Kiron Skinner Named Inaugural Taube Family Chair of International Relations and Politics at Pepperdine School of Public Policy

Kiron Skinner, renowned scholar, diplomat, cybersecurity expert, and former State Department and Defense Department official, has been named the inaugural Taube Family Chair of International Relations and Politics at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. The chair is an historic, first-ever distinguished position at Pepperdine and creates the single largest newly endowed position at the University. Skinner has served as the Taube Professor of International Relations and Politics at the School of Public Policy since 2022 and provided her expert insights on international relations, US foreign policy, political strategy, and cyber security both in the classroom and with external audiences. 

“Dr. Skinner embodies the caliber of faculty most institutions can only aspire to recruit,” said Pepperdine president Jim Gash. “Kiron is a highly regarded instructor and mentor who earns rave reviews for her high-impact classes and willingness to mentor a new generation. She elevates our academic offerings and inspires our students to engage deeply with the critical issues facing our world today.”

Through the scholarship and thought leadership exemplified by Skinner and future holders of the position, the chair aims to firmly establish a more balanced view of international affairs and politics and embraces the view that the US plays a critical, leading role on the global stage. Based on a Judeo-Christian foundation, the holder of the chair will prepare the next generation of leaders in national security, international affairs, and politics. The endowment of the chair also establishes an enduring partnership between Taube Philanthropies and Pepperdine and advances the Taube family legacy at Pepperdine. 

The chair’s endowment will support Skinner’s work in developing and implementing new initiatives, such as plans already being explored for the possible creation of an Institute for Diplomacy, Security, and Innovation. The position also grants her increased cachet among peers in academia and the policy world and new opportunities to disseminate research and policy recommendations. As chair, Skinner will be afforded the flexibility to serve as a public intellectual, external representative, and international convener of a range of voices in fields like diplomacy, national security, foreign policy and cyber security.

For more than 40 years, the Taube family has leveraged the principles of collaborative giving to bolster American values and help ensure that all citizens have an equal opportunity to reach their greatest potential. Tad and Dianne Taube direct their Bay Area-based family foundation to fund programs throughout the US, Poland, and Israel. They are longtime supporters of leading collegiate, archival, and public policy institutions, including the Hoover Institution at Stanford, where the Tad and Dianne Taube Directorship is currently held by former US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, and Stanford Libraries’ Taube Archive of the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg, 1945–46. They also established and fund the George P. Shultz Post-Doctoral Fellowships at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. In addition to supporting education and public policy initiatives oriented to preserve American democratic principles, the Taubes support health and wellness initiatives with a focus on youth, including the Santa Clara University student wellness program. 

“This wonderful gift from Tad and Dianne Taube in support of Dr. Skinner's chair here at the School of Public Policy demonstrates not only their gracious commitment to preparing future leaders in international relations and national security, but also a specific appreciation of Kiron's remarkable scholarship and teaching,” said School of Public Policy dean Pete Peterson. “For more than a quarter century, the School of Public Policy has placed an emphasis on these disciplines, and this gift takes our work to a new level—academically, and as a convener of distinctive conversations about America's role in the world.”

In her role as the Taube Professor of International Relations at the School of Public Policy, Skinner applies a multidisciplinary approach to ensure that students view specific situations from a variety of perspectives on their path to their professional pursuits. Through her course, How to Run the World, she encourages students’ development as multidimensional people and reinforces, through her personal and professional experiences in government, their understanding of how to effectively engage with governments and leaders. Skinner regularly invites guest speakers to the class and introduces students to thought leaders in different sectors, such as the media, politics, government service, business, and the academy and engages them in conversations about the passion and purpose that drives their lives and careers. Supplemented by an analysis of pertinent writings, Skinner explores with students the common threads among their insights and actions. Past speakers have included Peter Thiel, cofounder of PayPal; Newt Gingrich, former speaker of the US House of Representatives; Winsome Sears, lieutenant governor of Virginia; and Brian A. Nichols, assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere Affairs. 

“Public policy, national security, and international relations need leaders who believe that the United States has been and will continue to be a guiding force for global security and prosperity,” said Skinner. “As chair, I look forward to advancing meaningful discussions about America’s role in the world and the positive role that other nations play as well. I am grateful to the Taube family and Pepperdine University for the honor of being named to this position.”

As the Taube Chair, Skinner will continue to teach How to Run the World and also lead the future School of Public Policy seminar series on America’s role in a perilous world that will host a variety of events analyzing the United States' role amid an often chaotic and unpredictable current-event landscape. These academic workshops will be co-led by Robert Kaufman, Robert and Katheryn Dockson Professor of Public Policy at the School of Public Policy. Skinner will also support other School of Public Policy faculty in establishing seminar series in their field of study.

Prior to Pepperdine, Skinner served as the Taube Professor for International Relations and Politics at Carnegie Mellon University's Institute for Politics and Strategy. At Carnegie Mellon she started several centers and institutes, including the Carnegie Mellon University Washington Semester Program. Skinner continues to serve as the W. Glenn Campbell Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, where she was the research assistant for former secretary of state George P. Shultz as he wrote his memoir about US foreign policy during the Reagan era. She has also co-authored books with Secretary Rice.

Skinner's past government service includes membership on the US Department of Defense's Defense Policy Board as an advisor on the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars, the Defense Department’s Defense Business Board, the Chief of Naval Operations' Executive Panel, the National Academies Committee on Behavioral and Social Science Research to Improve Intelligence Analysis for National Security, and the National Security Education Board. From 2012 to 2015 she served on Pennsylvania governor Tom Corbett's Advisory Commission on African American Affairs. During her two years at Pepperdine, she has served on the National Academies Committee on International Talent Programs in the Changing Global Environment. The committee’s report will be published later this year.

Skinner is an award-winning and best-selling author with particular scholarship focused on the life and public policy of former president Ronald Reagan. Her coauthored books Reagan, In His Own Hand (2001) and Reagan, A Life in Letters (2003) were New York Times best sellers. The former won the Hoover Institution's Uncommon Book Award in 2002.

Skinner serves on the editorial boards of Telos: Critical Theory of the Contemporary and Texas National Security Review.

Skinner is a lifetime director on the board of the Atlantic Council in Washington, DC, and serves on the board of the Pacific Council on International Policy in Los Angeles. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York City.