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Timothy W. Nichols, Visiting Professor of the Practice  

Office Location: 128 Rubenstein Hall, Box 90250, Durham, NC 27708
Duke Box: 90250
Email Address: timothy.nichols@duke.edu

Areas of Expertise

  • National Security and Defense, Homeland Security

Education:
M.B.A., North Carolina State University, 2010
M.A., University of South Florida, 2000
B.A., University of Virginia, 1989
A.B., University of Virginia, 1989

Teaching (Fall 2024):

  • Pubpol 505s.01, Natl security decision making Synopsis
    Sanford 150, W 12:00 PM-02:30 PM

Recent Publications

  1. Nichols, T. Sending Special Operations Forces into the Great-Power Competition.  Small Wars Journal (August, 2020).
  2. Nichols, T; Brands, H. special operations forces and great power competition in the 21st Century.  American enterprise (Washington, D.C.) (August, 2020).  [abs]
  3. Schanzer, DH; Nichols, T. The Cost of the Knife: A Review of The Way of the Knife by Mark Mazzetti.  Georgetown Journal of International Affairs 16.1 (2015): 204-10.
  4. Schanzer, DH; Nichols, T. Take a Deep Breath and Build a Coalition to Confront ISIS.  Huffington Post (September, 2014).

Curriculum Vitae

Highlight:
Tim Nichols (B.A, UVA; M.A, USF; M.B.A.,NCSU) Tim served as an intelligence officer in the Marine Corps for over 21 years with extensive experience in the special operations, intelligence, and counterterrorism fields. His overseas experience spanned deployments to Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Afghanistan, the Middle East, East Africa, Central America, and the Pacific. He was designated a Regional Affairs Officer for East Africa. While in Iraq, he directed a joint interagency task force attempting to track and target foreign extremists traveling to Iraq for violent activities. Prior to his retirement from the military, Tim taught courses in Leadership, Ethics, and Management at Duke, UNC, and NC State for four years. In addition to his consulting activities, Tim is currently a research fellow and visiting  professor of the practice in the School of Public Policy at Duke University. He is the executive director of the Counterterrorism and Public Policy Fellowship Program and the Faculty Representative for the Master of National Security Policy Program.  His research interests and teaching responsibilities include  policy analysis, intelligence, interagency coordination, national security, homeland security and counterterrorism policy.

Bio/Profile
Tim Nichols (B.A, UVA, M.A, USF, M.B.A.,NCSU) Tim served as an intelligence officer in the Marine Corps for over 21 years with extensive experience in the special operations and counterterrorism fields. His overseas experience spans deployments to Iraq, Afghanistan, East Africa, Central America, and the Pacific. He has been designated as a Regional Affairs Officer for East Africa. While in Iraq, he led a joint interagency task force in tracking and targeting the migration paths of foreign extremists traveling to Iraq for violent activities. Prior to his retirement from the military, Tim taught courses in Leadership, Ethics, and Management at Duke, UNC, and NC State for four years. In addition to his consulting activities, Tim is currently a research fellow and adjunct professor in the School of Public Policy at Duke University. His research interests and teaching responsibilities include interagency coordination, national security, homeland security and counterterrorism policy.

Timothy W. Nichols