William Braniff is the Executive Director of the Polarization and Extremism Research and Innovation Lab (PERIL) and a research assistant professor in the Department of Justice, Law, and Criminology (JLC) at the School of Public Affairs at American University. He most recently served as the Director of the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) at the United States Department of Homeland Security, overseeing the implementation of its public health-informed approach to targeted violence and terrorism prevention. Braniff previously served as the START director and a professor of the practice at the University of Maryland, the director of practitioner education at West Point’s Combating Terrorism Center, and an instructor in the Department of Social Sciences at West Point. Braniff is a graduate of the United States Military Academy. Following his Company Command in the U.S. Army, he attended the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies where he received a master’s degree in international relations. Braniff then served as a foreign affairs specialist for the National Nuclear Security Agency. Braniff spoke at the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism in February 2015, and the United We Stand Summit in 2022. He has testified before Congress on five occasions and appears regularly in national and international news media. His research focuses on domestic and international terrorism, counterterrorism, and terrorism prevention. He previously served as a member of the Editorial Board of the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism-The Hague (ICCT), the RESOLVE Network Research Advisory Board, the Prosecution Project Advisory Board, the Hedayah Center International Advisory Board, the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT) Independent Advisory Committee (IAC) and a non-voting advisor to the Board of CHC Global. He is also a founding board member of We the Veterans and Military Families, an organization dedicated to strengthening American democracy.

Mr. Braniff has a keen interest in the field of targeted violence and terrorism prevention, bringing extensive experience to DHS. He spoke at the White House Summit on Countering Violent Extremism in February 2015, and the United We Stand Summit in 2022. Mr. Braniff has testified before Congress on five occasions and has appeared regularly in national and international news media. He previously served as a member of the Editorial Board of the International Centre for Counter-Terrorism-The Hague, the RESOLVE Network Research Advisory Board, the Prosecution Project Advisory Board, the Hedayah Center International Advisory Board, the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism Independent Advisory Committee, and a non-voting advisor to the Board of CHC Global. He was also a founding board member of We the Veterans, an organization of veterans and military families dedicated to strengthening American democracy.

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