With the presidential election less than two months away, Americans are faced with examining and making sense of a variety of major and many times quite complicated issues.
With the luxury of drawing on a depth of faculty scholarship and research expertise, Penn State Harrisburg has assembled an interdisciplinary blend of academic experts supplemented by leaders from government to help area residents sort through the issues in a series of Wednesday public discussions beginning Sept. 17.
"Academic Perspectives on the Election Season" will offer a series of six Wednesday noontime presentations and observations on key issues, concluding with a post-election panel of politicians from both sides of the aisle joining with faculty experts to reflect on the results and impact of the Nov. 4 ballot.
"Penn State Harrisburg is unique as a college in the breadth of its academic programs and faculty expertise ranging from science and engineering, to business, to public affairs, to the humanities," said Marian Walters, associate dean for Research and Graduate Studies and the series organizer.
"And since one of our strengths is that broad range of capabilities, we determined it would be of great value to both the college and the general public to organize a series to discuss relevant issues surrounding the upcoming election," Walters added. "In fact, we chose the topics because of their importance to the community and are fortunate to be able to feature highly respected faculty scholars from all five of our academic schools and a wide variety of disciplines who will share their expertise and frame the discussions within the public forums."
Established to support its outreach commitment to the community, the series will address issues continually impacting the nation and the midstate -- the environment, the economy, immigration, and political communications -- matched with faculty who are scholars and researchers in the respective field.
The series at noon in the Gallery Lounge of the Olmsted Building kicks off Sept. 17 with Shirley Clark, assistant professor of environmental engineering, leading the discussion on environmental issues surrounding the election.
Clark's research focuses on the impact of the engineered environment on nature and public health, including the effect of stormwater runoff on the physical, chemical and biological quality of surface waters. Her teaching emphasis includes an effort to instill how people interact with the environment.
The remainder of the series topics and their moderators includes:
•Sept. 24: "Political Communication," Peter Kareithi, associate professor of humanities and communication.
With an extensive background in journalism in Africa, Europe, and the United States, Kareithi began his career in his native Kenya where he rose to be news editor of the largest daily newspaper in that nation. For more than a decade, he was a correspondent for several major British news organizations and for six years in the 1990s was an editor with The Republican in Springfield, Mass. His reporting has been published in The Washington Post, Boston Globe, Philadelphia Inquirer and the St. Petersburg Times.
•Oct. 8: "Republican vs. Democratic Viewpoints," Matthew Woessner, associate professor of public policy.
With teaching and research interests in American politics, Woessner's specializations include political behavior and research methodology. His work on politics has been profiled by the Chronicle of Higher Education, the Christian Science Monitor, The New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.
•Oct. 22: "Economic Policies," Nihal Bayraktar, assistant professor of economics.
Before joining the faculty at Penn State Harrisburg, Bayraktar worked as an economist at the World Bank. Among her research interests are the fixed investment behavior of manufacturing firms in the United States and Germany and problems related to inflation, poverty, the banking sector and financial markets in developing countries.
•Oct. 29: "Immigration Policies," Kamini Grahame, associate professor of sociology.
With substantial teaching experience in sociology, women’s studies, and global studies, Grahame's research interests include race and ethnicity, gender, and class -- particularly in relation to the immigrant experience. Her research focus most recently has involved government-sponsored job training as an organizer of Asian immigrant women into the labor market, the education of children in the Asian diaspora and Asian immigrant women's relation to the family.
•Nov. 5: A post-election wrap-up and reflections
Jeremy Plant, professor of public administration and public policy, and Woessner will be joined by House of Representatives GOP Whip David Argall and former Lt. Gov. Mark Singel.
Plant's research focus includes railroad and transportation security issues since Sept. 111. 2001, public policy, and ethics in government. He is the faculty coordinator for the campus' master's and doctoral programs in public administration, ranked in the top 20 percent nationally, and the recently introduced certificate in Homeland Security and Defense.
Argall, who has served as Republican Whip since 2004, holds a doctoral degree in public administration from Penn State Harrisburg and serves tan adjunct faculty member in Penn State Harrisburg's School of Public Affairs. He also holds a master's degree in American Studies from Penn State Harrisburg and has served in the state legislature since 1985.
Singel, a Penn State graduate, served as the Democratic lieutenant governor of the Commonwealth from 1987 to 1995 and as acting governor from June to December 1993. He serves as an adjunct faculty member at Penn State Harrisburg.
The series is free to the public. For information, phone (717) 948-6303.