Saskia Popescu

Saskia Popescu is a term Assistant Professor in the Biodefense Program at George Mason University's Schar School of Policy and Government, and an adjunct professor in the University of Arizona's College of Public Health Epidemiology and Biostatistics program. She holds a Ph.D. in Biodefense from George Mason University and dual master's degrees in Public Health (infectious disease epidemiology) and International Security Studies from the University of Arizona.

Her research focuses on healthcare biopreparedness, global health security, and antimicrobial resistance integration into global strategies. She has led critical initiatives, including a gap analysis for a six-hospital system to enhance readiness against high-consequence diseases, which informed responses to the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Certified in infection prevention (CIC) and pandemic preparedness, she has served on high-profile committees such as the Federation of American Scientists' Coronavirus Taskforce and the National Academies of Sciences committee on SARS-CoV-2 data monitoring.

Dr. Popescu has been recognized as an Alumni Fellow of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security's Emerging Leaders in Biosecurity Initiative (ELBI) and received the Frontier HS-STEM Career Development Grant for food defense research. Her work bridges policy, epidemiology, and security to address global health threats.