Dr. Cunningham is a political scientist with expertise in political violence, terrorism, and conflict resolution. He earned an MA in political science at American University and an MLitt in political studies at the University of Auckland.  His Ph.D. from George Mason University is in conflict analysis and resolution with a focus on resolving political violence with non-violent means. 

Dr. Cunningham published two book chapters on terrorism for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) and he worked on a joint project of the National Defense University and George Mason University on creating the Conceptual Model of Counterterrorist Operations.  He conducted field research in Northern Ireland for his master’s thesis and doctoral dissertation. He has presented papers at conferences in the U.S., Germany, and New Zealand on terrorism, peace processes, mediation, threat assessment, global governance, and peacekeeping operations. 

Dr. Cunningham has taught courses on terrorism, negotiation, conflict resolution, and mediation, and he teaches CSEC 608:  Cyber Espionage, Terrorism, and War.