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The following are recent department updates and some of the many accomplishments of our faculty and students. For archives of our newsletters please see here.
If you have accomplishments to share with us and our website, we would love to hear from you! Please e-mail the Department at polisci@neu.edu.
Northeastern celebrated its 111th commencement at TD Garden on Friday, May 3, 2013. The graduate ceremony took place later that day at Matthews Arena. The Department congratulates all of its hardworking students who completed their degrees this past week. Click here to see photos of the ceremonies...
Professors David Lazer and Stephen Flynn were amongst the faculty experts present at the fourth event in Northeastern's yearlong educational series on civic sustainability. This last event focused on the recent bombings in Boston, with discussions on suspect motivation, the importance of resilience, and the role of social media. Read more...
Winning the Presidency 2012 (Paradigm, 2013), a book edited and co-authored by Professor William Crotty, has recently been released in print and was featured by Paradigm Publishers at the MPSA (Midwest Poli Sci Annual Mtg) this past month. Read more...
“Are you okay?” Words like these appeared on the screens of millions of Boston residents’ and visitors’ mobile phones on April 15, the day two bombs exploded near the Boston Marathon finish line. Read more...
Stephen Flynn, founding co-director of the George J. Kostas Research Institute for Homeland Security and a professor of political science here at Northeastern University wrote a follow-up piece to his appearance on CNN this past weekend.
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Stephen Flynn is the founding co-director of Northeastern’s George J. Kostas Research Institute for Homeland Security and an expert in community resilience and critical infrastructure protection with a faculty appointment in the Department of Political Science. In spite of the dearth of clues and rampant uncertainty, the community’s rapid response to the attack, he said, “shows the world how a tragedy can be met with competence and compassion.” Read more here...
Professor Mitchell Orenstein, Chair of the Department of Political Science, had his book, Privatizing Pensions: The Transnational Campaign for Social Security Reform translated and published in Poland. For a review of the Polish publication of this work please click here...
University Scholar and Political Science major, Rose Leopold, was one of three students featured in Northeastern's Alumni Magazine. To read more about Rose and the University Scholar's program please click here...
Prof. David A. Rochefort has published a chapter on “Agenda Setting and Political Discourse” with Kevin P. Donnelly in the new Routledge Handbook of Public Policy (2013). Read more...
Shelley Murphy, who graduated from Northeastern in 1980 with a degree in political science, covered the Bulger case for The Boston Herald and The Boston Globe, where she now reports on organized crime, homeland security, and legal affairs. She returned to her alma mater yesterday to discuss her new book, Whitey Bulger: America’s Most Wanted Gangster and the Manhunt That Brought Him to Justice, which she co-wrote with Globe columnist Kevin Cullen. Read more...
PhD Candidate, Chris Chanyasulkit, has been featured in the newsletter, of ASPIRE, Asian Sisters Participating in Reaching Excellence. Chris will also be speaking on her involvement in the community on April 18th in an ASPIRE event. Read more...
Northeastern faculty and administrators on Monday evening encouraged students to embrace their diversity across culture, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, and many other forms in an effort to build a stronger and more resilient campus community.
Ms. Quinn, who graduated from Northeastern in December, was recently hired by Massachusetts Speaker of the House Robert DeLeo as an Administrative Aide.
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Political Science student Michael Trudeau won the first prize in a national competition on Transatlantic Relations in Washington D.C., following his participation in the 'Think Transatlantic Week' on campus led by Professor Natalie Bormann and Johannes Eijmberts and with a grant from the German Embassy.
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Laura Mueller-Soppart, now on co-op with Massachusetts’ Federal Grants Management Office, a division of the Executive Office for Administration and Finance, realized the potential for social enterprise to create powerful change while working on the Obama administration’s Domestic Policy Council. Read more here...
Earlier this week, North Korea detonated a nuclear weapon that it says brings the secluded nation a step closer to having the capability to attack the United States with a nuclear missile. We asked Suzanne Ogden, a professor of political science and an expert on U.S.-Asian policy, to weigh in on how the test impacts foreign policy and how nations like the U.S. and China can act to prevent further nuclear proliferation. Read more here.
Professor Aoun addressed the Northeastern community on Monday and encouraged that we be a model for the community, a model of excellence and one that promotes respect of human dignity. Read more...
Chris Chanyasulkit, PhD Candidate, recently added to her many activities related to local politics, including serving on the Brookline Town Meeting and as a member of the MA Commission on the Status of Women, by becoming a blogger with Brookline.com. To read about Chris's most recent blog post on Women in Office please click here...
PhD Candidate, Chris Cunningham, has had his article, "COUNTERTERRORISM IN XINJIANG: THE ETIM, CHINA, AND THE UYGHURS" selected for publication in the International Journal on World Peace. Please click here for information on this journal...
Earlier in January Professor William Miles traveled to St. Louis, Senegal to participate in the African Borderland Research Network (ABORNE) policy workshop on governance. Read more...
In her new book, Professor Kirsten L. Rodine-Hardy argues that international organizations – not national governments or market forces – are the primary drivers of policy convergence in the important arena of telecommunications regulation: they create and shape preferences for reform and provide forums for expert discussions and the emergence of policy standards. Yet she also shows that international convergence leaves room for substantial variation among countries, using both econometric analysis and controlled case comparisons of eight European countries. Click here to read more about her new book...
The Critical Social Theory Cluster, co-run by Natalie Bormann, Academic Specialist in Political Science, was created to facilitate a vibrant intellectual culture in radical thinking and social critique. - which can be thought of as covering interactions between the explanatory, the normative and the ideological dimensions of social and political thought. The Cluster will be meeting again this Friday, January 25, 2013. Read more...
Last month, three Northeastern students attended the 18th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Doha, Qatar. The event ran from Nov. 26 to Dec. 8, and convened some 19,000 delegates from more than 190 countries to negotiate a framework for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Read more...
Notes from the Field is a new feature on our Website in which we have faculty and students provide first hand accounts of research and experiential learning in their own words. The first in this series is from PhD student, Dustin Turin, who served as an election monitor in Somaliland in November 2012. Read more...
Professor Mitchell Orenstein served as a guest editor for a Special Issue on Governing Pension Fund Capitalism in Times of Uncertainty published by Global Social Policy. Please click here to read more...
MPA student, Aung Khaing Min, was awarded a Congressional Recognition Award in October 2012 for his work advocating for human rights and democracy in Burma. In addition to this honor Aung Khaing has been interviewed on the radio and other news outlets about his personal experiences and his work for the refugee community throughout the world. Read more...
Ian McManus (PhD student) and Michael Trudeau (Senior), both in Political Science, have won a campus-wide competition for best paper submission on transatlantic relations. This was part of a 'Think Transatlantic' initiative, organized by Natalie Bormann and Hans Eijmberts with a grant from the German Embassy. Both students have qualified to participate in a nation-wide competition in D.C. in Spring 2013. 
PhD candidate, Rob A. DeLeo, was recently offered and accepted a full-time tenure-track position at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Rob's area of specialization at Northeastern University was Public Policy and he successfully defended his dissertation titled, ""Anticipatory Policymaking: When Government Acts to Prevent Problems and Why it is so Hard" on September 7, 2012.
William Crotty, Professor of Political Science and Thomas P. O’Neill Chair in Public Life, has had a busy year of many accomplishments and work related primarily to the 2012 Presidential Elections but also as a top-scholar in the field and as a hard-working Professor. Read more...
Chris Chanyasulkit (PhD Candidate) was awarded a Spring 2013 Dissertation Completion Fellowship from the Office of the Provost. Read more...
Professor Thomas Vicino's new book, Suburban Crossroads: The Fight for Local Control of Immigration Policy, (Lexington Books) is being published on December 16, 2012. Please click her for more information...
It’s hard to believe the fall semester is almost over! A lot has happened between September and December in the world of politics. As a nation we re-elected a president and the most diverse bodies of Congress this country has ever seen. Northeastern University was full of pre-election events and related activities, including students working for campaigns, faculty in the news, and cutting-edge research combining traditional social science approaches with visualized computational representations. Read more...
Northeastern University was one of 30 Universities and Colleges nationwide that received a grant to launch an interdisciplinary campaign on “Think Transatlantic: The United States and Germany in the 21st Century”. In cooperation with the Germany Embassy in Washington D.C., Professor Natalie Bormann and Ph.D. candidate Hans Eijmberts, both in Political Science, organized the Northeastern University campus activities. Read more...
For the third year in a row, Northeastern University has sent a delegation to the United Nations Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Professor Denise Garcia has again organized student participation and funding for this experience and has coordinated participation by undergraduate students, Michael Green, Andonis Marden, and Victoria Porell. This year’s summit is taking place through December 7, 2012 in Doha, Qatar. Read more...
Professor Suzanne Ogden, an expert in U.S. policy in Asia, explains the social, political and economic ramifications of President Obama’s four-day, three-country tour of Southeast Asia earlier this month. Read more...
Titled "The Presidential Election of 2012: A Blue or Red Future", this year's O'Neil conference, a day-long event which included speakers both from Northeastern and invited guests was a great success. Read more
The newest edition of Northeastern University's Political Review has been published both in-print and on-campus. Articles are student written and cover both domestic and international political issues. To read the most recent edition and past editions click here...
On November 12th, Professor Miles was interviewed on WBUR's "Here and Now" about his newest book, “Jews of Nigeria: An Afro-Judaic Odyssey”. In his book, Bill Miles shares life stories from the community, as well as his own experiences, as he celebrates Hanukkah and a Bar Mitzvah with “Jubos” in Abuja. Read more...
On November 12, 2012, graduate students in Professor Stephen Flynn's Homeland Security and Resilience Policy course attended Northeastern University's annual Veterans Day Ceremony and, afterward, met with the Secretary of Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano. Click here to see a video of the ceremony...
A day after the nation went to the polls, Northeastern faculty members were talking about President Barack Obama’s electoral win over Republican Mitt Romney, which came despite an extremely close popular vote count. Read more...
Whether it is to view election results with fellow huskies, to re-cap some expert analysis from before voting started, or for some great post-election events, Northeastern offers a slew of election related events and research. Read more...
Hurricane Sandy killed dozens and left millions in the dark. Stephen Flynn, the founding co-director of Northeastern’s George J. Kostas Research Institute for Homeland Security, and an expert in community resilience and critical infrastructure protection, suggests that the key to withstanding such fierce natural disasters lies in taking care of our nation’s critical infrastructure. Read more...
Led by Professor David Lazer, Northeastern University researchers have been using computational models to distill massive amounts of presidential campaign data into nuggets of information that the human brain can comprehend. Read more...
Robert E. Gilbert, the Edward W. Brooke Professor, analyzes Tuesday night’s match up, calling it “one of the most dramatic and lively TV debates between presidential candidates in the 50 years we’ve had such encounters.” Read more...
Professor Bill Crotty was amongst those providing feedback on the Vice Presidential Debates and what they mean for the Presidential Elections. Read more here...
Noreen Leahy, NU undergraduate, recently wrote a review of the new documentary, "Half the Sky" for the NU Political Review. Click here to read her review and other articles written by students on current Political issues...
Laura Mueller-Soppart, Political Science and Economics '13, wrote an interesting article on Larry Summers and Greg Mankiw talking about the Nation's Economy as an event organized as part of this semester's Open Classroom series through the School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs. Read more...
Northeastern University is one of 30 Universities and Colleges nationwide that received a grant to launch an interdisciplinary campaign on “Think Transatlantic: The United States and Germany in the 21st Century”. Read more...
Details on the November 29th, 2012 Thomas P. O’Neill Chair in Public Life conference are now available. This year's title is The Presidential Election of 2012: A Red or Blue Future?. Governor Michael Dukakis, Professor of Political Science, will be on hand to give a special presentation.
Read more...
In “Jews of Nigeria: An Afro-Judaic Odyssey,” Professor William Miles tells the story of the world’s first “Internet Jews.” Read more...
Professor David Lazer‘s lab has created a real-time data visualization tool allowing for a real-time view of twitter activity related to the Presidential debates and other election season issues. Read more...
The Department of Political Science, Political Science Student Association, and the O'Neil Chair in Public Life, amongst others, have put together several events discussing issues surrounding the 2012 Campaign. Read more...
Robert Gilbert, the Edward W. Brooke Professor of Political Science recently offered some insight on the impact of off-the-cuff comments and the current state of the race to the White House between Romney and President Obama. Read more...
This past summer, partially through support by the Department of Political Science, MA Student, Victoria Gilbert, engaged in research, experiential learning, and language training in Beirut Lebanon. Read more...
Our congratulations go out to Rob A. DeLeo on the successful defense of his dissertation, "Anticipatory Policymaking: When Government Acts to Prevent Problems and Why it is so Hard" on Friday, September 7, 2012.
The Forest of Advocacy is a project of the LazerLAB and the Northeastern Centers for Computational Social Science and Digital Humanities (NECSS/NEDH) headed by Professor David Lazer Read more...
Professor Michael Dukakis moderated a discussion between former Harvard president and Obama adviser Larry Summers and Gregory Mankiw, an adviser to Mitt Romney. This event was the first of several on Policy issues related to the Presidential Elections. Read more...
Professor William Miles' newest book titled, The Jews of Nigeria: An Afro-Judaic Odyssey, has been published by Markus Weiner Publishers. To read more about this new publication please click here...
Professor Amy Sliva will be speaking at the international conference, Balkan Security, Technology and Education - The Challenges within Cyber Infrastructure on September 13, 2012, in Sarajevo. Read more...
Professor Amy Sliva's new book, Computational Analysis of Terrorist Groups: Lashkar-e-Taiba, will be published later this month by Springer. To read more about this book please click here...
Professor Denise Horn was amongst those offering advice to our new freshman. Click here to read the comments from her and other professors...
Former Massachusetts governor and 1988 Democratic nominee for president Michael Dukakis, a Distinguished Professor of Political Science, weighs in on the Presidential race after the conventions. Read more...
Richard A. Arenberg, a part-time professor in the Department of Political Science, saw the release of his book, Defending the Filibuster: The Soul of the Senate last week. Co-authored with Robert Dove, the Parliamentarian-Emeritus of the U.S. Senate, the book offers an informed and spirited new defense of the Senate’s tradition of the Filibuster. Read more...Michael Trudeau, Political Science Undergraduate and current president of Northeastern’s Student Veterans Organization, was featured in an article regarding veterans at orientation. Read more...
Professors Crotty and Mayer provide some insight on the Republican Convention in this recent addition of 3 Q's on NU News. Read more...
Click here to read about and see several of the top 5 TV ads from past Presidential Elections, according to Robert Gilbert, Edward W. Brooke Professor of Political Science!
A new web resource developed by Northeastern faculty aims to give voters in-depth information about the American political system in preparation for November’s presidential election. Included in the site is a video of Governor Michael Dukakis, Professor of Political Science. Please link here to review the site...
William Crotty, political science professor and Thomas P. O’Neill Chair in Public Life, analyzes what the selection of Ryan means for Romney’s campaign and the presidential race. Read More...
Please click here to read the latest electronic newsletter from the Department of Political Science...
This year’s Political Science Recognition dinner was held in April, with the incomparable Master of Ceremony, Professor Woody Kay, overseeing both the evening, the laughs, and the awards. The event was sponsored by the Political Science Department and the Delta Gamma Chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha, the Political Science Honorary Society. Read more...
The Dialogue of Civilizations program first began in 1994 with Professor Denis Sullivan leading a group of 10 students to Egypt. Since that time the program has expanded to over 40 countries and regions around the world. This summer faculty in the Department led trips to nation of the former Yugoslavia, Brazil, Indonesia, Japan, and Switzerland. Read more...
The June 2012 issue of Choice reviewed Professor William Crotty's book, A Defining Moment: The Presidential Election of 2004 in their feature issue, "Camelot to Gridlock: Significant Choice Reviews on the Presidency". Read more...
Governor Michael Dukakis, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, participated in a panel discussion about the Supreme Court ruling on the Affordable Care Act, sponsored by Northeastern University's School of Law. Read more...
A spring international co-op in Greece with the European Public Law Organization taught Northeastern University junior John Hubbard, a dual major in Political Science and International Affairs, how to proactively address human-rights issues around the world. Read more...
Stephen E. Flynn, Professor of Political Science and founding co-director of the Kostas Research Institute, discussed homeland security with a Senate committee on Wednesday, July 11, 2012. Read more...
Professor William Mayer won the APSA Political Organizations and Parties section best paper award for his 2011 APSA paper, “Theory Meets Practice: The Presidential Selection Process in the First Federal Election”
In memory of Professor Bruce Wallin who passed away this past December, a committee of faculty selected three MPA students as recipients of the Bruce Wallin Memorial Internship award. Read more...
In Professor Denise Horn's Dialogue to Bali, students focused on using social entrepreneurship to improve community life. Read more...
Professor Denis Sullivan co-led a group of journalism students on a trip to Jordan this summer as part of the Dialogues of Civilization program Read more>>>>>
Robert Gilbert, the Edward W. Brooke Professor of Political Science , recently provided an assessment of the social and political implications of Obama’s announcement regarding gay-marriage, which has largely been viewed as a symbolic gesture by both pundits and White House aides. Read more...
On March 14, the spiritual leader of one of the most extraordinary minority groups to emerge in modern times – the Jews of the West African nation of Cameroon – spoke on campus. The speaker was Serge Etele – a teacher, educator, and computer software technician. Read more...
The Department wishes to congratulate all undergraduate and graduate students who completed their degrees on May 4, 2012. To read more and see videos of the ceremonies, click here>>
The students engaging in Professor Thomas Vicino's annual faculty led trip to Brazil this summer had the honor of meeting Ambassador Fernando de Mello Barreto, Consul General of Brazil in Boston. Read More>>>
On April 27, 2012 the Department of Political Science honored MA, MPA, and PhD students completing their degrees this year in a Morning Coffee Reception. Click here for photos of the event>>>
Professor Stephen Flynn, the founding co-director of Northeastern’s George J. Kostas Research Institute for Homeland Security, addressed members of the Homeland Security’s Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Management on Tuesday in Washington, D.C. Read more>>>
Since the Arab Spring began in late 2010, rulers in Libya, Egypt and Tunisia have been ousted while other uprisings have spread throughout the Arab world — captivating the globe’s … read more »
Political Science undergraduates were amongst those honored for exceptional co-op experiences. Read more...
We are very happy to report that Professor Mitchell A. Orenstein will be joining Northeastern University in August 2012 as the new Chair of the Department of Political Science. Read more...
An Alum of the Department and a sophomore political science student discuss their work on the Romney 2012 campaign. Read more...
Professor Michael Tolley was amongst those speaking on a panel about the U.S. Supreme Court’s hearing of arguments related to the Affordable Health Care Act at the Northeastern Law School. Read more...
The Northeastern International Relations Council, tied for first in a recent Model Arab League competition. Read More...
Professor Stephen Flynn presented at a congressional briefing on cybersecurity on Wednesday, March 21. Read more...
Sheikh Ali Gomaa, the Grand Mufti of Egypt, spoke at Northeastern on March 19, 2012. In his lecture he urged leaders in America and in the Muslim world to engage in constructive dialogue. Read more
The Department was very glad to see verification of the hardwork of our faculty, staff and students in the newest US News and Word Report Rankings. In a span of just three years the program has moved up in the rankings by nearly 30 places. To view the new rankings and learn more on the measurements used please click here...
Chris Chanyasulkit, PhD candidate, was recently appointed by Gov. Deval Patrick to the Massachusetts Asian American Commission. In addition to this honor Chris has been appointed to the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center OB Advisory Board and to the Brookline Dukakis Recognition Committee. She also just won re-election to Brookline's Town Meeting. Read more...
Ten states held primaries or caucuses on Super Tuesday, one of the biggest days of this year’s election season. We asked Professor William Crotty, the Thomas P. O’Neill Chair in Public Life, to weigh in on the latest election results. Read More...
Several Northeastern students are completing co-ops and internships at the Massachusetts State House for the Patrick administration. Read more>>
Political Science students and alumni were amongst those lobbying for need-based financial aid at the Massachusett's State House on February 28, 2012. Read more...
Northeastern’s International Relations Council, which also runs model Arab League and United Nations programs, fielded two delegations representing the United Kingdom and Lithuania in the international competition, at the International Model NATO Conference in Washington, D.C. earlier this month. Read more...
On February 8, Professor William Miles gave a lecture titled "Mental Maps, Mideast Peace: Evolving Israeli Perspectives of Their Borders". To read more about the lecture series and to see a video of Professor Miles' presentation click here
Professor Bruce Wallin passed away on December 29, 2011 after a battle with cancer. Bruce was a colleague and friend in the Political Science Department for 21 years. On January 24, 2012, a memorial service was held at the Curry Student Center Ballroom. Over 175 colleagues, friends, students, alumni and family attended this celebration of Bruce's life and his many accomplishments. Read more...
After five years in private sector supply chain management in both the aerospace and software industries, Dan Burgess (MPA ’11), moved to a position in the Patrick-Murray Administration’s Department of Energy Resources (DOER) Read more...
Richard Arenberg, a political science lecturer in the College of Social Sciences and Humanities, explains how Super PACs are reshaping the political landscape. Read more...
As the Republican presidential contenders engaged in a full-court press of campaigning ahead of today’s New Hampshire primary, a group of 17 political science students were in the Granite State on Sunday to experience it first-hand. Read more...
Professor Natalie Bormann, discusses how Kim Jong-un, the new leader of North Korea, is perceived within North Korea and globally. Read more...
Professor Denise Garcia led a Northeastern Delegation to the United Nations Climate Change Summit on December 3, 2011, in Durban, South Africa. Read more...
Ioannis Livanis, a lecturer in political science and the international affairs program at Northeastern, analyzes the new deal among European leaders, and the significance of Britain opting out. Read more 
Michael Dukakis, Distinguished Professor of Political Science, and John Portz, professor of political science had their book, “Leader-Managers in the Public Sector: Managing for Results” highlighted in Northeastern's "Faculty Reads" feature. Read more...
On November 29, 2012, Professional William Crotty, spoke as part of the Insights: Faculty Lecture and Dinner Series. Professor Crotty, who in addition to being a Professor of Political Science is the Thomas P. O’Neill Chair in Public Life, gave a lecture titled, “The Presidential Election of 2012: Perspectives on an Historic Contest.”
After a week of clashes with the military council, Egyptians cast their ballots in the first parliamentary elections since Hosni Mubarak was removed from power. We asked Professor of Political Science Denis Sullivan, director of Northeastern’s Middle East Center for Peace, Culture and Development, to assess this historic event. Read more...
Every year, more than one trillion plastic bags are circulated across the globe — roughly one million every minute. Northeastern students Kelly Benoit and Adrian Van are working to reduce that number, starting on Huntington Avenue. Read more…
Professor William Miles convened and chaired a Roundtable on "Rethinking Counter-Terrorism in the Trans-Sahel" at the annual meeting of the African Studies Association in Washington, D.C. on November 18. In his own presentation Professor Miles addressed the topic of "development projects as counter-terrorism tools."
Richard Arenberg, who has been teaching undergraduate and graduate level courses on the U.S. Congress and public policy at Northeastern for the last several years, had served as a staff-person for three separate senators over the span of more than three decades. Read more...
For most of our students, engaging in an internship in Washington, D.C. would be considered an experience in their nation’s capital and an internship in Kyoto, Japan would be considered an experience abroad. Read more...
Amy Sliva recently joined the Northeastern faculty as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science with a joint appointment in the College of Computer and Information Science. Read more...Department of Political Science
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