Announcements and Updates

'Future of Chicago' Lecture Series Addresses Government, Public Issues

The University of Illinois at Chicago's Future of Chicago lecture series addresses issues of public concern. The lectures promote public debate between national experts and UIC students, with a focus on governmental issues.

Dick Simpson, professor of political science and a former Chicago alderman, organizes the series, hosted by UIC since 1976.

"These distinguished speakers from very different political points of view are meant to open the debate about the future of the Chicago metropolitan region in a time of fundamental change," said Simpson. "They will particularly address how Chicago can cope with the current recession and its role in the global economy. They will discuss the current power struggles between various political factions and units of government."

Lectures will be held Thursdays from 11 a.m. to noon in UIC Lecture Center A1, 802 S. Halsted St. (just west of UIC's Chicago Circle Center). All lectures are free and open to the public.

October 2    14th Ward Alderman Ed Burke "The Role of the Chicago City Council in Chicago's Future"

October 9     Tom Bartkowski, International Director of Business Development, World Business Chicago,  "Globalization and the New Chicago?

October 16    Professor Kent Redfield, University of Illinois at Springfield, "The State of the State of Illinois"

October 23    Charley Wheelan, Director of Policy and Communications, Metropolis 2020, "The Future of the Chicago Metropolitan Region

October 30     UIC Professor Janet Smith, "The Future of Housing in Chicago"

November 6    Alton Miller, Former Press Secretary to Mayor Harold Washington, "The Media and Chicago's Future"
 

Three New Publications by Doris Graber

Styles of Image Management During Crises:  Justifying Press Censorship, Discourse & Society (Sage Publications, 2003).  Professor Graber identifies three common types of verbal strategies used by both sides of the post September 11^th censorship debate:  excuses, justifications, and transformation rhetoric.  Using the Bush Administration's censorship policies in the war on terrorism as a case study, Graber categorizes the arguments made for and against the policy. The analysis allows the reader a better chance to understand the rhetorical elements of the debate.

The Media and Democracy:  Beyond Myths and Stereotypes, Annual Review of Political Science (Annual Reviews, Jan. 2003).  Professor Graber addresses the question of whether current concepts of citizenship are still appropriate and whether contemporary U.S. media are an asset or a detriment to democratic governance in the United States. The full article can be viewed at http://polisci.annualreviews.org

Professor Graber contributed the second chapter titled Terrorism, Censorship and the 1^st Amendment: In Search of Policy Guidelines to Framing Terrorism - The News Media, the Government, and the Public, (Routledge, 2003).  Graber examines the historical conflicts between press freedoms and security concerns.  She draws on trade-off practices used to resolve conflicts about environmental policies to suggest mechanisms that could define appropriate relations between the press and policymakers before crisis situations occur.

Bruhl Paper Accepted For Publication

The Journal of Business Ethics has accepted Professor Bob Bruhl’s paper titled “A Possible Solution to the Principal-Agent Problem Posed by the Contemporary Corporate CEO”.  Bruhl’s interest in this subject was based on current events, and states the case for making CEO’s owners rather than agents.  The date of publication is not yet set.

Englemann Book Nears Shipping Date

Professor Stephen Englemann's new book "Imaging Interest in Political Thought: The Origins of Economic Rationality", (Duke University Press, 2003) argues that monistic interest--or the shaping and coordination of different pursuits through imagined economies of self and public interest--constitutes the end and the means of contemporary liberal government.

The book will ship in October.  Orders can be placed through Amazon.com

Passalaqua Essay Commands Heights

Graduate Student John Passalaqua's essay has been selected as one of 30 finalists out of 2,000 global competitors in a competition sponsored by "A World Connected," a globalization organization affiliated with the Institute for Humane Studies at George Mason University.  John's topic was "Globalization and Inequality".

After spending the summer at Auburn University's Mises Institute studying the works of Friedrich Hayek and Ludwig Von Mises, John Passalaqua penned his essay on the relationship between open markets and democratic transformation.  For more information on the competition see http://www.aworldconnected.org.  For more information on the Mises Institute go to http:www.mises.org.

Doris Graber Chosen As University Scholar

Professor Doris Graber has been selected as a University Scholar by the University of Illinois.  This award comes on the heels of the success of Professor Graber’s latest book, Processing Politics:  Learning from Television in the Internet Age.  The book won the  Kennedy School of Government’s Goldsmith Book Prize for the Best Academic Book of 2002 (see story below).  University Scholars provide three years of support for faculty who have demonstrated superior performance in both research and teaching, and show great promise for future achievements.

Doris is also profiled in the September 3rd issue of UIC News.  The article can be viewed here:

or look under http://www.uic.edu/casp/depts/paff/uicnews/default.asp

UIC Fields Large Delegation to Midwest Association Conference  

Faculty and graduate students were active participants in the annual conference of the Midwest Political Science Association, April 3-6, at the Palmer House in Chicago. Professor Ani Ruhil organized the 13 panels in the "Urban and Local Politics" section. Professor Stephen Engelmann chaired panels examining "Science and Social Theory" and "Hobbes:  Nature and Language".  Professor Audie Klotz chaired a panel discussion of "Intersections and Transnational Social Movements" in which Professor Andy McFarland was also a panelist.

Professor Melissa Marschall chaired a panel "The Color of Local Politics:  Race, Representation, and Reform".  Professor Evan McKenzie was a discussant on a panel exploring "Moot Court Simulations:  Within and Without the Classroom.  Professor Doris Graber presented her paper "News About the Gulf War Policy Debate:  Comparing 1990 with 2002". 

Professor John Gardiner and Elisabeth Muhlenberg [doctoral student] presented "Engaging Youth in Tobacco Policy Change:  Results from a Concept Mapping Project in Madison County, Illinois". Professor Dick Simpson and Ola Adeoye [graduate student] presented "Black Political Power and City Contracts".

Professor Lyn Ragsdale chaired a panel exploring "Presidential Control Over Policy-Making", and Professor Barry Rundquist was a discussant at the panel "Money and Politics".  Professor Sultan Tepe presented "The Politics of Religion:  A Comparative Analysis of Religious Party Support in Israel and Turkey" at the panel titled "The Politics of Islam".

Paru Shah [graduate student] chaired a panel "The Many Faces of Reform: Secession, Structural Change, and Bias" which Professor Ani Ruhil sat on.  Paru also presented "The Color of Local Regimes: Race and Urban Regimes in Chicago and Detroit" at the panel "The Color of Local Politics: Race, Representation, and Reform".

Jennifer Rexroat was a discussant at the panel "The Gendered Implications of Policy" and Nidhi Sharma presented "Good Ol' Boys Network: Does It Still Exist in Washington?"  

Recent Ph.D.'s Geralyn Miller and Linda Murphy presented "Gender, Guns, and Legislating: An Analysis of State Legislative Preferences" while Miller also chaired the panel "The Gendered Dimensions of Voter Choice"; Derek Reveron chaired and was a discussant on a panel "External Factors and Democratization."

Dick Simpson Comments on Nonpartisan Elections

Dick Simpson is quoted in the Monday, June 16 issue of the New York Times on how nonpartisan elections have worked in Chicago following NYC's Mayor Bloomberg call for nonpartisan elections in NYC.  The article may be viewed on the NY Times website - registration is required.

Underdog UIC Mock Trial Team Places 13^th Nationally

Des Moines, IA - Regional champion UIC Mock Trial Team acquitted itself in national competition in April with victories over George Washington University, Bradley University, and stalemating Notre Dame.

A total 64 competed including such traditional powerhouses as Harvard, Yale, Notre Dame, University of Iowa, and Columbia.  With no coach and far fewer resources than most of the competition, the Flame Trial Team entered the national competition as an underdog, and came out among the best.

Having defeated such elite institutions as the University of Michigan, the University of Chicago, and the Fighting Illini of Urbana in regional competition in Joliet, the team co-captained by Jennifer Holder and Ana Petrovic maintained the Mock Trial Team’s tradition of excellence.  For more information on the Mock Trial Team contact Ana Petrovic at apetro5@uic.edu .

Two Ani Ruhil Articles Published

Ani Ruhil’s article titled, Urban Armageddon or Politics as Usual? The Case of Municipal Civil Service Reform, was published in the January 2003 issue of the American Journal of Political Science. 

Also in the first month of the new year, Professor Ruhil collaboration with the Pedro J. Camões of the Universidade do Minho appeared in the Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory.  The article is titled, What Lies Beneath: The Political Roots of State Merit Systems.  It can be viewed on line at: 

http://jpart.oupjournals.org/current.shtml

Doris Graber Receives Goldsmith Book Prize

Doris Graber’s book Processing Politics:  Learning from Television in the Internet Age, has won the 2003 Goldsmith Book Prize for academic books.  The prize is presented annually for the academic book that best contributes to the improvement of the quality of government or politics through an examination of the press or the intersection of press and politics in the formation of public policy.  The award will be presented at an awards ceremony in the Forum of the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University on March 11, 2003.

Simpson Covers City Elections

Choice Magazine Selects Rusk Book

Jerrold Rusk's latest book, A Statistical History of the American Electorate, has been selected as an Outstanding Academic Book by Choice Magazine in its January 2003 issue. Earlier, Professor Rusk's book was selected as an Outstanding Reference Source by the Library Journal in 2001. Choice based its selection on "the overall excellence in presentation and scholarship," "originality and uniqueness of treatment," and "importance relative to other literature in the field."

Amalia Pallares' Book Published

The University of Oklahoma Press has published Amalia Pallares'
book: From Peasant Struggles to Indian Resistance: The Ecuadorian Andes in the Late Twentieth Century. Drawing on extensive research in Ecuador, Pallares examines the South American Indian movement in the Ecuadorean Andes and explains its shift from class politics to racial politics in the late Twentieth Century. Indigenous peoples created a positive Indian self-definition and a pan-ethnic Indian movement. They reconceived their political identity, their cultural structures, and the relationship between their social movement and the state.

2002 M.A. Graduates

During calendar 2002, the Department granted nine M.A. degrees in Political Science. Six students took the non-thesis option: 

Ricardo Cruz Sanabria
Patricia Johnson 
Sergiy Kucherenko 
Branislaw Seslija 
Steven Waller 
Heidi Weber-Gustofson

Three more received M.A.'s with the thesis option: 
Carlos Lisoni, thesis, "The Law Of Lemas Electoral System:  Institutional Change And It's Consequences In The Province Of Santa Cruz"
Kelly Meisner Klopp, thesis, "Term Limits' Effects on Special Interest Lobbying." 
Adam Stretz, thesis, "George W. Bush's Honeymoon: An Analysis of His First 100 Days."

Lyles Receives Alumni Award

Kevin Lyles is one of only two recipients of the 2003 Alumni Award for Teaching Excellence. This award is described by its sponsors as "given to exceptional teachers who have made a lasting contribution to their students' lives...This award is unique among faculty awards at UIC in that nominations are made by alumni and sponsored by the UIC Campus Alumni Advisory Board."

Ruhil Receives Grant

Ani Ruhil has won a research grant from the Office of Social Science Research (OSSR) for the 2002-03 academic year. The title of his research proposal was "Minority Representation and Service Delivery in Urban America, 1970-2000".

Ani also had an article published recently in the Urban Affairs Review titled "Structural Change and Fiscal Flows: A Framework for Analyzing the Effects of Urban Events." Urban Affairs Review 38(3): 396-416.

Rusk Receives Grant

Jerry Rusk was one of six professors to win a research grant from the Office of Social Science Research (OSSR) for the 2002-03 academic year. The title of his research proposal was "Election Laws and American Voting Behavior, 1788-2002."

Reveron Publishes Dissertation

Derek Reveron, who received the Ph.D. degree in Public Policy Analysis in the summer of 2000, has published his dissertation as "Promoting Democracy in the Post-Soviet Region," published by The Edwin Mellen Press. The book sets forth Reveron's analysis of Community Connections, a State Department exchange program with Soviet area countries, in which visitors to the U.S. observe the workings of local government and the management of American businesses. The stated goal of the program is to promote democracy in the post-Soviet region, but it is difficult to prove success. 

Paul Drugan Receives GLAAD Grant

Paul Drugan, a graduate student, has received a grant from GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) to support his research on voting in Chicago precincts with large gay and lesbian populations.

Ching-Jyuhn Publishes Book on Distributive Politics

Ching-Jyuhn (Andy) Luor, who received the Ph.D. from the department in 1995, has published a book "Distributive Politics in Taiwan."  The book is in Chinese, but has English chapter summaries. Luor is Associate Professor of Public Policy at Tam Kang University of Taiwan.

Four PhD Graduates Take New Jobs

Four recipients of departmental doctoral degrees have taken new jobs. Robert McKee is now employed as Energy Research Manager at the Energy Policy Research Institute in Madison, Wisconsin. Jennifer Rexroat has moved to Baker University of Kansas, where she has accepted a tenure track position in Political Science and Women's Studies. Lisa Schmit has accepted a tenure track position at Calumet College of Whiting, Indiana, where she is director of Urban Studies. Anna Marie Schuh has accepted a tenure track position as Assistant Professor of Public Administration at Roosevelt University.

Dick Simpson Wins UIC Award for Excellent in Teaching

Dick Simpson has won the UIC Award for Excellence in Teaching, an all-campus award, including the medical school, that is given to only four or five UIC professors per year. This award is considered to be the major teaching award on the UIC campus. To gain this award, the faculty member must be first nominated by the department, and then nominated by his/her dean, and LAS nominates only one or two persons per year. The campus-wide winners are decided by a faculty committee which reports to the provost. The Excellence in Teaching award includes a permanent salary increase.