Temple Shalom will host a three-part lecture series on foreign policy and strategic diplomacy beginning Sunday, March 8th, featuring speakers from the Naval War College and the Surface Warfare Officers School in Newport.

The lecture series is free and open to the public and is scheduled to take place throughout the early spring at Temple Shalom in Middletown. 

“We want to foster discussion and understanding of these important issues across our community,” said Abigail Anthony, President of Temple Shalom in a staement. “We have extraordinary educators and experts in our community who can provide valuable insights.” 

The lecture series has three parts: 

CHINA IN THE MIDDLE EAST: Sunday, March 8, 2020. Guest lecturer, Dr. Isaac Kardon. 

Dr. Isaac Kardon is an assistant professor at the Naval War College’s China Maritime Studies Institute. He researches, writes and teaches on China’s foreign policy with a focus on China’s maritime disputes, the law of the sea and PRC firms’ overseas port development. He received his Ph.D. in Government from Cornell University, a M.Phil. in Modern Chinese Studies from Oxford University and a B.A. in History from Dartmouth College. 

BEYOND IMPERIALISM, EXPLORING THE STRATEGIC SIGNIFICANCE OF CRIMEA TO RUSSIAN SECURITY: Sunday, March 29, 2020. Guest lecturer, Lieutenant Evan Shallcross. 

Evan Shallcross is a Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy currently assigned to the Surface Warfare Officers School in Newport, RI. He is pursuing a Master’s degree in International Relations at Salve Regina. He has served onboard two U.S. Naval warships – USS GARY (FFG 51) as First Lieutenant and USS ESSEX (LHD 2) as Assistant Chief Engineer. His operational experience is in counter transnational organized crime (CTOC) in the East Pacific. 

FRAMEWORKS, ACTORS AND FACTORS TO EXPLAIN FOREIGN POLICY DEICISION MAKING: Sunday, May 17, 2020. Guest lecturer, LtCol Ken Sandler. 

Ken Sandler is a LtCol in the U.S. Maritime Corps currently assigned as Military Professor at the Naval War College where he teaches National Security Affairs. His background is supervising organizational telecommunications networks and has served in a variety of positions in the U.S. and abroad. His deployments include Iraq, Afghanistan and the Mediterranean Sea. He is a graduate of Ohio University, George Washington University and the Army War College. 

ALL LECTURES BEGIN AT 3 P.M. 

RSVP’s for the lecture series must be directed to TempleShalomRhodeIsland@gmail.com. RSVP preferred, but not mandatory. Each lecture will be held at Temple Shalom, located at 223 Valley Road, Middletown, RI. Refreshments will be served. 

More information about Temple Shalom can be found at https://www.templeshalomrhodeisland.org/. 

Ryan Belmore

Ryan Belmore is the Owner and Publisher of What'sUpNewp.  He has been involved with What’sUpNewp since shortly after its launch in 2012, proudly leading it to be named Best Local News Blog in Rhode Island by Rhode Island Monthly readers in 2018, 2019, and 2020 and an honorable mention in the Common Good Awards in 2021.

He currently serves on the Board of Directors for Potter League For Animals. He previously served on the boards of Fort Adams Trust, Lucy's Hearth, and the Arts & Cultural Alliance for Newport County.

In 2020, he was named Member of the Year by LION and won the Arts & Cultural Alliance of Newport County's Dominque Award.

He is a member of Local Independent Online News (LION) Publishers, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the North American Snowsports Journalists Association.

Born and raised in Rhode Island, he spent 39 years living in Rhode Island before recently moving to Alexandria, Virginia, with his wife and two rescue dogs. He still considers Rhode Island home, and visits at least once a month.