EUPS Alumni Advisory Board

The EUPS Advisory Board met for the first time on Friday, October 6, 2017 to discuss the four priority areas of board activity: student support, alumni career development, program visibility, and fundraising.  Board members were particularly ready to move on the first two areas.  As a first step toward that end, they volunteered to make their bios and e-mail addresses open to all students, alums, and newsletter readers. Below, we present profiles of six board members (bios of the other two members--Elizabeth Duda and Logan Hoffman--will be presented in a future issue). If you have ideas for activities, would like to build on your EUPS connection, or would like to get in touch with questions about career trajectories, board members look forward to hearing from you!

• Dan Caprio, Co-founder and Executive Chairman, is a JMU political science (B.A.) alumnus and an internationally recognized expert on privacy and cybersecurity. He has served as the Chief Privacy Officer and Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Commerce Department, a transatlantic subject matter expert for the European Commission’s Internet of Things formal expert group, a Chief of Staff for a Federal Trade Commission Commissioner, and a member of the Department of Homeland Security Data Privacy and Integrity Advisory Committee. In 2002, Dan was a representative for the United States delegation revising the OECD Security Guidelines that formed the basis for the first White House Strategy to Secure Cyberspace. 

• Aimee Cipicchio received her B.A. in Public Administration from JMU in 2007 and graduated from  the EUPS program in 2008. Aimee currently works in public affairs for Nucor Corporation in Washington, DC. Nucor is the largest steelmaker in the U.S. and the largest recycler in North America. Aimee manages the political action committees (PACs) of Nucor and works in a variety of government affairs areas representing priorities for the company and teammates. She also volunteers at the National Gallery of Art and serves on the board of the Association of Women in the Metal Industries Baltimore Chapter.  

• Briar Dunn is from Dallas, Texas. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Texas at Austin and graduated in 2014 from the EUPS program. Briar served as a Presidential Management Fellow in 2015 and began his federal career at the US Department of Defense, where he worked on talent development and recruitment strategy. In 2016, Briar transferred to the Department of Homeland Security, becoming a Refugee and Asylum Officer for the fraud detection unit that combats terrorism.  

• Peg Schmelzinger graduated from JMU in 2014 with a B.A. in Political Science and minors in Philosophy and Modern European Studies.  She graduated from the EUPS program in 2015.  Currently, Peg works as a consultant at Deloitte, supporting US Customs and Border Protection, advising on a strategic approach to expanding one of their key international initiatives. Peg specializes in the ways that technology is transforming the ways that public and private entities do business in the global economy.  

• Emily Slifer graduated from the EUPS program in 2013 after completing her B.A. in Global Affairs at George Mason University in 2012. Upon completing her M.A., she interned at the European Parliament Liaison’s Office in Washington, DC and then for the European Parliament Foreign Affairs (AFET) committee in Brussels.  Currently, Emily works at the UK Embassy in Washington covering judicial home affairs for the UK Home Office. She focuses on social justice and crime & policing policy.   

• Abby Ware graduated from the EUPS program in 2014, concentrating in economic and social policy. She entered the program after earning her B.A. in Political Science and Philosophy from JMU in 2013.  Advancing her passion for policy and nonprofits, Abby works as a Senior Associate at Mission: Readiness – a nonprofit advocacy organization made up of 700+ retired admirals and generals who support programs and investments that are proven to prepare young people for success. Abby credits the EUPS program for cultivating her writing skills, strengthening her ability to synthesize and communicate complex policy information, and providing the opportunity to be part of a supportive, successful EUPS alumni community.