START, a multidisciplinary research center geared toward grasping the fine points of terrorism, never would have materialized if not for the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. But during the 10 years since the tragedy, this university has headquartered this center, where researchers have been instrumental in investigating terrorism and educating students on its omnipresent threat.

The National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, which is funded by the Department of Homeland Security, uses social and behavioral sciences to understand the human causes and consequences of terrorism, according to START Director Gary LaFree. Researchers in the program work to better anticipate terrorist acts, prepare the public for them and understand why people engage in terrorism; they then bring their findings to students.

“What is great about START is that before 9/11, no research or databases looked into how much terrorism is happening in the world,” said Sarah Fishering, the education coordinator of START. “We have a better perspective of what’s going on, and knowing what we know about these groups now, we definitely take threats seriously. Our research shows a better picture of what the actual risks and realities of the threats are now.”

LaFree was long interested in terrorism’s historical progression, and before 9/11 he took control of a database of terrorist acts dating back to 1970. The attacks on the U.S. provided a catalyst for him to take his work to the next level.

“He was able to put together a really unique set of people that are truly multidisciplinary and reach across all areas of social science to address areas people had not given much interest to in the past,” said Rik Legault, the program leader for social and behavioral modeling at the DHS. “Their work is stellar and they do really great things for the DHS. They produce information and knowledge that is important that no one has been able to do before.”

The consortium’s biggest accomplishment is the establishment of the Global Terrorism Database, an expansion of LaFree’s project, which compiles and analyzes information on worldwide terrorism events and allows people around the world to conceptualize levels of terrorism in different areas. More than 1,000 students have contributed to this database, which was updated this summer, LaFree said.

START also founded a terrorism studies minor at this university, in which students take classes with START researchers and experience on-the-job training. START officials said they hope to effectively prepare the next generation to face the relentless threat of terrorism.

“I’ll just say that if we were to disappear tomorrow, the biggest impact we’ve had is on our students,” LaFree said. “Right after 9/11, everyone was saying we need experts on the Middle East and people who speak Farsi … We’ve had a big impact on training the next generation for the current threats, and we are very proud of that. Students are really the backbone of this operation.”

There are more than 35 projects in progress across 65 universities in the U.S. and the United Kingdom, and members of the consortium said they are working to actively incorporate students into the program.

Junior government and politics and history major Kevin LaCherra is part of the terrorism studies minor, and he said the START program provided a crucial jump start to his budding career.

“Terrorism is something that’s unbelievably important, and important to the field I want to go into,” LaCherra said. “When you look at the defense field now, terrorism is the big thing.”

Students and staff involved with START said the U.S. has gained a greater awareness of the intricacies of terrorism since Sept. 11.

“Years ago, there was almost no discussion of homegrown terrorism,” LaFree said. “The U.S. had this idea that [terrorism] was a European problem. Seven years ago, Internet and social media weren’t a big issue in terrorism. Now everyone understands that the threat of terrorism continues to evolve.”

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