GV PS

Model Arab League Course

This course will count in the comparative or IR category of the political science program, and as elective credit in the IR program. To have the course credited to your PLS or IR degree, contact Dr. Richards or Dr. Diven, respectively.

The Model Arab League provides students an in-depth understanding of the world’s oldest regional organization and deepens their knowledge of the history, culture, religion, economics, and politics of both their assigned country and the region as a whole. Through active participation in a model, students develop and sharpen skills in debate, consensus-building, critical thinking, parliamentary procedure, and public speaking. By arguing the positions and foreign policy objectives of the Arab States, model participants gain personal insights and a meaningful understanding of the issues underlying U.S.-Arab relations.

GVSU hosts the Michigan Model (Feb. 18-20, 2010). To participate, students sign up for a class which prepares them for the Michigan Model simulation. Here is the course information:

MES 380 (section 01), MW 4:30-5:45

Please contact Professor Majd Al-Mallah (almallam@gvsu.edu) for additional information and for class permit to sign up. Limited seats, so act quickly if you are interested.

GVSU to Host Africa in Contemporary International Relations Conference

GVSU will be hosting a conference on September 21 and 22, 2009, Africa in Contemporary International Relations: Contexts, Stakes, Actors and Issues. The conference chair is Dr. Jacques Mangala, who is Director of GVSU's African and African American Studies program and a political science profesor. 

The conference will feature of variety of panels and host a range of experts from U.S. and international universities. The keynote speaker is Dr. Ian Shapiro, Sterling Professor of Political Science and Henry R. Luce Director of the MacMillian Center for International and Area Studies at Yale University. The title of his lecture is "Luck, Leadership and Legitimacy in Transitions to Democracy: Lessons from South Africa and the Middle East." His speech is sponsored by the GVSU department of political science and the Joseph Stevens Freedom Fund.  Download Conference Program

Batchelder Scholarship Winners

The GVSU Political Science department is pleased to announce that Josh Aldrich and Kaitlyn Kirouac have each been awarded a $1,000 John T. Batchelder Scholarship for 2009-10. Congratulations!

The John T. Batchelder Political Science Scholarship honors John Thayer Batchelder who served as a Grand Valley State University professor until his retirement in 1997.

 

Kaitlyn Kirouac

 

Josh Aldrich

Dr. Martha Nussbaum to Speak on Constitutional Interpretation at GVSU

On Friday, April 3, Martha Nussbaum will deliver a lecture entitled, “Trouble on the Supreme Court: Constitutional Interpretation and the Human Capabilities Approach,” on Grand Valley State University's Pew Campus. The lecture will be held in 215 Eberhard Center on the Pew Campus (downtown Grand Rapids) on Friday, April 3, at 4:00 pm.

Professor Nussbaum is the Ernst Freund Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Ethics at the University of Chicago, appointed in the Philosophy Department, Law School, and Divinity School. She is an Associate in the Classics Department and the Political Science Department, a Member of the Committee on Southern Asian Studies, and Co-Chair of the Human Rights Program. She is the founder and Coordinator of the Center for Comparative Constitutionalism. She has also taught at Harvard, Brown, and Oxford Universities.

Nussbaum is an internationally-known scholar, with over a dozen books on topics ranging from classical Greek thought, feminist theory, liberal education, human rights, and law. Her lecture will bring together her innovative defense of human rights with timely questions of constitutional law and interpretation.

This event is sponsored by the William Baum Fund, Dept. of Political Science, Dept. of Philosophy, Dept. of Classics, Dept. of Liberal Studies, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and the Office of the Provost.

New Political Science Career Guide

The political science has produced a new career guide, available by clicking the careers link on the political science website (gvsu.edu/polisci).

Registration Issues and How To Get Help

If you are finding that Banner is keeping you out of a course despite the fact that you have met the prerequisites, please let us know via email and we will get you into the course. We will need the following information:

Name, number, section and CRN of course
Your name
Your G#
Your email address

Political science majors/minors contact:
Dr. Mark Richards, Department Chair
richardm@gvsu.edu

International Relations majors/minors contact
Dr. Robert Stewart-Ingersoll, Interim Director of International Relations (through winter 2009 semester)
ingersor@gvsu.edu

Starting with the spring 2009 semester, contact
Dr. Polly Diven, Director of International Relations
divenp@gvsu.edu

PLS 380s, Special Topics, 2009-10

Fall 2009

PLS 380 01 Environmental Policy
Professor Laura Schneider
Counts for American politics category and 300-level requirement.
TR 11:30-12:45, LSH 154
This course is designed to provide students with an introduction to a variety of environmental issues and policy responses. The course will begin with a brief introduction to the policy process, but the majority of the course will be spent covering major environmental policies and policy concerns. Some topics covered in the course are air, water and toxic waste pollution, energy, land management, climate change, and sustainability.

PLS 380 02 U.S.  Public Opinion
Professor Whitt Kilburn
MW 3-4:15, ASH 2123
Counts for American politics category and 300-level requirement.
In the study of democratic politics, no subject is more critical than public opinion.  In this course, we will examine questions that have puzzled observers of American politics since the founding.  To what extent is the American public's interest in politics sufficiently stable, thoughtfully based in principle or self-interest, and resistant to manipulation by elites, such that American democracy can be true to its name --- a place where the people rule?  The course counts toward American politics and 300-level credit.  Neither math nor statistics is required for the course, and there are no pre-requisites.  

PLS 380 03 Middle East Politics
Professor Gamal Gasim
M 6-8:50, 2132 ASH
Counts for comparative category and 300-level requirement.
This course presents a survey of Middle East politics since the collapse of Ottoman Empire with a brief historical background of Islam and the rise of early Islamic states. This course will introduce students to the most salient political, social and economic issues in the region. By the end of the semster students will be able to:
• Describe the impact of Islam on Middle Eastern Politics.
• Explain the Rise of Arab and Turkish Nationalism and  how it affects the overall political development in the Middle East after World War II.
• Analyze the major social and political changes in the Middle East.
• Explain Middle Eastern political economy and the politics of gender.

Winter 2010

PLS 380 01 Women, Politics, and Policy
Professor Laura Schneider
MW 4:30-5:45, ASH 2120
Counts for American politics category and 300-level requirement.
This course explores the ways that gender structures government and policy decisions. Students will develop a familiarity with many gendered issues and the relevant policy responses. Topics include domestic violence, reproductive policies, divorce and the family, marriage and the family, poverty, class, and pay.

PLS 380 02 State Policy
T 6-8:50, ASH 2119
Counts for American Politics category and 300-level requirement
This course examines contemporary issues in Michigan state policy. Prior courses in state politics (PLS 203) and/or the policy process (PLS 205) recommended.

Advising Information for Poli Sci and IR Students

Advising Memo To PLS/IR students winter 2009

1. As you may know, registration for the academic year 2009-10 (including spring/summer classes) begins in March. It is best to meet with your advisor in January or February to plan ahead for the next academic year. You may stop in during office hours or make an appointment.

2. To facilitate your academic planning, the political science and international relations websites list sample curricula and major/minor requirement checklists.  
http://www.gvsu.edu/polisci/

http://www.gvsu.edu/polisci/ir/

3. If you have declared a major, you should have a faculty advisor assigned to you. You can look this up in Banner:

log into MyBanner
Click on Student and Financial Aid tab
Select Student Records
Select View Major and Advisor Information

If you have declared a major in political science or international relations but don't see an advisor listed, contact the political science department (plsdept@gvsu.edu)

4. If you have not yet declared your major, but have decided upon one, you are encouraged to officially declare your major. This allows you to receive the information you need for that major and to be assigned an advisor. Please pick up a Major Declaration Form from the Records Office, 150 Student Services.

5. For problems with registration such as Banner keeping you out of a class for which you have met the prerequisite, contact the political science department (plsdept@gvsu.edu). Political science students may also contact Department Chair Dr. Mark Richards (richardm@gvsu.edu). For the winter 2009 semester only, international relations students may also contact International Relations Program Director Dr. Robert Stewart-Ingersoll (ingersor@gvsu.edu)

Dr. Stewart-Ingersoll is serving as program director for Dr. Polly Diven (divenp@gvsu.edu) while she is on sabbatical. She will return in the spring/summer semester 2009.

6. For more general questions not related to your major/minor, you can also visit the CLAS advising office:

The new CLAS Academic Advising Center is located in C-1-140 MAK. To schedule an appointment, please come in to the Center, or call 616-331-8585!

7. Spring/summer advising:
Please be aware that faculty work on 9-month contracts that enable us to do research during the spring/summer sessions, so your advisor may not be available during the spring or summer session unless he or she is teaching at that time. You can find out by inquiring with the political science department (plsdept@gvsu.edu).

 If you have advising questions particular to your major during the spring/summer,
 *political science students should contact Department Chair Dr. Mark Richards (richardm@gvsu.edu)
 *international relations students should contact International Relations Program Director Dr. Polly Diven (divenp@gvsu.edu)

Sustainability Week Events

GVSU's Campus Sustainability Week will be held October 22–25, with the theme of “Shaping Our World.”

For more information on events, please see this post from GV Now.

There are a few events with political dimensions that we wish to highlight:

Climate Change, Presentation by Peter Sinclair (Climate Change Project), October 23 in KC2204 from 11:30 to 12:45, followed by:

GVSU "Inter-Disciplinary Panel on Climate Change": Peter Sinclair and GVSU faculty Robert Hollister (Biology), Figen Mekik (Geology), Elena Lioubimtseva (Geography), Alan Steinman (Annis Water Resources Institute), and Laura Schneider (Political Science) will discuss the Global and Regional Climate Change in KC2204 from 1 to 2:30 p.m.

October 27th: The Hauenstein Center and Michigan Public Radio will co-host Election '08's Impact on Michigan: Energy, the Environment, and the Economy. The panelists will be:

Joe Schwarz on John McCain
Mr. Schwarz is the former Republican Congressman from Michigan's 7th District.

Mark Brewer on Barack Obama
Mr. Brewer is Chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party.

Mark Coscarelli on the Environment
Mr. Coscarelli is Vice President for Great Lakes and Environmental Research at Public Sector Consultants.

Paul Isely on the Economy
Dr. Isley is Associate Professor of Economics at Grand Valley State University.

Imad Mahawili on Energy
Dr. Mahawili is Executive Director of the Michigan Alternative and Renewable Energy Center.

The panel will be moderated by Michigan Radio's Jack Lessenberry.

This event will take place in GVSU's Loosemore Auditorium, located on the downtown campus.

New Section of PLS 206 for Winter

We have opened up a new section of PLS 206 in winter 2009. It is section 05, CRN 26423, and it will meet in the Honors building, room 219, Tuesday and Thursday, 10-11:15, taught by Dr. Kevin den Dulk, with a capacity of 30 students. (Note: It is not an honors course; we are just using the room).

This course is part of core requirements of the Social Studies major.

Description:

Integrates the perspectives of political science and constitutional law to examine the principles and institutional structures of the American political system. Analyzes political and constitutional sources of presidential, congressional, state and national power. Investigates federalism, voting, parties, interest groups, civil rights, and civil liberties. Primarily for social studies majors.