Fort Bragg hosts Duke University’s Tech Innovation Foundry. Article

FORT BRAGG, N.C. – Duke University students and faculty stepped inside Fort Bragg’s newest Innovation Hub March 27, 2026, and gained hands-on experience in the classroom to better understand the military service and the Army’s transformation initiatives.

The day-long immersion brought Duke’s “Peace and War: 21st Century” curriculum to the Lt. Gen. James M. Gavin Joint Innovation Outpost at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. JIOP is the Army’s proving ground for rapid problem-solving, the bridge that connects tactical challenges to collaborative solutions developed with industry and academic partners.

Bruce R. Lewis Professor of History and Policy at Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy. Cuniholm Distinguished Chair Jennifer Siegel called the visit an important cornerstone for the program.

“All the students here are part of our series of first-year courses on peace or war,” Siegel said. “Students are taking courses each semester in one of those topics that relate to national security issues, peace or diplomacy – all from different perspectives.”

After spending a year investigating why nations choose war or peace from a competitive academic perspective, Siegel said the trip gave students something no other class could replicate: direct contact with the people executing those missions.

“We were really excited to come to Fort Bragg for our big capstone co-curricular activity for the year so students could have an opportunity to see what it looks like on the ground,” Siegel said. “We’re grappling with questions about conflict, unrest, diplomacy and combat experience in our various classes. To actually have the opportunity to connect with (soldiers) who are doing this and see how it happens is a real privilege for us.”

Prerna Kodakondala, a first-year Duke student studying public policy and economics, said JIOP’s mission has redefined her understanding of how the military adapts to emerging threats and how quickly that adaptation occurs.

“We spend a lot of time in the classroom engaging in abstract concepts on peace or war,” Kodakondala said. “These topics are evolving and changing, and we rarely hear about these detailed experiences from people who experience it firsthand. Ukraine-Russia is the example we studied in class, but it’s interesting to see how this adaptation is happening in real life.”

Kodakondala said the trip helped bridge the gap in understanding between the civilian and military worlds, adding that the divide is more pronounced among young Americans. The Duke program has already put him on a path toward careers in foreign policy and national security.

For the Soldiers and civilians serving in JIOP, engaging the next generation of policy makers and scholars is an investment the Army cannot afford to forego.

“We need to leverage our educational partnerships,” said Major Matthew Millsaps, JIOP operations officer. “It is important to educate students about how the military works with the civilian population and what capabilities JIOP brings to the innovation enterprise. We are also showing students that Soldiers are regular people who live typical lives on establishments similar to cities, providing everything an individual could need.”

1st Lt. Benjamin Daniels, JIOP’s deputy innovation officer, echoed that sentiment, emphasizing that most Americans never see the vast support system at work behind the installation’s gates.

“Ensuring our military functions properly requires extensive coordination of civilian and military manpower,” Daniels said. “It’s not just about the ‘Green Suiters’ or the war; it’s the entire support system behind them that makes it the greatest army in the world.”