Arlington, VA

 CNA has just honored Dr. Jerry Meyerle with the Phil E. DePoy Award for Analytical Excellence. Dr. Meyerle, a CNA principal research scientist, has helped shape Marine Corps preparations for counterinsurgency operations, troop allocation and mission direction in Afghanistan, and long-term planning at the Pentagon. 

“Jerry embodies everything we look for in a CNA analyst,” said CNA CEO and President Dr. Katherine McGrady, who presented the honor to Dr. Meyerle during CNA’s annual awards ceremony. “His versatility and analytical rigor enable him to tackle every assignment—no matter the topic—and produce superb work.” 

“Military leaders make hard decisions, in difficult circumstances—with limited time, limited information, and lives on the line,” said Dr. Meyerle. “In these moments, analysis is like a ray of light—helping everyone understand a problem with a clarity that wasn’t there before. I’ve seen it happen. I’ve seen the difference we can make, and everyone at CNA plays a part. High quality, high-impact analysis—that’s what we do here.”

Since joining CNA in 2007, Meyerle has led studies for Congress, the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, and the intelligence community. His expertise spans topics in defense strategy and posture, joint warfighting, contingency operations, the Middle East and South Asia, and counterterrorism. He received his doctorate in political science and international relations from the University of Virginia. 

Meyerle has served in the CNA Field Program as an advisor to military commanders in Afghanistan, on a carrier strike group in the Persian Gulf, and at U.S. Central Command. His early work on insurgency in Afghanistan was published by Marine Corps Press as “On the Ground in Afghanistan: Counterinsurgency in Practice” and condensed by the Marine Corps as a pocket-sized book for deploying Marines. More recently, Meyerle has focused on future military posture in the Middle East, global warfighting, crisis response, impacts of COVID on U.S. strategic advantage, and joint operating concepts.

The DePoy Award recognizes exceptional analytical excellence in a CNA research staff member. It is named after Phil E. DePoy, a former CNA president. Prior recipients include Dr. Jason Thomas, director of CNA’s Operational Warfighting Division, who nominated Meyerle for this year’s award.

“Jerry consistently tackles our hardest, most unstructured, and highest-profile questions,” said Thomas. “At the same time, he has deployed to the field and to combat zones to ensure that his work is underpinned by real-world data to produce findings and recommendations that can be effectively operationalized.” 

Other CNA awards presented at the ceremony were the Deployer Award for lengthy tours at sea, to Dr. Simca Bouma and Dr. Keith Zirkle; the CEO Teamwork Award for superior performance by a project team, to Emergency Technology Challenge Team members John Crissman, Dr. Steve Habicht, Shaelynn Hales, Addam Jordan, Dr. Adam Monsalve, Dr. Matthew Prebble, and Dr. Rebekah Yang; and the Mary Ann Pianka-Carey Kellam Award for Exceptional Service, to Dana Smith.