Each year the Security Studies Program hosts the Jack Ruina Nuclear Age Dinner. The dinner series was endowed by Professor Jack Ruina, former Director of the MIT Security Studies Program (then Defense and Arms Control Studies).

He was Professor Emeritus of Electrical Engineering at MIT whose special interest was in strategic nuclear weapons policy. The dinner bearing his name features a prominent speaker either from the civilian, military, or diplomatic spheres with special knowledge in nuclear issues. They are invited to address SSP students, faculty, and guests from within the MIT community on matters of concern in the present day. The first dinner was held in 2009, with guest speaker, Hans Blix, world renowned scholar and diplomat.

The dinner ties into the nuclear studies ongoing within the Security Studies Program. As SSP's former director Barry Posen has said, "Nuclear weapons are special. They deserve sustained and significant analytic attention."