GV PS

Model Arab League Course

Mark Richards — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 17:50:15 -0500

This course will count in the comparative or IR category of the political science program, and as elective credit in the IR program. To have the course credited to your PLS or IR degree, contact Dr. Richards or Dr. Diven, respectively.

The Model Arab League provides students an in-depth understanding of the world’s oldest regional organization and deepens their knowledge of the history, culture, religion, economics, and politics of both their assigned country and the region as a whole. Through active participation in a model, students develop and sharpen skills in debate, consensus-building, critical thinking, parliamentary procedure, and public speaking. By arguing the positions and foreign policy objectives of the Arab States, model participants gain personal insights and a meaningful understanding of the issues underlying U.S.-Arab relations.

GVSU hosts the Michigan Model (Feb. 18-20, 2010). To participate, students sign up for a class which prepares them for the Michigan Model simulation. Here is the course information:

MES 380 (section 01), MW 4:30-5:45

Please contact Professor Majd Al-Mallah (almallam@gvsu.edu) for additional information and for class permit to sign up. Limited seats, so act quickly if you are interested.

Student at Voice of America is Russian voice of the Hubble

Kevin den Dulk — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:07:16 -0400

Kamil Sadyykov, one of our intrepid IR students and current intern at Voice of America, is on YouTube narrating some NASA photos as part of his internship. Here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25nSS2p-miI.

Kamil is completing his internship via The Washington Center. To learn more about GVSU's new affilication with The Washington Center, visit www.gvsu.edu/gvdc. Here's a pic of Kamil at a recent TWC event (flanked by Matt McLogan, GVSU University Relations, and Kevin den Dulk, Professor of Political Science).

From Cold War to War on Terror Conference

Mark Richards — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:16:51 -0400

GVSU will host a one-day conference, From Cold War to War on Terror, on Friday, October 16, 2009, in 2266 Kirkhof. The conference will feature keynote speaker Dr. Ido Oren. The conference is free and open to the public. The conference is co-sponsored by the political science department through the Joseph Stevens Freedom Fund.

Download Cold War to War on Terror Flyer

From Cold War to War on Terror

Date: Friday, October 16, 2009

Location: Kirkhof Center, Room 2266

8:00-8:30am Coffee and welcome

8:40-9:30am IRO Panel: Is there a Generation Gap in How We Perceive the Cold War and War on Terror?

9:40-10:30am Haunstein Center for Presidential Studies Panel:

Brian Flanagan, “National Security State: Truman, Bush and America’s Ramparts in the 21^st Century

Austin Knuppe, “Empire ‘On the Cheap’: Privatization, Outsourcing and Post-Cold War US Foreign Policy”

Patrick Roberts (Virginia Tech, Political Science), Commentator

10:40-11:50am Roundtable discussion of Dr. Ido Oren’s book Our Enemies and US, with Gamal Gasim (GVSU Middle East Studies), Andrew Schlewitz (GVSU Latin American Studies), and GVSU students Carole McIntosh and Jennah Valk.

1:00:-2:30pm Keynote by Dr. Ido Oren, “WMD: Words of Mass Distraction”

2:45-4:15pm From Cold War to War on Terror Panel

Patrick Roberts (Virgina Tech, Political Science), “How a New Long War and a New Terror Make a New State”

William Rose (Albion College, Political Science), “Governing the War on Terror: Risk, Security, and the Preventive Paradigm”

Andrew Schlewitz (GVSU, Latin American Studies), “Mobilizing Christians for Wars without End”

James Goode (GVSU, History), Commentator

MSU Law to Host Reception at GVSU

Mark Richards — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:10:54 -0400

Michigan State University College of Law Office of Admissions will host an information reception at GVSU on Wednesday, October 28, 2009, 7:00-8:30 p.m. in the DeVos Center Regency Room, 401 W. Fulton St., in Grand Rapids. An RSVP is required at least two business days prior to the event. To RSVP, call 517-432-0222 or email admiss@law.msu.edu

For a PDF click here:

Download MSU Law Information Receptions Fall 2009

Visit from The Washington Center and other internship news

Kevin den Dulk — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:49:43 -0400

A representative from The Washington Center, which provides internship and academic seminars in Washington, DC, will be visiting GVSU on Wednesday, September 30. She'll lead an informational session from 1-1:45 in 1104 KC. For those of you who may not have heard, GVSU now has an affiliation with The Washington Center that makes interning in DC even easier and rewarding. Read more about it at www.gvsu.edu/gvdc. Also, Career Services is hosting several internship-related events next week, including an introduction to LakerJobs (a listing of internship opportunities) and a general session on interning. You can find out more information at http://www.gvsu.edu/careers/index.cfm?action=home.events.

APSA Minority Fellowship Program

Mark Richards — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 07:38:31 -0400

From APSA:

Dear Colleague,

The American Political Science Association (APSA) invites you to encourage your
college seniors, who are members of an underrepresented group, to apply to the 2010-2011 APSA Minority Fellowship Program (MFP). In 2009, the MFP celebrated its 40th Anniversary. This Program was established in 1969 to increase the number of underrepresented groups in discipline of political science. Over the years, the MFP has designated more than 300 fellows and contributed to the successful completion of doctoral political science programs for over 100 individuals.

APSA will fund twelve fellowships. Funded APSA Fellows will receive a $4,000 fellowship disbursed in two $2,000 payments at the end of each academic year provided that the student remains in good academic standing. APSA will also send letters of support, to designated graduate programs, on behalf of those students who are awarded fellowships. Awards are based on students' undergraduate course work, GPA, personal statement, extracurricular activities, GRE scores, and recommendations from faculty.

The MFP is designed primarily for minority students applying to enter a doctoral program in Political Science for the first time. Applicants must be US citizens who are members of one of the following racial/ethnic minority groups: African Americans, Asian Pacific Americans, Latinos/as, and Native Americans (federal and state recognized tribes). Applications and additional eligibility criteria can be accessed online at: http://www.apsanet.org/mfp/.

All application materials for the Minority Fellows Program must be postmarked and mailed to APSA by October 2, 2009.

Please find enclosed a flyer on the APSA Minority Fellows Program. If you have any questions regarding the APSA MFP or other APSA Diversity Initiatives, please contact Ms. Shaunda Ragland, Program Assistant, at sragland@apsanet.org.

Sincerely yours,

Kimberly A. Mealy, PhD.
Program Director
APSA Educational, Professional and Minority Initiatives

Africa in Contemporary International Relations Conference Happening Now

Mark Richards — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 10:29:54 -0400

GVSU will be hosting a conference on September 21 and 22, 2009, Africa in Contemporary International Relations: Contexts, Stakes, Actors and Issues. The conference chair is Dr. Jacques Mangala, who is Director of GVSU's African and African American Studies program and a political science profesor. The conference will feature of variety of panels and host a range of experts from U.S. and international universities.

Click here for a copy of the conference program. This conference is free and open to students and the public.

The keynote speaker is Dr. Ian Shapiro, Sterling Professor of Political Science and Henry R. Luce Director of the MacMillian Center for International and Area Studies at Yale University. The title of his lecture is "Luck, Leadership and Legitimacy in Transitions to Democracy: Lessons from South Africa and the Middle East." His speech is sponsored by the GVSU department of political science and the Joseph Stevens Freedom Fund.

Dede Mirabal to Speak at GVSU

Mark Richards — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 10:25:38 -0400

Dede Mirabal, author of the book “Memories “Vivas en el jardin” [Alive in the Garden] [2009, Vintage Publisher], recently presented in New York, will be visiting GVSU to talk with students, professors and community members about Santo Domingo and her family history on Wednesday, September 23rd, at 7:00 p.m. in the Loosemore Auditorium, DeVos campus.

Download Dede Mirabal Flyer

At 5:30 p.m., the documentary "Code Name: Butterflies," (2009) directed by Cecilia Domeyko, will be shown. This documentary tells the powerful story of the Mirabal sisters of the Dominican Republic and interweaves interviews with witnesses to the story, including surviving Mirabal family members, their co-revolutionaries, teachers, friends, and colleagues, with dramatic recreations and archival footage. In the 1950s, Patria, Minerva and Maria Teresa Mirabal, who were known by their secret name of "Butterflies," created a secret resistance movement against Rafael Leonidas Trujillo, one of the most bloodthirsty tyrants the world has ever known. When the dictator had them assassinated making it seem like an accident, the country rose up against Trujillo and a group of conspirators who had been plotting his death but had not dared to move forward, assassinated him. The courage of the Mirabals, simple wives and mothers who helped bring freedom and democracy to their country, is legendary.

Today, the Dominican Republic owes much to these incredible women who were willing to sacrifice everything and to fight for what they believed in. The day of Mirabal sisters' death, November 25, has been designated by the United Nations as the "Day of Non-Violence Against Women" in their honor. You will find more extensive information on Dede Mirabal and the history of Mirabal Sisters at http://www.colonialzone-dr.com/people_history-mirabal_sisters.html

The political science department is a co-sponsor of this event, through the Joseph Stevens Freedom Fund. Other co-sponsors include Latin American Studies, COIS, CLAS, Modern Languages and Literatures, and English.

The America We Believe in Does Not Torture

Mark Richards — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 10:19:15 -0400

The America We Believe in Does Not Torture

Dr. Marc Falkoff will speak on the U.S. government's abuse of detainees in the war on terror. He will speak at the Cook-DeWitt Center at GVSU at 2 p.m. on Friday, September 25. Dr. Falkoff is an attorney representing 17 inmates at the Guantánamo Bay detention facility of the United States. This event is sponsored by GVSU Amnesty International, the Joseph Stevens Freedom Fund of the GVSU Political Science Department, the Muslim Student Association, and the Meijer Honors College.

Download AmericaWeBelieveInFlyer.

Dr. Mangala's New Book

Mark Richards — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:27:00 -0400

Dr. Jacques Mangala has coauthored a book, Assessing George W. Bush's Africa Policy, which has just been published. The book has been presented to each African head of state and government. Download Assessing George W. Bush's Africa Policy