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Teaching |
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Courses Taught Introduction to American Government Metropolitan Complex Western Political Thought American Political Thought Public Policy Developing a Multicultural Perspective Social Justice in America Social and Political Change |
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Primary Teaching Areas American Politics Race and Politics Political Theory |
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Teaching Philosophy My first political science professor used to say that he tried to education citizens, not subjects. That idea has stayed with me for all these years. I have also been greatly influenced by C. Wright Mills’s The Sociological Imagination, and his argument that social scientists have an obligation to help citizens understand how their actions influence, and are influenced by the larger society. In my classes, I try to help students understand the workings of social and political phenomena, and how they fit into that bigger picture. I also try to help students think more rigorously about how they believe society and politics ought to work. Citizens need to know how social forces work, but they also must be able to decide if those forces are working as they should. Higher education can help us to improve our own lives, but equally important is the way that it can equip us to contribute to the common good. |