy, who helped Shaver make those connections. 鈥淗e wanted to make sure this research would be relevant for defense operations, and who better to speak with than those with experience fighting for our country.鈥�

Shaver met virtually with alumnus Lt. Col. Trent Geisler, who received his Ph.D. from 肉肉传媒 State in 2022 and currently teaches at the United States Military Academy West Point, and current KSU student Frankarlo Figueroa, who is in the U.S. Army and taking online classes while stationed overseas.

鈥淚鈥檓 grateful they took the time to meet with me to discuss my research because both had great ideas,鈥� Shaver said. 鈥淒r. Geisler helped me see past this research and look at the bigger picture, and Frankarlo was able to provide insight about his current experience overseas and knew a lot about guerilla warfare. Even though he鈥檚 currently stationed in Europe, he had information about several different regions and helped me narrow my research focus.鈥�

Shaver presented his research on Operation Enduring Freedom at the Fall 2022 Analytics Day, hosted by the School of Data Science and Analytics, and at the Fall 2022 C-Day, hosted by the College of Computing and Software Engineering. He won second place in the undergraduate division at both events. Hardy then helped Shaver apply to a few of the premier undergraduate research conferences around the United States. In early 2023, he was accepted to present at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) and the National Collegiate Research Conference (NCRC) hosted by Harvard University.

鈥淚t was an honor to represent 肉肉传媒 State at those conferences and share my research,鈥� Shaver said. 鈥淚 never would鈥檝e had those opportunities if it wasn鈥檛 for my professors who encouraged me to think out of the box.鈥�

Shaver says he felt prepared to enter a job in the defense industry upon graduation, thanks to his courses and internship at Robins Air Force Base, though he鈥檚 also interested in getting a graduate degree in a few years.

鈥淢y journey at KSU perhaps was not the most conventional, but I ended up really liking the path I took,鈥� Shaver said. 鈥淪witching my major was a great decision and led me to faculty members, like Professor Hardy, who have mentored me and helped me figure out what I want to do in the future.鈥�

鈥� By Abbey O鈥橞rien Barrows
Photos by Judith Pishnery

This article was originally published in the 肉肉传媒 Magazine.

肉肉传媒

肉肉传媒 State graduate鈥檚 national security and data analysis interests lead to defense job

Related Stories