Democracy becomes meaningful when students realize that politics is not merely something happening around them. It is something they can shape. In courses I teach such as Democracy in Action!, Introduction to Public Policy, European Union, and Comparative Politics and Government, students explore how political systems influence their lives and learn to put that knowledge into action. That knowledge may guide them toward a professional calling or prepare them to become more informed, engaged, and well-rounded global citizens.

My academic work at Susquehanna University extends beyond the classroom. I serve as Department Head and Director of Public Policy, and I created the university’s programs in Public Policy, Legal Studies, and Criminal Justice. These programs give students new pathways from their academic interests to careers in government, law, advocacy, and public service.

My international education shaped the comparative perspective I bring to my teaching and scholarship. After earning a bachelor’s degree in political science and philosophy from Hastings College, I completed dual master’s degrees in European Studies at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität in Münster, Germany, and the Universiteit Twente in Enschede, the Netherlands. I earned my doctorate in political science from Indiana University Bloomington in 2012.

I joined Susquehanna University in 2013 and became a full professor in 2022. Earlier in my career, I held visiting lecturer positions at the University of Oklahoma and Indiana University. From 2015 to 2021, I was also an affiliated faculty member of the European Studies Center/European Union Center of Excellence at the University of Pittsburgh.

My research explores European Union politics, elections, political knowledge, and democratic behavior. I am particularly interested in how democracy functions across multiple levels of government and in what citizens understand — or misunderstand — about the institutions that govern them. My scholarship has appeared in European Union Politics, Political Studies, the Journal of Common Market Studies, the Journal of European Integration, Urban Affairs Review, and the Journal of Political Science Education, as well as in books published by Palgrave Macmillan, Springer, and Routledge.

That interest in how people understand politics also informs my national leadership as Chief Reader for the College Board’s AP Comparative Government and Politics exam. In this role, I have overall responsibility for the exam’s annual scoring. I set and maintain scoring standards and rubrics, and I train and lead more than 100 high school and college faculty members who evaluate student work each June. Working with College Board staff, I ensure that exams are scored accurately and consistently nationwide.

That same commitment to translating ideas into action shapes my leadership across Susquehanna. I serve as Faculty Speaker, a member of the President’s Senior Leadership Team, and Director of the Innovation Center, where I advance initiatives that encourage collaboration across disciplines and benefit the wider university.

I also lead initiatives that expand educational opportunity and strengthen the student experience. I direct a U.S. Department of Education Title III Strengthening Institutions grant and co-direct an initiative supported by the Lilly Endowment’s NetVUE program. I have co-directed grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Science Foundation’s S-STEM program, and I previously directed a federal TRIO Student Support Services program. I also chaired the university’s most recent reaccreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

Although these responsibilities span different areas, they share a common purpose: turning ambitious ideas into programs and opportunities that enable students and the institution to thrive.

My contributions have been recognized with the John C. Horn Award for Distinguished Scholarship and Creative Activity, and the Student Government Association’s Dorothy Anderson Faculty of the Year Award.

Beyond the university, I regularly speak with community and civic organizations about elections and political knowledge, including the League of Women Voters in Lewisburg, Pa. I have been interviewed or cited by national media outlets on European politics and elections, served on the board of the American Political Science Association’s Ideas, Knowledge, and Politics section, and reviewed political science and public policy programs for universities in the United States and abroad.

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