THIS MONTH'S HEADLINES:
- ANNUAL POLITICAL SCIENCE DINNER AT OLIVE GARDEN APRIL 18
- PENNSYLVANIA PRIMARY APRIL 23
- APRIL EVENTS ABOUT CAREERS IN HARRISBURG, POLITICAL MISINFORMATION, CRIMINAL LAW, MEETING CANDIDATES, AND RUSSIA
- PLSC COURSES WITH NO TEXT COSTS FOR FALL 2024
- INVITATION TO LAW DAY IN ERIE COUNTY
- DR. LENA SURZHKO-HARNED AND POLSC MAJOR SAMIHA CHOUDHURY WIN UNIVERSITY AWARDS
- PRE-LAW NEWS
- INTERNSHIPS AND JOBS AT BALLOTPEDIA
- STUDENTS AND ALUMNI IN THE NEWS
- FACULTY IN THE NEWS
- STUDENT GROUP NEWS
- POLSC SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES
1. ANNUAL POLITICAL SCIENCE DINNER AT OLIVE GARDEN APRIL 18
The Annual Behrend Political Science Dinner will be at the Olive Garden at 5945 Peach Street in Erie on Thursday, April 18, at 7:30 p.m. The dinner is in honor of graduating POLSC majors, whose meals get covered. Anyone else is welcome to join the group and buy their own dinners. To RSVP, email Dr. Robert Speel at [email protected] no later than Tuesday, April 16.
2. PENNSYLVANIA PRIMARY APRIL 23
The Pennsylvania primary election is on Tuesday, April 23. While the Democratic and Republican presidential candidates have already been decided, many other races remain on the ballot. Democrats will be choosing a candidate for State Attorney General, State Treasurer, and State Auditor General. Republicans will also be choosing a candidate for State Attorney General. Democrats in most of Erie County will be choosing a candidate for State Senate in Harrisburg. Pennsylvanians living in some parts of the state will be choosing candidates for U.S. House of Representatives and for State House of Representatives and State Senate.
The registration deadline to vote and to choose a political party is April 8. The deadline to apply for a mail ballot is April 16. Mail ballots must be received by the local election office on April 23. Local polling places depend on where you live. Pennsylvania has a closed primary system where voters who did not register in a party in advance are unable to vote for candidates. Pennsylvanians can register to vote and apply for mail ballots at vote.pa.gov. In Pennsylvania, college students are allowed to register and vote at their campus area addresses, where they will be living on April 23.
3. APRIL EVENTS ABOUT CAREERS IN HARRISBURG, POLITICAL MISINFORMATION, CRIMINAL LAW, MEETING CANDIDATES, AND RUSSIA
- Wednesday, April 10 - The Public Policy Initiative is presenting a discussion of “Why Is Russia Dangerous?” with Dr. Lena Surzhko Harned and Dr. Fred Hoffman, a Professor of Intelligence Studies at Mercyhurst University, at 5:00 p.m. at Metzgar Center. As Russia shows more signs of turning into a consolidated totalitarian police state, Putin’s government has turned up its hostile rhetoric toward the “collective west.” In this discussion of Russian domestic and foreign policy, Dr. Hoffman and Dr. Surhzko Harned explain why Russia has become more dangerous to the U.S., its European allies, and to global security.
- Wednesday, April 10 - SGA is sponsoring a Legislative Meet & Greet, 7:00 to 10:00 p.m., in Erie Hall. Join them for a unique opportunity to engage with elected officials! Students and community members alike are invited to come together and converse with their representatives, fostering meaningful dialogue and connections. Don't miss this chance to voice your concerns, share your ideas, and be part of the democratic process in action. Many local leaders have been invited to attend.
- The Behrend Political Society and Pi Sigma Alpha honor society may also be hosting a meet the candidates event in April. Watch for campus publicity with details.
- Monday, April 15 - The Behrend Political Society and the Public Policy Initiative are sponsoring “A Discussion with Stephen Webb” about Career and Internship Opportunities in Harrisburg at 5:00 p.m. in 113 Reed. Webb graduated from Penn State Behrend in 2002 with a Political Science major and works as a senior research manager for the Legislative Policy and Research Office for the Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus. He will be discussing his work, opportunities in state government, and state government policies, and will answer questions. All are invited to attend. If you would like to join the meeting via Zoom, contact Dr. Robert Speel at [email protected] for the Zoom link.
- Thursday, April 18 - The Crime, Law, and Psychology minor and the Pre-Law program will host two distinguished speakers in the area of criminal law—Attorney Elizabeth Hirz and Attorney Patricia Kennedy—from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m. Since 2022, Attorney Hirz has served as the Erie County District Attorney. She is the first woman district attorney in Erie County. She has been with the Erie County District Attorney's office for over 20 years and has prosecuted a wide array of criminal cases, including homicides and major felonies. She also prosecutes child physical and sexual abuse cases. Attorney Patricia Kennedy has over 30 years of legal experience, including 11 years as the chief public defender in Erie County. She was appointed as the public defender in 2011 and has extensive experience in a wide range of criminal cases. She served as the public defender until 2021 and since 2021 has been with the Knox Law Firm in Erie, where she is a member of the firm's governmental practice group. This program will include remarks from Attorney Hirz and Attorney Kennedy, followed by a question-and-answer session. Free food and refreshments will be provided. The location for the event will be announced in April; watch for campus publicity.
- Friday, April 19 - The Public Policy Initiative will present a student panel to discuss "Technology, Politics, and Misinformation” at 3:30 p.m. in 113 Reed. More details will be available in campus publicity in April.
4. PLSC COURSES WITH NO TEXT COSTS FOR FALL 2024
The Penn State course schedule now has notations for each course that will have no costs or low costs (under $50) for textbooks during the Fall 2024 semester. As of the time of this newsletter, the only Penn State Behrend courses listed with those notations are taught by the Political Science program. They include PLSC 1, PLSC 210N, PLSC 230, PLSC 456, and GLIS 102N with no text costs and PLSC 178 with low text costs.
5. INVITATION TO LAW DAY IN ERIE COUNTY
Doris Kearns Goodwin
This year, the Erie County Bar Association’s Law Day takes place on Thursday, May 9, at the Warner Theatre in downtown Erie. The speaker will be presidential historian and Pulitzer Prize-Winning Author Doris Kearns Goodwin, who will participate in a discussion moderated by Erie native and Washington journalist Steve Scully. Students are invited to attend a student-only program with Dr. Goodwin between 9:15 to 10:45 a.m. Students who attend that program will also be invited to stay for the full ECBA speaking event between 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Melissa Shirey, an Erie attorney, Behrend pre-law adviser, and Behrend POLSC alumna, will accompany students at the event. The event is free to students, but RSVPs in advance are required. If you would like to attend, please contact Dr. Robert Speel at [email protected] by April 12.
6. DR. LENA SURZHKO-HARNED AND POLSC MAJOR SAMIHA CHOUDHURY WIN UNIVERSITY AWARDS
Lena Surzhko-Harned
Dr. Lena Surzhko-Harned, associate teaching professor of Political Science and associate director of the Public Policy Initiative (PPI) at Penn State Behrend, has received the 2024 Outreach and Online Education Emerging Faculty Award for Engaged Scholarship.
Samiha Choudhury
Samiha Choudhury, a senior majoring in Political Science at Penn State Behrend, has been named the recipient of the 2024 Ralph Dorn Hetzel Memorial Award.
7. PRE-LAW NEWS
For students that are planning on taking the LSAT, the Law School Admission Council (LSAC) has recently updated its on-line LSAT preparation materials (see www.lsac.org). These updated materials are designed to support test takers planning to take the LSAT in August or later. The LSAC previously announced that starting with the August 2024 LSAT, the Analytical Reasoning section, commonly known as “logic games,” will no longer be included in the LSAT and will be replaced by a second scored Logical Reasoning section. Thus, starting with the August 2024 test, the LSAT will consist of two scored Logical Reasoning sections, one scored Reading Comprehension section, and one unscored variable section of either Logical Reasoning or Reading Comprehension. For students that are taking the LSAT in June, the LSAC's website still has available practice tests for the existing test format which includes the logic games. The LSAC has also added a range of test prep videos, explanatory articles, and sample problem sets from their collaboration with Khan Academy to help student prepare for the LSAT.
For more information, contact Pre-Law Adviser Melissa Shirey at [email protected], or visit her office hours, usually on Fridays from noon to 2:00 p.m. in 155 Kochel.
8. INTERNSHIPS AND JOBS AT BALLOTPEDIA
Penn State Behrend Political Science Alumna Jackie Mitchell asked to make current students and recent graduates aware of current internship and job opportunities available at Ballotpedia, an extensive online resource filled with detailed articles about American elections and public policy.
The work is paid and usually remote, so employees can work from anywhere in the United States. Mitchell is a Ballotpedia staff writer who prepares articles about state ballot measures.
9. STUDENTS AND ALUMNI IN THE NEWS
Eric Oelhaf
POLSC Major Eric Oelhaf was recently featured in the Behrend Blog for having published three opinion pieces in the Wall Street Journal’s “Future View” feature. The full article can be found online.
Samuel Epps
Welcome, Samuel Epps, President-Elect, AFL-CIO Metro Washington Labor Council
POLSC Alumnus Samuel Epps was elected last month as the next president of the AFL-CIO Metro Washington Council. Epps, a former SGA president during his years at Behrend, is the current political director of the Unite Here Local 25 union organization in Washington, and meets with Penn State Behrend students who visit Washington every other year as part of the PLSC 177N course.
10. FACULTY IN THE NEWS
Mapping the Fault Lines in Turkey-U.S. Relations: Making the Vulnerable Partnership
by Kilic Bugra Kanat
Dr. Kilic Kanat, associate professor of Political Science, will be publishing a new book titled Mapping the Fault Lines in Turkey-U.S. Relations with I.B. Tauris publishers.
Agents of resistance: resolve and repertories against autocratization in Asia
Dr. Maggie Shum, assistant professor of Political Science, co-edited the special issue Agents of Resistance: Resolve and Repertoires Against Autocratization in Asia at Democratization. The special issue covers and compares societal resistance against state autocratization and repression in Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Indonesia, South Korea, and the Philippines. She also co-authored the introduction article for the special issue. Dr. Shum also gave a lecture on Hong Kong diaspora’s transnational mobilization and community building at Franklin and Marshall College this month.
Dr. Robert Speel, associate professor of Political Science, gave a presentation about “Gerrymandering: How It’s Done, Why It’s Done, Where It’s Done" for the Jefferson Educational Society on Wednesday, March 27, at 6:00 p.m., in the Harborcreek Township Municipal Building.
Dr. Robert Speel, associate professor of Political Science, gave a presentation about “Gerrymandering: How It’s Done, Why It’s Done, Where It’s Done," at the Jefferson Educational Society’s satellite location in Harborcreek, PA, this month. He was also interviewed in March for an article in the Sunbury Daily Item about how April’s Pennsylvania primary may be a preview of the November general election.
11. STUDENT GROUP NEWS
College Democrats has chosen new officers for the upcoming year:
- President - Nick Richar
- Vice President - Ethan Sonney
- Treasurer - Rylee Ogden
- Secretary - Mars McAninch
Members of College Democrats meet U.S. Senator Bob Casey in Erie.
The group visited the opening of the Biden-Harris campaign office in downtown Erie in March and met there with U.S. Senator Bob Casey. They plan to meet every other week in April on Fridays at 3:30 p.m., starting on April 12, in a room to be determined. This Thursday, April 4, they plan to join a Young Democrats meeting in downtown Erie at 6:00 p.m. and will be volunteering this month for Erie County Democratic candidates. To get involved, contact President Nick Richar at [email protected].
College Republicans meets every Monday at 3:00 p.m. this semester, usually in 205 Burke. To get involved, contact President Anthony Farrar at [email protected].
The Behrend Political Society meets this semester every Monday at 5:00 p.m. in 114 Reed. They will be hosting Behrend Political Science alumnus Stephen Webb on April 15 to discuss government opportunities in Harrisburg. Details are earlier in this newsletter. They are also planning a possible meet the candidates event on campus in April. To get involved, contact President Bella Eibl at [email protected].
Model United Nations plans to organize for next year. To get involved, concert Faculty Adviser Lena Surzhko-Harned at [email protected].
12. POLSC SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES
All students and alumni are invited to like the Penn State Behrend Political Science Facebook page and get updated news and find out about events.
Photos and posters for upcoming events get posted on the Penn State Behrend Political Science Instagram page.