This summer Andrew Peek '03 and Sam Spector '03 will travel to the Middle East for an 18-day program on terrorist threats to democracy and freedom.
Based in Israel, the program — sponsored by the Foundation for the Defense of Democracy — allows students to interact with political and military leaders from around the world.
Along with 38 students from various universities in the United States and Canada, Peek and Spector will hear lectures from terrorism experts and officials from Israel, India, Jordan, Turkey and the United States.
The stay in the Middle East begins a year-long fellowship sponsored by the FDD for the students to raise awareness about the threat of terrorism.
"I think its an incredible opportunity to be able to spend time in Israel, which is at the front lines, as far as I'm concerned, of the war on terrorism," Spector said.
For both Peek and Spector the fellowship is a continuation of their University and extracurricular studies.
Peek is majoring in politics with an emphasis on the Middle East. He has worked part-time at the Washington Institute of Near Eastern Policy since the end of January and hopes to work in foreign policy after graduation.
Spector is also majoring in politics and is pursuing a certificate in Near Eastern Studies. He has been president of the Princeton Israel Public Affairs Committee and of the Center for Jewish Life's student executive board.
After college, he hopes to study international law, focusing on the Middle East, he said.
"This fellowship is consistent with my interests . . . a culmination of the political activism I've done up to now," Spector said. "I can use what I've done on campus and apply it to the real world."
After studying in Israel this summer, the students are expected to actively raise awareness of terrorism and its effects on democracy on their campuses.
"It's up to them to come with the message they want to spread," said David Silverstein, deputy director of the FDD.
Of the 350 students who applied for the fellowship, 40 were accepted. The criteria for each student were academic excellence, previous study in international affairs, a proven record of campus leadership and a desire to inform the United States and other democracies about the threat posed by terrorism, Silverstein said.
The FDD was founded in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks to conduct research and education on international terrorism, according to its website. The foundation presents independent analyses of global terrorist threats and examines their deeper causes in history, culture, philosophy and ideology. Also, the FDD works to spread awareness and promote democracy around the world.
"Terrorism is an extraordinarily relevant topic for today," Peek said. "It's something I feel we should all know more about."
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