Before joining the NESA Center in January 2010, she worked at the Center for Political-Military Analysis at the Hudson Institute, where she analyzed U.S. and foreign defense, intelligence, and homeland security and counterterrorism policies; and the Eurasian Strategy Project, where she focused on Eurasian political and security issues. Additionally, she previously worked for the U.S. Department of State in Washington, DC, where she was awarded the Franklin Award (2004), and the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, Russia (2003).