CHDS Director Dr. Richard D. Downie announced Friday that Dr. Frederick M. Nunn, a distinguished historian of the Latin American military, has been selected as the Center’s new Dean of Academic Affairs. Nunn, the author of several books and scores of scholarly articles, is Professor Emeritus of History and International Studies at Portland State University in Oregon as well as a former Vice Provost for International Affairs there.
“We are extremely pleased to be able to announce today that Fred Nunn will be coming aboard as our new Dean of Academics, beginning September 14,” Downie said. “Fred is one of the pioneer academic researchers on civil-military relations and the history of Latin American militaries. As the Center increasingly focuses on scholarly research and publication, it is truly a luxury to be able to count on the knowledge, acumen and talents of Dr. Nunn.”
Nunn received his PhD in Ibero-American Studies (History and Literature) from the University of New Mexico in 1963, a place that in the 1960s was home to a number of academics who went on to be renowned scholars of the Latin American military, including Richard Millett and the late Edwin Lieuwen.
Among Nunn’s most important works are The Time of the Generals: Latin American Professional Militarism in World Perspective, published in 1992 and the winner of the 1994 Thomas F. McGann Book Award, and The Military in Chilean History: Essays on Civil-Military Relations, 1810-1973, published three years after a bloody coup by the armed forces in that country. Nunn replaces Dr. Luis Bitencourt, who has served for more than a year in the position of Interim Dean and who has shepherded the accreditation of several of Center’s advanced courses with National Defense University.
“Luis Bitencourt deserves our thanks, our respect and our recognition for the wonderful job he has done over these many months,” Downie said. “Under his guidance, the Center faculty has grown significantly in size and expertise. Our offerings to students from the hemisphere and around the world – including three new advanced policy courses on cutting-edge strategic themes – will be enormously useful for researchers and policymakers throughout the region.”
The pre-eminent academic institution for teaching, research, and outreach on defense and security issues affecting the Americas, CHDS provides strategic-level education to civilian and military leaders in the Western Hemisphere to foster mutual understanding, trust and cooperation.
