2023 Newsletter
Department Chair’s Message
Our 2022-23 academic year was outstanding one for the Department of Political Science and Public Administration! Our transformation continues as we move in a positive direction in educating future leaders and conducting interesting research.
We have two wonderful additions to our faculty: Dr. Melissa Baker and Dr. Hyunrang Han. Learn more about them in this newsletter. We hope that they have a productive and enriching time with us!
Our students are doing outstanding work. Three out of this year’s top ten graduating seniors are Political Science majors. Sarah Mickelson won a Truman Scholarship! Other students are developing leadership skills and learning more about how government operates through internships locally, in Austin, and in Washington, DC.
The 2023 Newsletter alum spotlight is on Desirae Manzanares, who embodies all one can do with an undergraduate degree in Political Science.
If you are interested in giving back to our department, especially to help our current students succeed, please consider contributing! Many of the extra work students undertake, such as internships outside of El Paso, study abroad, or attending and presenting at academic conferences, require supplemental funding from our department. Our funding from the Texas State government does not keep pace with the increasing costs of education. We wish to give our students the same experiences (or better!) that students in other nationally-ranked institutions have. Did you know that our department gives out approximately $60,000 dollars in scholarships each year? This is due to the generosity of people like you, enabling us to distribute scholarships to a large number of very deserving students who have achieved success in their course work.
Please consider giving, even a small amount. We are sending out this newsletter to approximately 15,000 people. Imagine if each of you donated only $20? We would have enough to create an endowment to fund 50 students each year into the future! Even small contributions have large and lasting impacts on our students. So consider clicking this link and donating whatever you can. It is very easy, and we thank you in advance for your kind contributions and support!
We would also like to help you with educational opportunities. Please look at our Masters Degree in Political Science and Masters in Public Administration (with a new fully online degree!) to see if they fit into your career plans. Many students take a break between undergraduate and graduate education. Therefore, it is never too late to undergo the change you need to see in yourself!
Please enjoy the rest of the newsletter. If you are not in the area, please do drop us a line and give us an update. Your post-UTEP experiences help us design the most appropriate education for our current students. In addition, of course, please stop by to visit when you are in town.
- Dr. Gaspare M. Genna, Political Science and Public Administration Department Chair
Meet Our New Faculty
We are delighted to welcome Dr. Melissa Baker to our department in Fall 2022, as she brings her cutting-edge research on the political aspects of mental health, along with her passion for mentoring students.
Her overall experience this past academic year has been very enjoyable. She has interacted with many very driven and hardworking students in the classroom and research settings. Their positive attitudes and passions are contagious and therefore make her job even more enjoyable.
She also welcomes UTEP’s dedication to interdisciplinary research. Dr. Baker believes that there are many exciting questions at the intersection of political science and psychology to better understand the political world. She looks forward to working in UTEP’s new Interdisciplinary Research Building and with others through the Interdisciplinary Research and Teaching Community of Practice. She values the group’s initiatives and events for interdisciplinary researchers across departments and colleges at UTEP.
She also values the unique characteristics of the UTEP study body. Given that most students are from the El Paso and Juárez region. This opens opportunities to foster dedication to the region, which is not very common at other institutions. She wishes to use this energy in her newly developed Political Engagement and Cognitive Health Labs. Students have the opportunity to get involved in political psychology research more broadly and gain experience with politics outside the classroom in an applied setting. Teaching political psychology allows students to learn about research in the subfield and write a study proposal. However, working in the labs allows them to see all the stages of the research process and therefore better understand why and how we develop novel findings. Students can develop data and tech skills, work on literature reviews to get an in-depth look at political psychology topics, and develop new research projects. Being in the lab also presents students with the opportunity to work in a very different kind of environment than most undergraduate students, particularly in political science. All of these experiences are helpful in their professional development.
The topics of her projects focus on how mental wellbeing of a person is related to political engagement. Of special interest is how things that harm mental wellbeing (e.g., anxiety, stress, depression) influence the ways in which people engage with politics and if there are any methods of improving mental wellbeing that work for an individual and change how they engage in politics.
We are also very pleased to welcome Dr. Hyunrang Han to our department in Fall 2022. She is a Visiting Assistant Professor and joins us straight out of her PhD program at Arizona State University.
Her research focus is in nonprofit management from a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) perspective. Her interest is in historically underrepresented groups and how they become empowered within the nonprofit sector. The second branch of her research relates to philanthropy and social inequality.
Her work has led her to collaborate with practitioners and scholars across sectors and find governance-based solutions to societal issues for social innovation. Her doctoral degree is in nonprofit leadership and management. She also holds a master’s in nongovernmental organizational policy and management from Kyung Hee University in South Korea.
Her time at UTEP involves primarily teaching graduate courses in the Masters of Public Administration (MPA) Program. She will help the program by expanding MPA course offerings in nonprofit management, by developing new courses related to fundraising and resource development, and volunteer management. She has enjoyed working with students who are current and future local professional practitioners. Students value the exposure to her international experiences and research.
Professor Emeritus Tony Kruszewski Recounts His Experiences on StoryCorps
Many National Public Radio listeners look forward to Friday morning broadcasts of StoryCorps given its heartfelt messages of compassion and human connections. Professor Emeritus Zbigniew Anthony “Tony” Kruszewski joined the more than half a million storytellers to tell his heroic story as a young man in Warsaw, Poland during the Nazi occupation (1939-1945).
Dr. Gaspare M. Genna interviews Dr. Kruszewski regarding the German invasion and occupation of his homeland. He details the history, his family’s story, and his personal involvement in the Anti-Nazi Resistance Movement. The full interview can be found here.
The declining number of eyewitnesses to the Nazi atrocities makes recording these events critical to offset the too often narratives of Holocaust deniers. In addition, Dr. Kruszewski’s stories also have strong similarities to the current events in Ukraine. They thus require us to examine the history of the invasion of Poland and the importance of protecting territorial integrity from foreign assaults.
Our Pi Sigma Alpha Won the Best Chapter Award, Again!
Thanks to our dedicated and fantastic student members, officers, and faculty advisor, Pi Sigma Alpha at UTEP has been doing quite well (yay!). The Epsilon Epsilon Chapter was awarded yet another (our ninth!) Best Chapter Award for the activities and accomplishments during the 2021-2022 academic year. During the 2022-23 academic year, Pi Sigma Alpha continued to be active. Members organized biweekly research support meetings, sponsored an Election Poll Watch Party, participated in the Resler Canyon Clean-up Community Engagement Project via UTEP’s Project Move, and organized a local politics forum, to mention a few of the notable activities.
The Local Politics Forum on Infrastructure and Development, held on April 21, 2023, featured local policymakers, policy advisors, and a non-profit organization representative. Ms. Desirae Manzanares (PSA Epsilon Epsilon alumna!), Policy Advocate for the El Paso Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Luis Negron, Senior Policy Advisor for El Paso County Commissioner David Stout in Precinct 2, Ms. Alexsandra Annello, El Paso City Representative for District 2, and Ms. Rocio Ronquillo of Frontera Land Alliance, were the speakers for the event. The forum was open to UTEP faculty, staff, and students. The event was well attended. We estimate that well over 100 people were in the audience. The guest speakers provided valuable insights into such issues as Proposition K, the potential impact of the Bridge of the Americas expansion, and downtown revitalization as well as how to make our voices heard.
Pi Sigma Alpha, Epsilon Epsilon Chapter, AY2022-23
President, Gloria Baca
Vice President, Alexandra Giggie (Fall); Keely Adriana Valero (Spring)
Secretary, Jesus Maldonado
Social Media Manager, Alyk Collins (Spring)
Events Coordinator, James Langford (Spring)
AY2022-23 PSA Inductees
Zareth G. Alcantar
Mario A. Ayala
Alyk X. Collins
Nestor M. Espino
Gerardo J. Flores
Gavin S. Hinojos-Tomeny
Sarah N. Mickelson
Cayleb B. Stives
Raoul Tayou Tayou
Keely Adriana Valero
Congratulations and Welcome to Pi Sigma Alpha!
The photo above shows PSA members in the Resler Canyon Clean-up Community Engagement Project on April 15, 2023.
The Latest Updates and Achievements from our MPA Program
Experiential Learning Outside the Classroom: Public Administration students thrive with community involvement
This year, many of our MPA students have taken advantage of experiences outside the classroom. Perfecto Zarate Zarate, first year international student, successfully completed an internship with the EL Paso County Community Services Department: Office of New Americans. The internship allowed Perfecto to engage with the community at outreach events, but also utilize what he’s learned in the classroom to help the department with strategic and operational decisions. Perfecto aspires to be a future public manager and considers this to have been a rewarding experience.
Likewise, students also had the opportunity to take advantage of alumni mentoring in the Spring 2023 semester. MPA Alumni have enthusiastically answered the call to assist current students by providing mentorship and guidance. Jacqueline Cue, current MPA student, had the opportunity to meet with MPA alum and El Paso City Representative, Cassandra Hernandez. The two share similar backgrounds and a desire to support their communities. The two discussed their passions for community service, which courses/subjects are essential to administration, as well as goals for the future. As a result of their meeting, Cue was encouraged to apply for a job position with Representative Hernandez’s office, where she now works and is learning more about city governance.
Lastly, this spring, the MPA program was able to send students and staff to the Paso Del Norte Community Foundation’s Annual Nonprofit Reimagine Conference. Dr. Hyunrang Han and Program Manager, Luci Rodriguez, were joined by 6 students to the May 3rd event. The group learned more about the Foundation’s legacy of philanthropy and ways that nonprofits must be creative in securing resources to carry out their missions.
The MPA Program Inducts 10 students into Pi Alpha Alpha
Pi Alpha Alpha (PAA) Honor Society is the National Honor Society for Public Affairs and Administration. There are more than 160 chapters, located around the world, which recognize students who excel in their scholarship and commit to the values of integrity, professionalism and public service. Congratulations to this year’s inductees:
Guadalupe Chavez Diaz, Matthew Ibarra, Sah-Jay Stevens, Andrea Macias, Khawand Canty, Scott Cole, Cory Messingham, Daniel Bueno, Omar Maldonado, Damien Speaker.
Abha Singh Won the Prestigious Blackboard Catalyst Award!
Abha Singh traveled to Orlando, FL on July 13th to receive the prestigious Blackboard Catalyst Award for 2022. She had received this international recognition for teaching and learning among 149 nominees from 22 countries where winners were selected by a cross-functional team of Anthology/Blackboard experts. She became the first instructor from UTEP to win this international honor for demonstrated excellence in innovation in advance learning across the global education community. Following is the press release with the list of winners.
https://www.anthology.com/news/anthology-announces-winners-of-the-2022-catalyst-awards
She was also selected by President Wilson to serve as the Grand Marshal for the College of Liberal Arts Winter commencement 2022. Provost Wiebe called her a “ground breaker” since she is the first teaching faculty in the history of UTEP to serve as Grand Marshal for any college at UTEP.
Student Awards
While the Department of Political Science & Public Administration often brags about our students being among the best at UTEP, this year we had empirical evidence to support our claims! For the 2022-2023 school year, three Political Science majors, Sarah Mickelson, Brianna “Iberty” Trevino, and Ian Levy Valdez were selected to be among the Top Ten Seniors.
Sarah Mickelson
Born and raised in Soldotna, Alaska, Sarah is an aspiring public defender who aims to provide strong legal representation for members of her home community. Sarah is currently earning her BA in political science while serving as the Attorney General for the Student Government Association and the Executive Assistant for IGNITE at UTEP, an organization which aims to promote and facilitate women's involvement in law and politics. Her advocacy is shaped by her time spent interning at the El Paso County Public Defender’s Office, as well as her membership in the UTEP Law School Preparation Institute and the UTEP Liberal Arts Honors Program. These experiences also inspired Sarah to spend a winter semester abroad in London and study at the University of Roehampton. Following graduation, she plans on attending law school. Sarah is ultimately motivated to help lower rates of recidivism, advocate for the growth and rehabilitation of those convicted through educational programs, and to help ensure equal treatment and strong legal representation for every defendant in the criminal justice system. In her free time, Sarah enjoys reading, listening to music, baking, and watching baseball. Sarah's favorite part of studying in the political science program at UTEP was the connections and opportunities that were provided to her, as well as the friendships she made.
Brianna “Iberty” Trevino
Brianna “Iberty” Trevino has had the opportunity to develop the skills and knowledge to be the leader, advocate, and civic-minded individual she hoped to be. Starting her academic career during the pandemic, Iberty joined Student Government (SGA) in her second semester where she executed special projects, such as a Students With Disabilities Awareness Panel and the Global Amigo Miner Program (GAMP) in collaboration with the Office of International Program to create a buddy program for international students. In addition to her special projects, she served as the Chair of the Outreach Committee where she relaunched “SGA Listens” to increase the accountability of student government to the student body. Due to her dedication to the student body, she was awarded the Senator of the Year for the 2021 to 2022 SGA administration. After her time in Student Government, she was selected to be one of the nine UTEP students to serve as an Archer Fellow in Washington, D.C. As an Archer Fellow, she was the first UTEP student to work with the Library of Congress in four years as a research assistant. She assisted with conducting research on backchannel policymaking between members of Congress and federal agencies. Upon her return to Texas, she interned at the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board helping to shape higher education policy in Texas. Throughout her time at UTEP, Iberty has worked hard in multiple areas of public service and will continue her dedication to public service after graduation.
Ian Levy Valdez
Ian Levy Valdez is a senior at The University of Texas at El Paso where he studies linguistics and political science. Ian is currently a fellow at The Archer Center, a University of Texas System program that brings Texas students to Washington, D.C. for a semester. In his hometown of El Paso, Texas, Ian has served as branch leader of two environmental organizations: The American Conservation Coalition and Citizens' Climate Lobby. Additionally, he is a reservist service member in the United States Army stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas. He hopes to work as a federal prosecutor for the Department of Justice before running for a judgeship in Texas. In his free time, Ian enjoys learning foreign languages and watching European soccer.
In addition, during the 2022-2023 school year, the Department of Political Science & Public Administration handed out numerous awards. These include: Joseph Graves Award, Komarnicki Graduate/Undergraduate Award, Mary Misiewicz Sadowski Memorial Award, Irena Grabowska Kruszewska Memorial Award, and June M. Kruszewski Memorial Award.
Sarah Mickelson Awarded Truman Scholarship
Our very own Sarah Mickelson has been selected as a 2023 Truman Scholar. The Truman Scholarship is widely regarded as the premier graduate scholarship for aspiring public service leaders in the United States.
Sarah will use the Truman Scholarship to achieve her goal in becoming a public defender for members of her home community of Anchorage, Alaska. She is an active student as demonstrated by her service as the Attorney General for the Student Government Association and the Executive Assistant for IGNITE at UTEP, an organization which aims to promote and facilitate women's involvement in law and politics.
She is the University’s first Truman Scholar since 2006, and one of 62 new scholars selected from more than 700 candidates from colleges and universities across the U.S. Awardees were chosen for their academic success and accomplishments, as well as their likelihood for becoming public service leaders.
“I applied for the Truman Scholarship because of its support for individuals like me who are dedicated to public service,” Mickelson said. “By applying, I learned a lot about myself and solidified my decision to serve Alaska as a public defender.”
Congratulations Sarah!
A Graduate Student Thank You Message
Cayleb B. Stives
This stage of my academic journey was spured on the first day of my senior year of undergrad in Dr. Curry’s constitutional law course. I like to joke that I always considered going to law school for “fun,” which motivated me to take a course that sounded like it was for pre-law students. At the time, I was majoring in media advertising and planning to go into that industry, but after syllabus day showed me the kind of work done in social science, I went to the dean’s office and changed my major to communication studies right after class. Ironically enough, this process made me late for the second most impactful course I took that year which was a sociology course taught by Professor Roderick Calloway’s.
While I am doing my thank yous, I also need to send some more special appreciation to the Black Student Union’s Advisor Dr. Michael Williams, and two mentors I found in the Communication Department, Drs. Richard Pineda and Frank Perez. As the only college graduate in my immediate family, it was difficult to set any expectations, but they have been met in spades. If it were not for the support of the faculty, I do not know if I would have continued after a year of “Zoom University.” In terms of career goals, I plan on pursuing my Doctorate in the future; though to me, this is a means to my actual goal of uplifting minoritized scholars just as many faculty have done for me at UTEP.
To this end, the MA Political Science program has had a tremendous impact on me. Whether it was Dr. Rebecca Reid pushing me to apply for the New Directions of Law and Society conference last fall or the work I have been doing with Dr. Baker, which includes having my paper accepted for presentation at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Political Methodology this upcoming summer at Stanford University.
My recommendation for incoming students interested in the MA Political Science program is to “just do it!” Get involved with the program and more importantly, with the UTEP community. Whether it be through the community service opportunities offered or the various student organizations (like Pi Sigma Alpha), this program and university has so much to offer, it is only up to students to claim it. This Political Science and Public Administration Department has continuously pushed me to excel and when I make my way back for future homecomings, I would like to see our bookcase displaying the department's publications outgrow its current size! Go miners!
Alum Spotlight: Desirae Manzanares
Desirae Manzanares has had a rich and vibrant career path since graduating in 2009. They say that someone with an undergraduate degree in political science is an intellectual who is ready to apply skills acquired in any number of types of careers. Our “jack-of-all-trades” degree gets students ready for careers that require analysis, reading, writing, and speaking about complex organizational and public matters. There is no better proof than Ms. Manzanares.
She took her skills from our undergraduate program, as well as lessons learned in the Law School Preparation Institute College Summer Program, into careers in government, education, and the nonprofit sector.
Her first career leg came from an opportunity discovered at a UTEP sponsored event. There, she learned about an internship opening with then Representative Silvestre Reyes, which then turned into a fulltime position in his office. She worked in Reyes’ Washington, DC office on important legislation such as the burgeoning new healthcare plan. After Representative Reyes lost his re-election bid, she needed something new.
While others in her situation attempted to seek out similar types of work with other politicians, Ms. Manzanares decided that her time in DC had ended because she wanted to return to El Paso and contribute to the city’s progress. She decided to switch tracks and become an elementary school teacher. She quickly earned her alternative teaching certificate and became a Social Studies teacher at Beall Elementary. Teaching at Beall opened up new avenues of excitement and a development of a teaching philosophy geared towards marginalized students. Her energy and passion earned her teacher of the year awards. Again, fate stepped in. The El Paso Independent School District decided to close Beall Elementary due to declining enrollments. She once again found herself needing to rethink careers.
She decided to enter the world of nonprofit organizations. Her first opportunity was with the El Paso Chamber of Commerce. Her role as the Director of Government Affairs and Public Policy brought lessons learned in the classroom and her experiences in DC together with building the El Paso business community. However, she felt the need to contribute more to El Paso’s progress. This need led to her current position as an Advocacy Specialist for the El Paso Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. She finds this work rewarding because she helps plant the seeds for the city’s start-up companies. She investigates new government policies and how they would impact these fledgling firms.
Life can bring opportunities and unwelcome events. Ms. Manzanares’ education helped her hone skills that allows of taking advantage of many different types of opportunities and careers. She credits the knowledge acquired but also the professional skills like teamwork, effective and critical reading, research, and writing, and time management. This versatility gives our majors the edge in an ever-changing world.
Congratulation to our Department Scholarship Recipients!
Komarnicki Top Graduate Scholar Awards
Gerardo Jesus Flores
James Garner Langford
Jesus Tlaloc Maldonado
Komarnicki Graduate Scholar Awards
None for Academic Year 2022-23
Komarnicki Top Undergraduate Scholar Awards
Paola A Castaneda
Eduardo Alberto Flores
Janin Idaiz Navarro-Lara
Sahara Fernanda Rodriguez
Lydia Natalia Torres Ayala
Brianna Iberty Trevino
Komarnicki Undergraduate Scholar Awards
Madeline Diaz
Valeria I Dimakis
Edwing Hernandez
Patricia Sydney Lopez
Efrain U Marquez
Alex Ivan Milian
Jacob Alexander Molina
Azul Zoe Pacheco Garcia
Maria F Pliego
Stephanie Soto
Sasha E Valadez
Ana Karen Varela
Irena Grabowska-Kruszewska Scholarship
Laura Alejandra Arreola
Joseph Graves Scholarship
Alexis M Suchil
June Kruszewski Scholarship
Hugo Arturo Arreola
Maria Misiewicz-Sadowski Scholarship
Gavin Sean Hinojos-Tomeny
Jessica Marie Perez
Faculty Transitions
Dr. Bradly Chilton is retiring after many years of service to the Masters of Public Administration Program. Dr. Chilton time at UTEP began when he was hired ten years ago as MPA program director and tenured professor. His time as director included multiple initiatives to advance the study of public administration in the El Paso community, including the development of the program’s current partnership with the Sergeants Major Academy at Fort Bliss. Dr. Chilton holds a PhD from the University of Georgia, two master’s degrees, and a JD from the University of Toledo. He has been a faculty member at six different universities before serving at UTEP. His most recent book explores the public administration profession (with Drs. Stephen King, Viviane Foyou and Scott McDonald; Routledge). He has also published more than 40 articles and book chapters on topics in public administration and law, and taught thousands of aspiring professionals in public administration in his many faculty and leadership roles. We congratulate him on his retirement and hope to stay in touch.
Dr. Bradley Chilton is retiring after many years of service to the Masters of Public Administration Program. Dr. Chilton’s time at UTEP began when he was hired ten years ago as MPA program director and tenured professor. His time as director included multiple initiatives to advance the study of public administration in the El Paso community, including the development of the program’s current partnership with the Sergeants Major Academy at Fort Bliss. Dr. Chilton holds a PhD from the University of Georgia, two master’s degrees, and a JD from the University of Toledo. He has been a faculty member at six different universities before serving at UTEP. His most recent book explores the public administration profession (with Drs. Stephen King, Viviane Foyou, and Scott McDonald; Routledge). He has also published more than 40 articles and book chapters on topics in public administration and law, and taught thousands of aspiring professionals in public administration in his many faculty and leadership roles. We congratulate him on his retirement and hope to stay in touch.
Life can bring opportunities and unwelcome events. Ms. Manzanares’ education helped her hone skills that allows of taking advantage of many different types of opportunities and careers. She credits the knowledge acquired but also the professional skills like teamwork, effective and critical reading, research, and writing, and time management. This versatility gives our majors the edge in an ever-changing world.
Faculty Briefs
Dr. Ljubinka Andonoska had two peer review publications. The first, published in East European Politics, demonstrates the presence of political budget cycles in the local government budgets in the newly decentralized local governments in Macedonia. The study finds that political budget cycles distort expenditure composition along with an overall increase of total spending per municipality just before elections. The second article was published in Applied Economic Letters. This study performs a cost analysis to U.S. local police organizations and finds that with better allocation of organizational resources, police organizations could significantly improve their efficient delivery of services. Dr. Andonoska also presented five conference papers at three research conferences. This body of work analyzes budgets in Macedonian municipalities, El Paso, and US states.
Dr. Melissa Baker established the Political Engagement and Cognitive Health Lab. She had several papers and chapters accepted for publication, including a paper from her co-authored book project on the sociopolitical and psychological factors behind behavior during crises and emergencies (e.g., a pandemic) and a chapter co-authored with two UTEP students on neuroscience in political communication. Dr. Baker served as a section co-chair for the International Society for Political Psychology and co-organizer for the Western Political Science Association Inclusive Teaching Virtual Community that included a speaker series on topics related to universal design for learning and disability accommodations in teaching. She also presented ongoing research at three annual meetings and continued writing a large-scale research grant with UTEP Psychology faculty.
Dr. Charles Boehmer published a peer-reviewed journal articles this year and was part of a collaborative team that was awarded a contract through the North American Development Bank, in cooperation with the EPA, to study air pollution on the Bridge of the Americas and its effects on the local community. He was also appointed Associate Dean for Faculty by the incoming College of Liberal Arts Dean, Anadeli Bencomo. He stays engaged in university service, such as serving as UTEP’s Truman Scholar advisor, a member of the Campus Office of Undergraduate Research Initiatives (COURI) Advisory Board, and Treasurer of the UTEP Academy of Distinguished Teachers.
Dr. Eric Boyer published two articles, including a study examining the gender and leadership in the nonprofit sector (with Drs. Rebecca Reid and Dana Patton), and a study examining the reasons why government officials modified contracts in their purchases of personal protective equipment in the early stages of the COVID-19 public health crisis (with Dr. Joao Faria). Dr. Boyer also contributed to the annual meeting of the Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration and presented his research on emergency contracting at the annual conference of the American Society of Public Administration.
Dr. Gaspare Genna published a political science textbook, Exploring Politics: A Concise Introduction (CQ Press), co-authored with Dr. Taeko Hiroi, which was inspired by his many years of teaching the Introduction to Political Science course at UTEP. The book focuses on contemporary issues and cases and follows a straightforward approach in learning the basics. He also had two other publications, one in Regions & Cohesion and the other in Global Perspectives. The first examines the impact regional integration organizations and major regional powers have on deterring coup d’états, while the second examines the complex pathway for the development of regional integration around the world. He continues is role as department chair and director of North American Studies.
Dr. Taeko Hiroi published her long-waited political science textbook, Exploring Politics: A Concise Introduction (CQ Press), co-authored with Dr. Gaspare Genna. Drs. Hiroi and Genna also published their collaborative article in Regions & Cohesion, which examines the impact regional integration organizations and major regional powers have on deterring coup d’états. Dr. Hiroi continues to serve as the faculty advisor for the Epsilon Epsilon (UTEP) Chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha, The National Political Science Honor Society. In October 2022, she was elected to Pi Sigma Alpha’s National Executive Council where she currently serves as a member of the Executive Committee and Chair of the Personnel Committee. Dr. Hiroi is pleased to report that the Epsilon Epsilon Chapter won its ninth Best Chapter Award in 2022!
Dr. Rebecca A. Reid was awarded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Build and Broaden 3.0 grant with Dr. Todd Curry and Dr. Mark Hurwitz. The funding (2022-2025) will examine the role of federal and state courts in adjudicating indigenous issues by analyzing how changing political contexts over time impact judicial decision-making in cases concerning Indigenous Peoples and Nations. She also published an article with Dr. Eric Boyer and Dr. Dana Patton in Public Organization Review, examining how gender influences leadership styles in US nonprofit organizations. Her co-edited book, Research Handbook on Law and Political Systems (Edward Elgar), is scheduled for release November 2023, and her forthcoming book chapter in Judicial Activism in Comparative Perspective (Peter Lang) is scheduled for release this year as well. She serves as President Elect for Southern Political Science Association Women, as well as serves on the American Political Science Association’s Law and Courts Executive Committee and APSA Law and Courts Nominations Committee. She also serves on the PS: Political Science and Politics and The Journal of Politics editorial boards. In addition to creating and teaching the new POLS 3324: Indigenous Law and Politics, she served as a faculty mentor for the Native American and Indigenous Studies Summer Institute (NAIS-SI) hosted by the UT System.
Dr. Cigdem Sirin's peer-reviewed book that she co-authored with Drs. Nick Valentino and José Villalobos—Seeing Us in Them: Social Divisions and the Politics of Group Empathy, published by Cambridge University Press, won multiple national and international awards, including (1) 2022 American Political Science Association (APSA) Best Book Award, for the best book on government, politics, or international affairs, (2) 2022 David O. Sears Best Book on Mass Politics Award, for the best book published in the field of the political psychology of mass politics (International Society of Political Psychology), (3) 2022 Robert E. Lane Best Book in Political Psychology Award (APSA) and (4) 2022 Best Book in Experimental Research Award (APSA). In August 2022, she was recognized by Provost John Wiebe and Vice Provost Ann Gates for her outstanding service to UTEP as the Director of the Center for Faculty Leadership and Development.
Dr. José D. Villalobos won four prestigious awards for his co-authored book, Seeing Us in Them: Social Divisions and the Politics of Group Empathy (Cambridge University Press 2021, with Cigdem V. Sirin and Nicholas A. Valentino): the American Political Science Association’s Best Book Award, the David O. Sears Best Book on Mass Politics Award, the Robert E. Lane Best Book in Political Psychology Award, and the APSA Best Book in Experimental Research Award. He also published a co-authored chapter that applies Villalobos et al.’s Empathic Global Citizenship (EGC) framework as a novel, dual emotional-logical approach for curricular innovation in community-engaged learning (Springer 2022). Last, Dr. Villalobos presented his research and served as panel discussant and co-chair at the Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association in Montréal, Canada.
Dr. Yingnan (Joseph) Zhou published a single-authored article in Politics, in which he shows that people in authoritarian countries tend to have lower standards when evaluating their governments. He also presented his new research on Chinese's attitudes towards immigration at the 2022 conference of American Political Science Association in Montréal, Canada, in which he uncovered the unexpected effect of education on fostering anti-immigrant attitudes. He is making progress on his book project on how international students in the US might change their political orientations.