Political Science Department at Providence College

Political Science at Providence College
The Department of Political Science is among the most popular programs at Providence College, with about 330 majors and minors. Yet our classes are small, rarely exceeding 25 students, with many seminars, special topics courses, and undergraduate research projects. We offer an Honors option for outstanding students, which includes writing an Honors thesis during the senior year. We maintain a computer lab, online and other electronic data resources, an extensive politics-oriented video collection, and a library of political texts, campaign materials, and memorabilia.

The Political Science Department believes strongly that learning is not limited to the classroom. The Department encourages community involvement: we are engaged with the International Institute of Rhode Island in a series of voluntary projects, we encourage foreign study, and we support internships, all as part of our academic program. On campus, the department presents a full range of public events every year, including lectures, films, and "teach-ins," for examples. Our students are actively involved in campus student government and many other organizations.

Our faculty are teachers and scholars
The department has a diverse full-time faculty of 15 members, who hold Ph.D. degrees from California at Berkeley, Brown, SUNY at Buffalo, Chicago, Columbia, Connecticut, Kent State, Massachusetts, Michigan State, North Carolina, and Rutgers. In recent years political science faculty have directed the College's interdisciplinary programs in Black Studies, Latin American Studies, and Public Administration, and also teach in the Women's Studies, Liberal Arts Honors, Global Studies, Public and Community Service, Asian Studies, and Development of Western Civilization programs. Our teaching faculty also enjoy strong scholarly reputations. They write well-regarded academic books and articles, and are regularly invited to present research in many regions and fields: the American, Western, Midwest, Southwest, and Northeastern Political Science associations, the National Conference of Black Political Scientists, and the Latin American, African, and International Studies Associations. Our faculty all serve as academic advisors for majors and minors, and mentors for students who seek admission to some of the nation's most prestigious graduate, professional and law schools. We invite prospective students to find additional information about our program on this website, or to contact us directly.

Prof. Jordan-Zachery title wins Best Book Award at 2009 NCOBPS

Black Women, Cultural Images and Social Policy, written by our department's newest faculty member, Dr. Julia Jordan-Zachery, demonstrates how social meanings surrounding the discourses on crime, welfare and family policies produce and reproduce discursive practices that maintain gender and racial hierarchies. Using critical discourse analysis (CDA), she analyzes the values and ideologies ensconced in the various images of black womanhood and their impact on policy formation. Her book was winner of the 2009 W. E. B. Du Bois best book award, from the National Conference of Black Political Scientists (NCOBPS).

Five department faculty will present research at Toronto political science conference

When 6,000 political scientists converge on Toronto's Convention Centre in September, five of Providence College's own will be on hand. The American Political Science Association (APSA) will convene its 104th annual meeting September 3-6.

William Hudson will preside over a panel on"Educating Students to be Global Citizens," a special theme panel devoted to new approaches in political science instruction.

Joe Cammarano will present recent research on the U.S. presidency, delivering a paper entitled "From Substance to Symbol: Head Start and the Change From Modern to Postmodern Presidents."

Mary Bellhouse will display her research findings with a paper entitled "Art Against Equality: A Theoretical Approach to the Study of Visual Culture, the Politics of Identity, and the Defeat of Democratic Ideals in Eighteenth-Century France."

Julia Jordan-Zachery will chair a Women and Politics panel titled "Elected Officials at the Intersection of Gender and Race." She will also take part in a roundtable discussion of her new book (see note at left), and lead a "Methods Cafe" discussion of intersectionality research.

Tony Affigne will chair the "Roundtable on Complex Models for Latino Politics: Quantitative and Qualitative Innovations." He will also preside over the annual business meeting of the Latino Caucus in Political Science, and appear on a commemorative roundtable celebrating the 40th anniversary of APSA's Minority Fellowship Program.

Monthly Features

ALUM OF THE MONTH:
To read about alumni acknowledged in previous months, click here

February 2010

Jackie Brousseau-Pereira, Class of 1990

In 1993 Jackie moved from Providence to western Massachusetts, where she worked in the mental health field for several years. After becoming frustrated with a system that seemed to work against those it intended to help, she went back to school to complete a Master’s degree in public policy and administration. In 2000, she received her MPA from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Afterwards she worked as a community development planner in western Massachusetts and later as a program officer at the Greater Worcester Community Foundation.

In 2004, Jackie had the opportunity to go back to UMass Amherst to take a position at the Center for Public Policy and Administration, where she received her master’s degree. Having always been drawn to education, this was a chance she couldn’t pass up. After serving for two years as the Center’s special projects manager, Jackie was asked by the Dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences to take on a newly created position, serving the College as the director of external affairs. She has been in this position for just over three years. Her primary responsibilities are alumni and donor relations, oversight of the college scholarship process, managing the Dean’s alumni advisory board, creating networking opportunities for students and alumni, and serving on a variety of campus committees. A year ago she decided to take a class in the School of Education at UMass Amherst, and is now somewhat surprised to find that she is a part-time doctoral student, studying higher education administration with a focus on creating sustainable campuses.

Jackie lives in Easthampton, MA with her husband, Paul Pereira, and their two young daughters. Jackie also serves on the Easthampton Housing Partnership, a volunteer board that is responsible for creating opportunities for affordable housing in the City.