Opportunities and Announcements for the Week of December 18, 2017
Spring Courses. As the semester comes to its successful close, students are completing final coursework; faculty are grading papers and exams; senior capstone work is coming to its conclusion; and final committee meetings will be held next week. There is time to enroll in several POSC courses for spring term, and most courses still have room for additional students. For a list of POSC spring courses, see here.
Nominate the Best Faculty Members. If you are interested in nominating one of our faculty for the J. Bruce Jackson, MD, Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Mentoring and/or the Carl F. Wittke Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, please see the call for nomination here.
The Year 2017. This is the final departmental newsletter for 2017 – a year that has brought some interesting changes and challenges. As I write, the conference committee addressing the House and Senate versions of the tax reform bill is struggling to reconcile the differences. In Britain, Prime Minister Theresa May is struggling to put together a Brexit package that will be acceptable to the British parliament, which voted this week to require parliamentary approval of any Brexit deal with the European Union. In Germany, Chancellor Angela Markel is struggling to put together a coalition government, failing to win a majority of seats in the Bundestag. The French, offered the choice between Marine Le Pen, leader of the nationalist rightwing Front National, and Emmanuel Macron, a former Socialist Party member who had no elective experience and had formed his own new party, En Marche! Hassan Rouhani was re-elected to the presidency of Iran. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan withstood a coup attempt and won new governing powers as the result of a national referendum. Chinese President Xi Jinping was reconfirmed as the General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, and Donald Trump was inaugurated as the 45th President of the United States.
Finally, this week, Democratic candidate Doug Jones won a special Senate election in the state of Alabama, defeating Republican candidate Roy Moore. Moore’s campaign spokesperson Ted Crockett, in a CNN interview, made clear that he was unaware of Article V, Section 3, of the US Constitution: “The Senators and Representatives … , and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”
These are a mere subset of the political events around the world on which we as political scientists reflect and which we analyze and, as citizens, we observe these events and changes with interest and concern.
Let’s hope for a happy New Year in 2018. Spring 2018 classes begin on Tuesday, January 16; look for the next Newsletter on Friday, January 19. Until then, best wishes to you all for a happy, healthy, and relaxing winter break, and for joyful holidays of every possible variety!
With all best wishes,
Karen
Flora Stone Mather Professor
Chair, Department of Political Science
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
General Announcements
- Discussions: The Undergraduate Research Journal of Case Western Reserve University is accepting submissions for the spring issue. The deadline is January 19. Interested students can submit research papers and literary reviews here.
- The Observer is hiring reporters for its News, Arts & Entertainment, and Sports sections. This is a paid opportunity. Interested students should send an email to observer@case.edu. More information is available here.
- The Career and Internship Connections are collegiate hiring events held each year during the first two weeks of January, where students from 18 prestigious colleges and universities meet with employers through a morning career fair and afternoon interviews. For the 2018 cycle, we will be holding a single event in New York City on January 9th, which will include students and employers also interested in the Boston and Washington DC markets.
- Stay up to date with the department by following our Twitter feed! Check it for day to day opportunities and information!
- Like us on Facebook! Our department will be regularly posting events, opportunities, and general information to our page!
The Future of Public Higher Education in Ohio
December 15, 12:00p.m., The City Club
Hear from three influential college and university Presidents on the challenges they face and the strides that have been made in improving Ohio’s public higher education. Nonmember tickets are $35.
Author Talk: Believing in Cleveland
December 15, 2:00p.m., Cleveland Public Library Main Branch
J. Mark Souther’s book Believing in Clevelandchronicles how city leaders used imagery and rhetoric to combat and, at times, accommodate urban and economic decline.
Beyond the Glamour: Considering Race and Inequality in an Era of Opulence
December 16, 10:30-11:30a.m., CMA Recital Hall
The Jazz Age features all that glitters and shines in the 1920s, but racial tensions, class strife, and women’s calls for political recognition also pervade this era. This panel discussion considers how race and inequality, while not seemingly present on the surface of these works, ghost their glimmer. Student tickets are $13.
History on Tap: Holidays on the Homefront
December 16, 1:00-4:00p.m., Western Reserve Historical Society
Learn about how local communities carried on and adapted their traditions in the midst of war. Tickets are $10.
Internship and Fellowship Opportunities
U.S. Federal Government Positions
The Pathways Program offers internships and jobs, some political science-related, in the US federal government.
U.S. Department of Defense Positions
The Department of Defense offers a variety of paid opportunities for students.
James H. Dunn, Jr. Memorial Fellowship
The Dunn Fellowship Program provides bright, highly motivated college graduates a unique opportunity to experience firsthand the operations of state government at the Illinois governor’s office for one year. The application deadline is January 15.
American Public Works Association Scholarship
The Ohio Chapter of the American Public Works Association (APWA) is issuing two $1,000 scholarships to Graduate Students majoring in Civil Engineering, Public Administration, or a closely related field. The application deadline is February 24. See here for the further details.
Stanford University Summer Policy Boot Camp
The Summer Policy Boot Camp is a one week program focused on the economic, political, and social aspects of United States national and international public policy. The program will take place August 19-25, 2018, and applications are due March 1, 2018.
- Still looking for gifts for the holidays? Shop local! 78th Street Studios has their Third Fridays Open House today. The Screw Factory in Lakewood holds their holiday show this weekend, and the Heights Arts Holiday Store is open through December 30.