2018 Newsletter
Chairperson's Message
Dear Friends,
Our department continues to change and develop. This past year we saw the retirements of Dr. Kathleen Staudt and Dr. Robert Webking, who we will miss seeing regularly in the department. Each made tremendous contributions over their careers to our department, UTEP, and our community, earning them each the honor of Emeritus Professor. Their departures leave holes in our department that are difficult to fill, and we miss their contributions. The department underwent another personnel change when Dr. William Weaver rejoined us this winter 2018. Dr. Weaver will continue to direct the Center for Law & Border Studies, but he will also be teaching each semester in Political Science. Welcome back Dr. Weaver!
For Homecoming 2017, we moved our ceremony back to the lawn in front of Benedict Hall and enjoyed catering of Mexican food and donuts. This year we will have our latest Homecoming event on Saturday, October 6, from 11:00am-1:00pm once again on the lawn at Benedict Hall. We hope you can make it and look forward to seeing you there!
Are you interested in giving back to UTEP, our department, and students? There are many ways you can do so. We would like to increase the number of opportunities for alumni to interact with students in the coming years, and we hope that you will think about participating in various activities. We are forming a Speakers Bureau and would love it if you could visit classes or hold a talk, ideally where we can highlight your successes as role models for our students, and offer potential internships or other networking opportunities. Do you have the ability to set up an internship for our students? Many are looking for these opportunities. Alumni can also help students by contributing to our endowed scholarship funds or our gift fund. Alumni could give to the department to help support our pre-commencement ceremony, which we have held at the end of each semester for the past two and a half years. Another idea is to give towards the Pi Sigma Alpha induction ceremony and/or student paper conference, each held once a year. The Global Relations Organization has also participated in a Model UN simulation in New York City the past three years, and this has been made possible with the help of alumni giving. You can read about some of the most recent experiences with these types of activities below. We thank our alumni for all of your kind contributions and continued support, which helps us to better serve our students--we very much appreciate it!
Our students are very active and many engage in extracurricular activities. A growing number of students have become engaged in faculty members’ research projects, which are experiences that will strengthen their resumes and future opportunities. Several students have also taken advantage of internships locally, Texas either more broadly, or in Washington D.C. Our student organizations continue to excel. Pi Sigma Alpha had yet another successful year, winning another ‘best chapter’ award and engaging in many other activities. Moreover, our students continued to be community engaged in their research and service, and of particular note was the voter registration drive. As alumni, you can further help support these types of activities.
I am delighted to report that the state of our department is strong! Please feel free to visit our department website and our Facebook page for more information about us, including our MA program for those interested. Please also consider donating to the Political Science program to help us for the coming year. We look forward to seeing you at future events and wish you all the very best.
Please feel free to peruse our latest newsletter by clicking on each of the links below highlighting some of the most recent student, alumni, and faculty activities and accomplishments!
--Dr. Charles Boehmer, UTEP Political Science Department Chair
DEPARTMENT ANNOUNCEMENTS
Dr. Staudt and Dr. Webking Honored
Dr. Kathleen Staudt and Dr. Robert Webking were both recently honored and bestowed with their titles as Professors Emeriti by UTEP President Diana Natalicio. Dr. Staudt attended the event and is pictured above with President Natalicio. Next to that is a picture of Dr. Webking.
Dr. Coronado Endowment
On September 1, 2017, Dr. Irasema Coronado was appointed to the Kruszewski Family Endowed Professorship for a three-year term. As noted by Dr. Diana Natalicio at the time, "Appointment to this endowed faculty position reflects the high esteem in which [Professor Coronado] is held by her colleagues in the Political Science Department. We are pleased to approve their recommendation to bestow on you the honor of this endowed position, and we wish you continued professional accomplishments." Congratulations Dr. Coronado!
Welcome Back to Dr. Weaver
Dr. Bill Weaver has recently officially returned as a full time faculty member in the UTEP political science department while also continuing his officiation and work with the UTEP Law School Preparation Institute. For those of you who know Dr. Weaver well, please help us in welcoming him back! For those who may not be as familiar, here is a background summary:
William G. Weaver III is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Law School Preparation Institute. He took his bachelor’s degree from California State University, Sacramento, and his MA, JD, and Ph.D. from the University of Virginia. He was the Earl Warren graduate at CSU-Sacramento and on the editorial board of Virginia Law Review in law school.
Weaver teaches courses in law and American Politics, including courses in public and private law and courses in normative political theory. His research largely focuses on American law and politics with an emphasis on the intersection of law and the intelligence community, government liability in private tort actions, presidential secrecy, and presidential powers related to national security. His published work includes articles in: American Political Science Review, Political Science Quarterly, Presidential Studies Quarterly, Virginia Law Review, New Literary History, Organization, Political Science Reviewer, and Journal of Business Ethics. His books include Presidential Secrecy and the Law, coauthored with Robert Pallitto (Johns Hopkins University Press).
Since 1998 Weaver has taught in the Law School Preparation Institute at UTEP. It is dedicated to preparing students for law school and the Law School Admissions Test, guiding students through the law school application process, and providing venues such as internships and clerkships for students to experiences the practice of law (www.law.utep.edu).
STUDENT ACTIVITIES: SHINING STARS
2017-2018 Scholarships
POLITICAL SCIENCE SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS (2017-2018)
Each year, a select number of our top students are chosen as recipients for one of the Komarnicki Scholarship Awards for political science. Here is the latest lineup of super stars for the current academic year:
Jesse Alvarez (Komarnicki Undergraduate Award)
Amarige Azzam (Komarnicki Top Undergraduate Award)
Ashley Bendtsen (Komarnicki Top Undergraduate Award)
Johnathan Ceceres (Komarnicki Undergraduate Award)
Malia Greene (Komarnicki Undergraduate Award)
Richard Gonzalez (Komarnicki Top Undergraduate Award)
Estrella Loredo (Komarnicki Top Undergraduate Award)
Eric Martinez (Mary Misiewicz Sadowski Memorial Award)
Yolanda Monroy (Komarnicki Undergraduate Award)
Eric Monsivais (Komarnicki Undergraduate Award)
Ariana Perez (Irena Grabowska Kruszewska Memorial Award)
Rebeca Rivas (June M. Kruszewski Memorial Award)
Jorge Roman (Komarnicki Undergraduate Award)
Jason Vickers (Komarnicki Top Undergraduate Award)
Study Abroad Experiences
MEXICO STUDY ABROAD TRIP
In August of 2017, Professor Irasema Coronado took a group of 8 UTEP students on a study abroad trip to study Transboundary Environmental Issues in collaboration with Dr. Silvia Nunez Garcia, from the Centro de Investigaciones sobre América del Norte at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico. This trip was funded by a grant that Dr. Coronado received from Partners of the Americas. UTEP students were able to meet two Nobel laureates during their visit to Mexico, Professor Ana Rosa Moreno of the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, a recipient of the jointly awarded Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). She was awarded along with Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr. “for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change." Another one of the highlights of the trip was meeting a Nobel laureate Mario Molina, Ph.D. founder of The Mario Molina Center for Strategic Studies on Energy and the Environment (CMM). The mission of the center is to design result-oriented public policy recommendations to solve complex challenges related to our five key areas of research: sustainable energy, sustainable cities, climate change, environmental health & air quality, and education (http://www.greengrowthknowledge.org/organization/mario-molina-center-cmm). Later on, in October of 2017, students from UNAM visited El Paso to learn about environmental issues on the U.S.-Mexico border region.
Testimonials provided by some of the students about their study abroad experiences in Mexico:
"My Mexico City study abroad experience was incredible and a one-in-a-million experience. One of the most valuable lessons I learned is that there is no one truth. I learned that each agency, branch, and person believes in their own truth, and in order to work on our environmental issues and policies (and any problem) we have to accept, learn, evaluate, and value every person's truth.
In addition, I now believe that as a future physician, one has to look at a patient holistically. It is not only about the physiological conditions the patient presents, but it is also vital to observe the environmental factors these patients live in, and advocate for a better environment, as these factors will lead to better overall public health.
The most unforgettable experience was having the opportunity to meet Dr. Mario Molina and what he has created in response to help the environment. His quest for knowledge and answers, and method of arriving to these answers is something I aspire to foster in my academic career.
Intrinsically, the way I believe I changed the most is that I became a stronger, more educated social advocate for my country, Mexico. I stand with my people and their social and environmental causes, and hope to inspire and educate those around me that Mexicans and Mexico are hard-working, smart individuals, opposing the rhetoric that is currently present." ~Daniela del Campo (She will be graduating in May of 2018 with a degree in Political Science and a degree in Biological Sciences with a biomedical concentration. She has been accepted to Boston University School of Medicine.)
"When I hear the word Mexico, it makes my skin get the chills. The word itself makes me reminisce about the life-changing experience I had last summer. This experience helped me not only to grow as a scholar but as well as a young activist. I got to see first-hand the environmental issues connected to my metropolitan experience and its strong cry for help from authorities and government. However, the most I took from this experience was coming back home and becoming more aware of my own city of El Paso and our border city, Cd. Juarez, relating to environmental issues. I have now been working to get more involved on my campus as to create efforts to combat and raise awareness internationally for environmental problems, such as air pollution, food waste, and water scarcity." ~Salma Villela
CUBA STUDY ABROAD TRIP
Dr. Irasema Coronado also took students to a separate study abroad to Cuba in the summer of 2017. Below is a testimonial from one of our students, Sandra E. Dominguez, followed by a picture of her on the trip as well as a separate picture with other students, including two of our political science majors, Marisol Ruiz and Mitzi Anguiano.
"Visiting Havana, Cuba was not simply a trip -- many of us describe the experience as one that changed our lives in the process of eight days. We had an insightful intake about Cuban culture by having the opportunity to talk to locals and organizations about government, education, religion, customs, and people's way of life on the Island. We learned about Cuba’s history and its accomplishments throughout the centuries. Most importantly, we had the opportunity to break the mystery and stereotypes surrounding Cuba. We learned the country is extremely humanitarian, protects the environment, and ensures its people are well taken care of. However, we also witnessed the detrimental effects the embargo has had on the country’s development for over fifty years. This has given us an urge to advocate for legislation to end the blockade. This opportunity has allowed me to incorporate what I learned into my classes and assignments, but it does not end once I graduate. As a teacher, I plan to integrate this experience into my future classroom to provide my students with a bicultural and bilingual education." ~Sandra E. Dominguez
Student Organization Activities
Global Relations Organization: A Reflection from Marvin Reynolds from the 2017 Model United Nations trip
"The day arrived in New York, and all I could think of doing was going to see my people. New York is special in that way because that is where Hip Hop was discovered inside of me and my people. At the same time, I was in the Hip Hop mecca for academic (business) reasons and I was aiming at making a great impression for UTEP. On the day of the opening ceremony for this prestigiously held event, I was not afraid of the uncertainties or anything of that nature, rather I was more than eager to experience this challenge at a different level than ever before in my life. I was more intrigued by the young brilliant minds that swarmed the ceremony and how they were going to present themselves during the trip.
Throughout the Model UN conference, I had the great blessing of getting to know quite a few young individuals as they were planning and strategizing with various players in the model. Some made decisions that were remarkable in theory and there were some decisions that made no sense at all, whether politically or economically. To give an idea of where I am coming from, I played a character that was a Muslim female jurist. My task throughout the model was to bring elements of what seem to me as, diplomatic withdrawal, yet with a hint of women’s rights and unity between the different sects of Islam. I had to research my role a bit, however I must have pulled it off really well because I created a government and prevented a couple of wars. Everyone had a role with respect to whom they played and not one person left each day without a smile on their face. We all had to work together and/or stand strong in our convictions because of some accomplishment in submitting a policy proposal or making an agreement with either an ally or enemy. No one outside of the Model UN was disrespectful and there was professionalism throughout my visit.
After an adventurous experience with the Global Relations Organization (GRO), I had an opportunity to see the real New York. The people, the streets, and the lights were exactly what I expected them to be… like nowhere else in the world. All I needed to do was walk in either direction, whether left or right, and there was something to remember New York by. However, the best part after the Model UN Model was going to a high school that my cousin, who lived in Brooklyn, attended. I had an opportunity to witness future statesmen and women, diplomats, and policy makers do their schoolwork, listen to instruction and interact peacefully and respectfully with each other. I explained to them what I was in New York for and all I can see was myself in their shoes; when I was their age and where I am at the University of Texas at El Paso. It was an outstanding experience and I most definitely recommend more students to get involved in this wonderful opportunity to see and hear different minds come together and do terrific things." ~Marvin Reynolds
Pi Sigma Alpha: An Annual Update from PSA Advisor, Dr. Taeko Hiroi
The National Office of Pi Sigma Alpha, The National Political Science Honor Society, awarded a 2016-17 Best Chapter Award to the Epsilon Epsilon (UTEP) Chapter. This is the fourth best chapter award in the last five years (sixth in 10 years) that we received! During the 2016-17 academic year, our chapter organized many events, including a hugely successful student paper conference, presidential debate viewing and interviews with the local media, mayoral candidates’ debate, and community service projects. During 2017, the following students met the rigorous requirements of the honor society and were inducted into national membership. Congratulations!
Spring 2017: Edgar Diaz; Michel A. Edmonston; Jonathan A. Picado; Nathalie Stevens
Fall 2017: Reem M. Ali; Gisela Anaid Argote; Perla M. Galindo; Leonardo Garcia; Rebeca Rivas
And... More Shining Stars!
Reem Ali
"As an Arab-American Muslim, politics has always been an important aspect of my family’s life. Keeping up with the Iraqi government, and the latest Middle Eastern disaster, my family and I have always been up-to-date with what is going on in our homeland. My constant exposure to politics at home inspired me to study it at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). While at UTEP, I have had the opportunity to serve as secretary in Pi Sigma Alpha (the political science honors society), and participate in the Law School Preparation Institute, which helped me realize my passion to go to law school and work to eventually become effective attorney. The lack of diversity and representation of Arab Muslim women, in the legal field, is one of the many reasons I want to become a lawyer. I am grateful to UTEP for its great diversity, and the richness of my experiences during my time here." ~Reem Ali
Some of Reem's most notable accomplishments from 2017!Reem was an intern for the Honorable Phillip R Martinez during the Fall 2018 semester, where she drafted multiple legal memoranda, conducted legal research in varies fields of law, and revised the Clerk’s legal memoranda and citations. She was also honored with the George McAlmon American Inns of Court Scholarship given to her by the American Board of Trial Advocates, where only one scholarship is awarded to a student per academic year by a committee of ABOTA members, and her name is now engraved into a frame at the United States District Courthouse.
Johnathan Ceceres
"I serve on the University of Texas Student Council Advisory Committee in which only myself and the President of the Student Government Association (SGA) are sent to represent UTEP. We made recommendations to the Chancellor of the UT system that would enact policies across all UT campuses. In the fall of 2017, I was elected the Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee. I will be presenting three recommendations to the Chancellor and Board of Regents. The committee supports the UT mission statement focusing on utilizing diversity in part to enhance overall education, health, communities, and public policy. The Diversity and Inclusion working group committee has focused on three key areas of improvement to enhance the overall student educational experience across the UT system. The first recommendation focuses on registrar offices broadening their pronoun options in which students can easily select the identity that they align with. The second focuses on providing citizenship workshops, know your rights workshops, and a list of vetted immigration attorneys within the same county for DACA students and their families. Lastly, we will be centralizing on successful programs and methodologies that advising offices across the UT system are practicing to assist first-generation students." ~Johnathan Ceceres
Another notable accomplishment from Jonathan in 2017!
Johnathan was also recently selected for the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for the Financial Aid Advisory Committee (FAAC) as a student representative. Only five students in the state of Texas are selected to be student representatives and Johnathan serves as the only student for the financial aid committee! The FAAC provides the Board with advice and recommendations regarding the development, implementation, and evaluation of state financial aid programs and initiatives for college students. Johnathan is the first student from UTEP in six years to be a student representative.
Tyler Herrera
Tyler was recently awarded one of the Alumni Association’s Top Ten Senior Awards. He has also accepted a job offer from the U.S. Department of State where he will be taking a position as a political analyst!
ALUMNI HIGHLIGHTS: KEEPING IN TOUCH WITH OUR POLS MINER FAMILY
Where Are They Now?
Eduardo Arellano
"Although I have been fascinated with leadership since I was a child, a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s degree in public administration from UTEP, were the true springboards to my professional purpose, that of contributing to student learning and success through teaching and leadership.
As an undergraduate I held leadership positions in many political campaigns from school board to the U.S. presidency, including my own as precinct chair. I also played a leading part in several local policy efforts such as mobile voting, redistricting, and community development. In addition, I started a neighborhood association. I should add that I was able to pursue my learning in and out of the classroom thanks to UTEP’s Presidential Scholarship, federal and state grants, part-time jobs, and my family’s support.
Soon after earning the bachelor’s degree in 1993, I continued to the master’s degree full-time, scaled down my activism, and was a teaching and research assistant for the Political Science Department. After earning the master’s degree in 1996, I was a research assistant for Centro de Salud Familiar La Fe, Inc., and then a project coordinator for Project Change, an anti-racism initiative, before being awarded a doctoral fellowship by the Hispanic Border Leadership Institute in 1998. After three and a half years of full-time study at NMSU, I earned a doctorate in educational administration with an emphasis in higher education, and was hired by the same university to begin a teaching career. In 2009, I came to UTEP to teach in the Department of Educational Leadership and Foundations, and serve as the program director of the Master’s in Higher Education Leadership. As a faculty member, I also provide service to UTEP, the College of Education, my home department, and the community. Most recently, I played an integral part in expanding dual language in the El Paso Independent School District. Therefore, in my current roles, and what I hope will be my future roles at UTEP, I am dedicated to make a positive difference in our students and community." ~Dr. Eduardo Arellano
Christopher Cervantes
Christopher, a UTEP graduate who majored in political science for his Bachelor's degree, went on to earn a J.D. from New England Law in Boston. He then passed the bar in Massachusetts in 2016 and thereafter also in Texas in 2017. Christopher's practice areas include civil litigation, criminal defense, and personal injury. His experiences include the Texas 34th Judicial District Attorney’s office, the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office (Fraud & Financial Crimes Division), and Civil Practice. According to his very proud father, Mr. Michael Cervantes, "it was the guidance from the UTEP Political Science Department and particularly the mentorship of Dr. Joe Graves that helped set him on the right path." He also notes that also pictured above is Leslie Lune de Lara, another UTEP graduate who received her law degree in 2016, in Boston, and passed the Texas Bar in 2017. Leslie is now practicing immigration law and also located in Boston.
Ricardo Romero
Ricardo "Richie" Romero, an MA graduate of ours from 2016 who is now currently a doctoral student at Arizona State University, has just be recognized as an APSA Minority Fellow! The Minority Fellows Program (MFP) is a fellowship competition for individuals from underrepresented backgrounds applying to or in the early stages of doctoral programs in political science. The MFP was established in 1969 (originally as the Black Graduate Fellowship) to increase the number of minority scholars in the discipline. Since its inception, the APSA MFP has designated more than 500 fellows and contributed to the successful completion of doctoral political science programs for over 100 individuals. Each year, APSA awards up to 12 funded fellowships in the amount of $4,000. Recently, APSA introduced a new spring round of the MFP awards for graduate students in the pre-dissertation stage of their career. Richie is one of the recipients for this category of awards!
Kathleen Crook
Born in El Paso, Texas, Kathleen attended the University of Texas at El Paso earning a B.A. in Political Science. After graduation, she moved to D.C. where she worked for the U.S. House of Representatives. She earned an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University and a J.D. from the University of Baltimore.
Following law school, Ms. Crook worked for U.S. Department of Commerce, NTIA, then for a contractor advising the D.O.D. on telecommunications matters while in Baghdad, Iraq. Ms. Crook returned to El Paso to open her solo practice that focused on business and privacy. She is now a compliance attorney with Thomas J Henry.
Ms. Crook recently received her Certification in Information Privacy Management, March 2018.
As a fun aside, Ms. Crook also recently wrote a book (fiction) entitled Sun City High School (2016) about growing up in El Paso -- a border town high school journey in the 1980s with a look inside a multi-generational Hispanic household.
Estrella Escobar
Estrella is Assistant to the President at UTEP. She is a Bachelor of Arts (’93) and a Masters of Arts (’04) in Political Science graduate and also currently serves as a public member on the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors. There are over 100,000 attorneys in Texas and she currently serves on the Board of the State Bar. She is the only member from any higher education institution in Texas that serves on the Board. In addition, this year she is serving on the Executive Committee of the Board for 2017-2018. Below are additional pictures of Ms. Escobar at key events from this past year:
* With Supreme Court Justice Phil Johnson, Carla Johnson, Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Barbara Hervey, Wendy Burgower and Allison Colvin at a State Bar of Texas Board of Directors Dinner.
* With her colleagues on the 2017-2018 State Bar of Texas Board of Directors.
*Seated at the Executive Committee of the State Bar of Texas Board of Directors Meeting (see name placard).
UT Regents Outstanding Employee Awardee
Azuri Gonzalez
Azuri was a Political Science Major who graduated in 2002, and also got her Masters from the department in 2011. As Director of the Center for Civic Engagement at UTEP, Ms. Gonzalez manages UTEP’s community-based teaching and learning partnerships to enhance higher education learning and contribute to the public good. As the Director, she has been instrumental in attaining UTEP’s designation as a Community Engaged Institution by the Carnegie Foundation, listing on the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, and high rank in Washington Monthly magazine’s national college rankings based on social mobility, research, and service. For all her hard years of work, she was recently named a UT Regents Outstanding Employee Awardee! See: https://www.utsystem.edu/sites/regents-outstanding-employee-awards
Here is an overview of this prestigious award:
In November 2016, The University of Texas System Board of Regents approved the establishment of the Regents’ Outstanding Employee Award (ROEA). This award was created to recognize full-time, benefits eligible, non-faculty employees that have shown outstanding performance, innovation, enthusiasm and dedication in their job. Equal consideration is made to employees across all job categories. Selection is based on the impact the employee has made on their individual job and how this impact has helped improve their institution.
Thirty awards are given out each year across the fourteen UT System institutions plus the UT System Administration. The winners receive a Chancellor’s challenge coin, a certificate, a $10,000 monetary award and an invitation for the awardee and a guest to a luncheon ceremony in Austin. This year's award ceremony will take place on May 14, 2018.
Ms. Gonzalez also recently published a co-edited book with Dr. Gina Nunez entitled Community Engagement an High Impact Practices in Higher Education, through Kendall Hunt publishing. It is a book reflective of the work done at UTEP to support integrated community engaged scholarship that supports student learning, community partnerships, and faculty research. Learn more about the book here:
https://www.utep.edu/cce/Community%20Engagement%20and%20High%20Impact%20Practices%20in%20Higher%20Education.html
FACULTY ACTIVITIES: TRAIN KEEPS A-ROLLIN'
Annual Highlights
Dr. Charles Boehmer continues as Chair of the Department of Political Science. He was UTEP’s nominee for the Minnie Stevens Pipe Award for superior teaching, which is a state-wide competition. His research also continues on the relationships between human rights compliance by countries and networks of international organizations. Of particular satisfaction was teaching courses on political simulations (Model UN), international relations, and graduate research methods. He continues to serve as faculty adviser of the Global Relations Organization (GRO). The highlight of the GRO was their trip to New York University to participate in the UN model.
William Corbett is an attorney and he has taught as a Lecturer at UTEP for the past 13 years, specializing in law-related and courses in government. He is active in community affairs with organizations such as the New Mexico Bar’s Judges and Lawyers Assistance Program, the Progressive Voter Alliance, PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Gays and Lesbians), and the Academy for Learning in Retirement. Professor Corbett and his wife also have several pets--all animals that have been rescued--and in 2014 they established "Murphy's Fund," a charitable organization that provides free hospice and euthanasia services for pets of indigent residents of Doña Ana and El Paso counties.
On April 8, 2018, he moderated the day-long Alpha Phi Sigma Criminal Justice Conference (“Mental Health and the Criminal Justice System”) in Las Cruces, NM. Alpha Phi Sigma (APS), the Criminal Justice Honor Society of New Mexico State University is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit student organization. "The mission of Alpha Phi Sigma is to promote critical thinking, rigorous scholarship and life-long learning; to keep abreast of advances in scientific research, to elevate the ethical standards of the criminal justice profession and to sustain in the public mind the benefit and necessity of education and professional training." The conference was conducted in Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces with approximately 190 mental health, corrections, law enforcement individuals attended.
Dr. Irasema Coronado received a grant from Partners of the Americas for a bidirectional study abroad experience that included UTEP and the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM) students. The goal of the grant was to conduct research on environmental issues in Mexico City and El Paso, Texas. While in Mexico City, UTEP students visited the communities of Milpa Alta and Xochimilco, met with two Nobel laureates, Ana Rosa Moreno and Mario Molina and with representatives of the Secretaria de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales. In El Paso, Dr. Silvia Nunez Garcia and a group of students visited with representatives of the International Boundary and Water Commission, Environmental Protection Agency, Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition and toured the Rio Bosque Park. Dr. Coronado co-authored an article with Dr. Kathy Staudt titled “Gendering Border Studies: Biopolitics in the Elusive U.S. Wars on Drugs and Immigrants” that was published in Eurasian Border Review in January of 2018.
Since our last newsletter, Dr. Todd Curry has prioritized research with his students. Two students, Ricardo Romero and Erica Rodarte, have published pieces with Dr. Curry on the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility and the Law and Courts subfield of Political Science respectively. Furthermore, his research (along with UTEP’s Dr. Rebecca Reid) has received national attention. Drs. Reid and Curry published in The Monkey Cage, a political science outlet hosted at The Washington Post, concerning President Trump’s reduction of the Bears Ears Monument and the involved Tribes likelihood of prevailing in their civil suits (https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/12/11/trump-is-being-sued-to-stop-him-from-shrinking-bears-ears-national-monument-by-85-percent-who-will-win/).
Dr. Curry and his co-author Dr. Michael Romano have continued their work on the nature and extent of judicial representation, recently publishing “Ideological Congruity on State Supreme Courts,” in the Justice System Journal. Dr. Curry is also excited to announce that he and Dr. Romano have contacted with Routledge Press to publish their book Language and the Law: State Supreme Courts and Judicial Opinions, which will be out in 2019.
Dr. Gaspare M. Genna published one co-authored book, Global Power Transition and the Future of the European Union. He also published an article, “The Unexpected Effects of Criminal Violence along the Mexico-Texas Border” with Karen E. Trevino (MA ’14), in Geopolitics and another one, “Images of Europeans: Transnational Trust and Support for European Integration,” in the Journal of International Relations and Development, and a book chapter, Measuring Integration Achievement in the Americas (Springer Publications). He also joined the Robert A. Pastor North America Research Initiative located at American University. He continues to mentor students through UTEP’s Miners on Track program.
In 2017, Dr. Taeko Hiroi published “Meaning of Time: Legislative Duration in the Brazilian Congress” in a monograph series by the Instituto de Pesquisa Econômica Aplicada, a very prestigious scholarly think tank linked to the Presidency of the Federative Republic of Brazil. She also presented her work at leading conferences, including the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association. Dr. Hiroi was also invited to present her work on “Exclusion, Polarization, and Coup Vulnerability: An Institutional Approach” at the Institute of Developing Economies/Japan External Trade Organization, an organization related to Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Dr. Hiroi continues to serve as faculty advisor for Pi Sigma Alpha, Political Science Honor Society. Through the honor society, Dr. Hiroi helps students to develop leadership skills and assist them with grant proposal writing and event planning, among others. Our chapter won a best chapter award in 2017 for the fourth time in five years!
Dr. Rebecca Reid had two peer-reviewed manuscripts published, along with a newsletter article and a Washington Post article. One article, published in the Journal of Law and Courts, evaluates how war impacts judicial decisions on the U.S. Courts of Appeal. She also published a book chapter by Routledge Press, which examines the impact of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights by analyzing country compliance to court orders requiring domestic legal reform. Her newsletter manuscript, coauthored with Dr. Todd Curry and undergraduate student Erica Rodarte, appeared in the American Political Science Association’s Law and Courts Newsletter summarizing original survey research on (the lack of) diversity in public law. Finally, her article in The Monkey Cage/Washington Post applies her research with Dr. Todd Curry to the diminishment of Bears Ears national monument and indigenous litigation. Dr. Reid also participated in Constitution Day in collaboration with EPCC to discuss indigenous rights in the United States.
Dr. Gregory D. Schmidt published three single authored chapters and two co-authored chapters in Gender Quotas in South America’s Big Three: National and Subnational Impacts (Lexington Press 2017). He also presented papers at the annual meetings of the Latin American Studies Association (LASA) in Lima, Peru and the Midwest Association for Latin American Studies (MALAS) in St. Louis; appeared on a Peruvian cable TV channel to discuss his research on gender quotas; and was elected president of MALAS. In 2017 Schmidt taught 17 sections in which 1,231 students received final grades.
Dr. Gregory S. Schober published co-authored articles in Political Behavior and the American Journal of Kidney Diseases, and he had another article accepted for publication in the Latin American Research Review. He presented papers and served as a discussant at the American Political Science Association Annual Meeting and the Annual Midwest Political Science Association Conference. He was a participant in the Provost’s Community Engaged Scholarship Institute and in the Culture and Health Community of Practice, and he served as a steering committee member and co-investigator for a community-based participatory research project on diabetes education interventions in the local region.
Dr. Cigdem Sirin published two co-authored refereed journal articles in Political Psychology and Presidential Studies Quarterly. Further, Dr. Sirin and her co-authors presented the results of their national experiment they conducted using Time-Sharing Experiments for the Social Sciences (TESS) grant funds at two national conferences: the American Political Science Association and the International Organization of Social Sciences and Behavioral Research. For her service, Dr. Sirin continued as the Activity 2 Director as part of UTEP’s Unit for First-Year Retention, Success and Transition (U-FYRST), which is funded by the U.S. Department of Education’s Title V grant. As Activity 2 Director, her key responsibilities include the recruitment and training of faculty to use innovative technologies (particularly performance tracking systems) that help increase undergraduate student success and retention. As part of these activities, she organizes and manages various training sessions, workshops, and large class seminars. She also participates in the monthly meetings of the core grant team, prepare progress reports, and actively contributes to the realization of the project goals. She also continued to serve in the Women’s Advisory Council to the President and started serving on the Edge Advisory Committee.
Dr. Jose D. Villalobos published two co-authored refereed articles: one is on emotions in presidential appeals that came out in Presidential Studies Quarterly (top subfield journal for presidency studies) and the other is on the social and political causes of Group Empathy Theory published in Political Psychology (top subfield journal for Political Psychology). His work was presented at the annual meetings of the American Political Science Association and the International Organization of Social Sciences and Behavioral Research. For his service, Dr. Villalobos continued as a member for the Presidents & Executive Politics (PEP) section of the American Political Science Association for which he also served as Chair for the Career Service Award Committee. At UTEP, he was honored to serve as Appointee for the President for the Award Committee for the President’s Meritorious Service Awards. He also continued serving as Faculty Liaison for Nonpartisan Voter Registration for UTEP’s Center for Civic Engagement and in concert with the El Paso County Elections Office. Separately, he concluded his service of his three-year term (2014-2017) as a Fellow for CETaL’s Council of Fellows. In the department, I continued serving as Director of the Student Enhancement and External Relations (SEER) Committee.
William G. Weaver III is Professor of Political Science and Director of the Law School Preparation Institute. He took his bachelor’s degree from California State University, Sacramento, and his MA, JD, and Ph.D. from the University of Virginia. He was the Earl Warren graduate at CSU-Sacramento and on the editorial board of Virginia Law Review in law school.
Weaver teaches courses in law and American Politics, including courses in public and private law and courses in normative political theory. His research largely focuses on American law and politics with an emphasis on the intersection of law and the intelligence community, government liability in private tort actions, presidential secrecy, and presidential powers related to national security. His published work includes articles in: American Political Science Review, Political Science Quarterly, Presidential Studies Quarterly, Virginia Law Review, New Literary History, Organization, Political Science Reviewer, and Journal of Business Ethics. His books include Presidential Secrecy and the Law, coauthored with Robert Pallitto (Johns Hopkins University Press).
Since 1998 Weaver has taught in the Law School Preparation Institute at UTEP. It is dedicated to preparing students for law school and the Law School Admissions Test, guiding students through the law school application process, and providing venues such as internships and clerkships for students to experiences the practice of law (www.law.utep.edu).
Dr. Joseph Zhou published a co-authored article entitled "Inequality and Political Trust in China: The Social Volcano Thesis Reexamined" at the China Quarterly. Recent research casts serious doubts on the social volcano thesis, which states that the rising inequality in China threatens regime stability. However, the existing research lacks direct tests on the thesis, which requires linking political stability to levels of inequality. The article undertakes a direct test of the relationship between provincial Gini index and political trust, and paints a complex picture: inequality does not reduce people's trust in the central government but it reduces trust in the local government, implying a dormant volcano. This finding is cross-examined in a book chapter (Routledge) with new datasets by Dr. Zhou and his coauthor. Showing that inequality reduces political trust in both the central and local governments, the study provides reason to take the volcanic inequality seriously.
Book Publications
Global Power Transition and the Future of the European Union (Routledge/UACES Contemporary European Studies)
by: Gaspare Genna, co-authored with Birol A. Yeşilada, Jacek Kugler, and, Osman Göktuğ Tanrıkulu
Book Summary:
Today, the European Union faces challenges that threaten not only internal cohesion but also its position in the global system. This book is about the future of the EU in the light of global power transition taking place in the twenty-first century and demonstrates how its future rests on a delicate balance between policy challenge, member states’ interests, and convergence or divergence of societal values across its peoples.
The book examines factors behind the decline of the EU relative to the rise of China and other powers in the global hierarchy and what policy options are available for EU leaders to implement in order to compete as a global actor. It analyses determinants of regional integration and key policy challenges the EU faces in its quest for an "ever deeper union," and identifies significant factors (i.e., power relations, economic relations, emergent social values across the EU) that can explain the likelihood of further integration or conflict between EU member states.
This text will be essential reading for scholars, students, and practitioners interested in European Union politics international relations, security studies, and comparative politics.
POLS IN PICTURES: MEMORABLE MOMENTS FROM 2017
Department Celebrations
The 2017 Political Science Department Homecoming Celebration:
The 2017 Political Science Department Christmas Party:
Major Academic Events
Constitution Day Presentations by Dr. Rebecca Reid and Dr. Todd Curry
Mexico Elections panel with Dr. Greg Schober, Dr. Jose Villalobos, and Keynote Speaker Mr. Reyes Rodriguez Mondragon
Community Activities
Soccoro ISD Outreach
Ysleta ISD Outreach
Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Group Charity Dinner
*Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Group charity dinner with Christopher Haymon, Sydney Vazquez, Mark Stinson, Joshua Acevedo, Dr. Kathy Staudt (past recipient of the Border Hero Award), and Dr. Irma Montelongo (recipient of the 2018 Border Hero Award).
The Great Flood of Benedict Hall 2017!
Things got wet and slippery for a while but we dried off and survived: