Faculty with the Bob Graham Center for Public Service will be offering these courses for Summer A and Fall 2025.
Summer A | PUP3323: Women & Politics
M-F | Period 2 | Class No. 16624 | 3 Credits
Women represent approximately half of the world’s population, yet they are underrepresented in government institutions, such as legislature, party leadership, and national executives. What explains this phenomenon? In this course we will explore how descriptive representation translates to substantive representation, which electoral laws and systems favor the election of women, and how women behave once in elected office. We will also explore the changing role of women in the electorate, including women’s voting behavior and preferences. This course will take a comparative approach and we will investigate women and their relationship to politics cross-nationally, and across all the regions of the globe. Lecturer: Teresa Cornacchione
NEW! IDS4930/POS4931 Applied Policy Research
M,W,F | Period 4 | Class No. 26135, 27150 | 3 Credits
This is an upper-level course designed to introduce students to the practice of applied policy research. This course will cover how public policy practitioners approach real problems and will explore how academic research informs policy. Students will work toward developing an original public policy proposal. Much of the course will focus on refining policy analysis, research, and writing skills, culminating in a final project addressing a real-world policy problem. Lecturer: Dr. Teresa Cornacchione
IDS 4930/POS 4931/ASH 3931: Modern Middle East
T Period 4, R Periods 4-5 | Class No. 26134, 27153, 21421 | 3 credits
The Middle East and North Africa is a vast region that spans across three continents, includes countries from Morocco to Iran and from Turkey to Yemen, and stretches from the Atlantic to the Persian Gulf. This course examines the histories, politics, economics, and cultures of this expansive region, and analyzes the complexities and challenges of the area’s past, present, and future. Specifically, the course will explore a range of topics, including colonialism, the rise of nationalism, the formation of modern states, and the region’s integration into the global economy. In addition, students will learn about political systems and structures of Middle Eastern countries, consider questions around authoritarianism, democracy, and hybrid regimes, and explore how those systems interact with other dynamic sociocultural factors such as religion, identity, gender, media, and activism.
Lecturer: Dr. Onursal Erol
IDS 4930: Introduction to Gulf Studies
T Period 4, R Periods 4-5 | Class No. 26133
This course explores the environmental, social, cultural, and economic challenges facing the Gulf region, and is a requirement to earn the Gulf Scholars Medallion. Students will engage in design thinking methodology to explore solutions that address these complex issues. Through guest speakers, readings, discussions, case studies, and project-based learning, participants will strengthen their collaborative skills and gain insights into potential career pathways in non-profits, government, academia, and the private sector. By fostering empathy and understanding community needs, students will be equipped to make a meaningful impact on the Gulf and contribute to its sustainable and equitable future. Lecturer: Becca Burton
AMH 2020: US History 1877-present
T,R Period 7, F Period 3| Class No. 25284, 25286, 25289, 25290, 25292, 25293 | 3 Credits
American History, 1877-present examines the major social, economic, and political developments that have shaped America from l877 to the present. AMH 2020 is an introductory course designed to expose students of all majors to important themes, interpretations, events, and primary sources in U.S. History. As a part of the course, the instructor will include a special focus on the struggle for citizenship and democracy that African Americans led from Reconstruction up to and after the 1960s. The class will focus on identifying historical agency, appreciating historical nuance, and exploring challenging parts of our shared past collegially, courageously, and reflectively. Lecturer: Dr. Kevin Bird
IDS 2338: Democratic Engagement and Public Leadership
Online | Asynchronous | Class No. 26703, 26704 | 3 Credits
This course, a prerequisite for the Public Service Minor, is an exploration of what it means to be a citizen in a democracy like the United States. We will delve into the qualities that a responsible member of a community is expected to have, and examine the role of the individual in shaping the democratic process. Through critical thinking, analysis, and evaluation, students will develop the skills to engage in productive civil discourse and create a public policy Civic Action Plan to address a pressing community issue. By examining our nation’s founding documents and the role of the press in politics, this course provides a comprehensive understanding of how the past informs current political debate and prepares students to be effective citizens. Lecturer: Dr. Teresa Cornacchione.
IDS 4930: Human Rights in Asia
T Period 7, R Periods 7-8 | Class No. 26204 | 3 Credits
Since the end of World War II, the framework of human rights has dominated international discourse about social justice. This class critically investigates and applies the framework of human rights with reference to Asian countries and cultures, analyzing the tensions related to the application of universalist ideals onto culturally diverse localities. We will begin with the origins of different national and global standards of human rights, including perspectives from relevant Asian belief systems. Next, we look to Asia’s 20th century history of political violence, identifying how basic rights can become eroded and how societies continue to memorialize past atrocities and seek justice and accountability. Finally, we will examine the contemporary experiences of ethnic minorities in Asia facing legal obstacles and persecution, both at home and as workers abroad. The class draws upon case studies from Cambodia, Japan, China, Taiwan, Myanmar, Thailand, Indonesia, Jordan, and elsewhere. Lecturer: Dr. Tim Karis
INS 2004: International Studies Perspectives
T Period 7, R Periods 7-8 | Class No. 26302 | 3 Credits
This course serves as the introduction to the International Studies major, but you do not need to be in the International Studies major to take it. Students will be introduced to the contemporary international system and the major regions of the world, as well as to the academic disciplines that make up the field of International Studies. Students will learn about a range of issues that have been important historically, become increasingly more important over the last couple of decades, and will remain significant for the foreseeable future — international conflict, the role of technology and media in societies, the international economy, the question of development and poverty, the role of culture and globalization, and the challenges of the global commons. The course will help set you up to do well in the International Studies major if you choose to pursue it, but will also help you become a more engaged participant in the world you inhabit. Lecturer: Dr. Onursal Erol
INS 4930: Senior Research Seminar in International Studies
This course offers seniors in the International Studies major the opportunity to examine current debates and theoretical trends in the field, conduct guided research on a topic and region of their choice, and write an original research paper. Each week, our readings and discussions will address both 1) research and writing strategies to guide your project, and 2) issues and concepts of contemporary relevance to international studies scholars, including debates about globalization and the nation-state, global political movements, citizenship and rights, the environment and social justice, political-economic change, migration and refugees, urbanization, power and resistance, gender and development, and humanitarianism. We will use the readings not only to extract insight and information, but also to serve as models for the presentation of research findings. The seminar covers all regions of the world and draws on scholarship from a variety of disciplines in the social sciences. Lecturers: Dr. Tim Karis (Class No. 25960) | Dr. Alex Panayotov Class No. 25961