How would the U.S. military interact with non-governmental organizations if American troops staged a humanitarian intervention in Sudan next year?

That question was the focus of seminars at the Naval War College in Newport, R.I., attended by six Harvard undergraduates this past Friday.

The students, along with five fellows from the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, toured the college as part of the center’s “Military and American Democracy” study group.

The trip, co-sponsored by the International Relations Council, served as a “capstone event for our seminar,” according to a fellow and study group leader, Colonel Charles Hooper. “The purpose of both the seminar and the visit was to familiarize undergraduates with the education, culture, role, and missions of the American military,” he said.

Along with the seminars, the students visited the institution’s war-game facilities and historical sites and dined at the officers’ club overlooking Narragansett Bay.

“It really shows you what military leaders need to take into account in planning and executing operations,” said Vivek Viswanathan ’09, another attendee.

The Naval War College exists in large part to educate military and government officials in strategy and technology developments.

“There’s a tendency to think that all military leaders learn is to shoot people and blow things up,” Hooper said. “I think the students got a good appreciation for the broad strategic knowledge, language, history, philosophy, information management, politics, and economics that are all elements of the education of the modern military,” he added.

Hooper stressed the importance of overcoming common stereotypes about armed forces personnel. He said that Harvard students—as future leaders—should understand the “true role of the military in American society.”