Throughout the semester you have learned about several contemporary issues in homeland security and terrorism. In particular, you have identified and evaluated the history and foundations of homeland security and terrorism, critically assessed current methods for investigating and combatting terrorism, and analyzed the myriad financial, personal, and legal consequences of the war on terror. Although we have learned much about our nation’s efforts to protect our homeland security and combat terrorism since 9/11, new homeland security and terrorism issues are constantly emerging. In particular, a great deal of news attention has focused on ISIS.
With this in mind, the final assignment will require you to apply your knowledge to the following scenario…
Imagine that you have just been promoted to a senior administration position within the White House. Congratulations!☺Given your new role, our new President has tasked you with preparing a 10 to 15-page (double-spaced) research/policy report that will ultimately provide him with 7 recommendations to improve homeland security and prevent and combat terrorism. Before you provide the President with these 7 recommendations, please first provide him with the following: a) an overview of 5 leading homeland security/terrorism concerns currently facing the United States, b) a brief history and review of the tactics that the United States has utilized in its efforts to fight the War on Terror, c) a summary of the risks and financial costs associated with the War on Terror, and d) a brief summary of the federal agencies responsible for fighting the War on Terror. In the final section of your report (e), please create and describe in detail 7 innovative policy recommendations that you expect will improve the homeland security of the United States and aid in the War on Terror.
IMPORTANT CLARIFICATION
Please read below for my specific expectations on your research/policy report.
General Tips: In general, err on the side of being specific and providing particular examples from the course material (and news) to support your statements. In other words, instead of saying that the War on Terror is expensive, provide some specific evidence about the costs associated with the War (as mentioned in your course material or other sources). Also, while you should have enough information from the course material to write your paper, it is expected that you may review outside sources to support your statements. Be sure, however, that you are relying on reputable news sources or scientific articles as opposed to personal blogs.
About the Page Requirements: It is anticipated that your paper will be approximately 10 to 15-pages in length. Please note that this page requirement does NOT include your reference list. It is anticipated that you will have at least 8, and as many as 20 references in your paper. Therefore, it is possible that your final paper may actually be 12 to 17-pages.
Recommendations for Each Section
Section A: Please identify and describe 5 leading homeland security/terrorism concerns currently facing the United States. In order to ensure that you have identified 5 of the most pressing concerns facing the United States right now, it is expected that you will research additional material from the news (think ISIS, civil liberties, financial/personal costs, etc.). Draw on both course material and outside sources to address this section. Section A should be approximately 2-3 pages.
Section B: Please provide a brief history and review of the tactics that the United States has utilized in its efforts to fight the War on Terror. This section should include both military and investigative tactics described in detail in your readings and some of the films (e.g., Manhunt, Newburgh Sting, etc.). Section B should be approximately 2-3 pages.
Section C: Please detail a summary of the financial/personal/legal risks and costs associated with the War on Terror. Review the Mueller and Stewart (2014) article for more specific information to evaluate the possible risks and costs. I am not expecting for you to provide an exact dollar amount, but more for you to describe in words the various risks and costs associated with the War on Terror. Section C should be approximately 1-2 pages.
Section D: Please identify and briefly review the specific federal agencies currently responsible for fighting the War on Terror. Instead of outlining each agency’s role, provide a more general summary about the many federal agencies involved. Section D should be approximately 1 page. Section E: Please create and describe in detail 7 innovative policy recommendations that you expect will improve the homeland security of the United States. It is expected that at least 3 of your recommendations will be specific to the current terrorism concerns with ISIS. Note that while it is okay to be creative and thoughtful in this section, I am not asking for your personal opinions. Instead, I want you to rely on the course material and other sources to provide rational and reasonable recommendations specific to homeland security and terrorism. Of course, it is perfectly okay if you “borrow” a recommendation from someone or something else, but you must provide credit to your sources and cite the person/article/video when need be. Furthermore, please do not simply list your recommendations. Instead, provide a thoughtful paragraph for each recommendation that makes clear what your recommendation is and why you think it will help in some way. Please be as specific as possible in describing your recommendations. Section E should be approximately 3-5 pages.
FORMATTING YOUR PAPER
Students are required to type their paper in Times New Roman font, size 12 font. Your paper should use 1” margins and must be double-spaced.
You must ensure that you utilize proper APA format for your paper. Please consult the 6th edition of the APA Manual, our APA tips sheet available on Blackboard, and the OWL website for help following APA format here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
WRITING YOUR PAPER
It is recommended that you utilize all of the resources available to you to ensure that your paper is well written, organized, and clear. Please use spell-check/grammar- check, and proofread your paper before you submit it.
Also, you can take advantage of various resources available to you on the CSUDH campus. CSUDH offers the GWIE (Graduate Writing Institute for Excellence) PEGS (Promoting Excellence in Graduate Studies) Program.
A note about writing style: Use of first-person is acceptable and sometimes necessary, but it should be used as infrequently as possible.
A note about quoting sources: Quoting an author is acceptable and sometimes necessary, but it should be done as infrequently as possible. I am looking for your own thoughts, so please do your best to paraphrase from the multiple materials you’ve read/watched throughout the course. Please limit your entire paper to no more than 3 quotations. Furthermore, ensure that each of your quotations is no longer than 40 words in length.
A note about citing sources: Even if you are not quoting from a specific author, you still must provide a citation to support where you got the idea. To be clear, even when you paraphrase from the multiple materials you’ve read/watched throughout the course, you still must provide a citation to the material in the text of your actual paper. Please consult the 6th edition of the APA Manual, our APA tips sheet available on Blackboard, and the OWL website for help following APA format to ensure that you are following APA format.
SUBMITTING YOUR PAPER
Since you will submit your paper electronically (do not post your paper in Blackboard), you need to make sure that I can successfully open your document. You must make sure that your document is in .doc or .docx format. No other formats will be accepted. If you are unable to make a document in this format or if you do not have Word on your personal computer, make sure that you make other arrangements (e.g., go to the school library, go to Kinkos, borrow your friend’s computer, etc.).
You must save your document as: Yourlastname-CJA-566. For instance, my document name would be saved as Berkowitz-CJA-566.
HOW YOU WILL BE GRADED
To earn the full 50 points, students must do more than simply meet all of the criteria above. Instead, students will be graded on their ability to include all required components of the paper (see above for details), their ability to think creatively and critically about the assignment, their ability to locate, draw on, and provide the relevant material/support, their ability to present their ideas in a clear, well written, organized manner, their ability to properly cite their sources in APA format, etc.
MISCELLANEOUS
