Dr. Stephen M. Shellman is an Assistant Professor in the Department of International Affairs at the University of Georgia and a Faculty Associate in the Department of Government at The College of William & Mary. Before taking the position at Georgia, he was a Visiting Assistant Professor at the College of William & Mary. He earned his BA (1997) from the University of Georgia and MS (2000) and Ph.D. (2003) degrees from Florida State University.

Shellman's research primarily focuses on violent political conflict. He directs Project Civil Strife, funded by the National Science Foundation, which analyzes conflict-cooperation processes among domestic and transnational insurgent groups and governments in Southeast Asia. He recently earned a START Fellowship from the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, Center of Excellence of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, University of Maryland to carry out research on political, religious, and ethnic groups in Southeast Asia and currently consults for the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) on a project focusing on Pakistani militancy. His other research focuses on forced migration and the effects of disease on national security. He is author of several research articles appearing in journals such as Comparative Political Studies, Conflict Management and Peace Science, International Interactions, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Journal of Political Science Education, and Political Analysis. Finally, he is the Executive Editor of The Terror & Conflict Monitor: An Academic Newsletter on Political Violence & Terrorism.

Shellman teaches courses on political violence and terrorism, comparative politics, international relations, and research methods. He participates as a Faculty Mentor in the Center for Undergraduate Research Opportunities Apprentice Program and co-directs the Summer Workshop on Teaching about Terrorism, a workshop designed to increase professors’ and graduate students’ substantive knowledge of both the practical and academic sides of terrorism, counter-terrorism, and homeland security studies. Finally, he designs active learning simulations for comparative politics and international relations courses. Descriptions of his simulations can be found in PS: Political Science and Politics and Simulation & Gaming.