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  • I’m a political science professor who posts regularly on Bolivian politics. I also occasionally discuss interesting books, pop culture, and daily life with a toddler. I’ve recently moved to Oxford, Mississippi.
  • Here’s my current vita. You can also view some of my recent publications.
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Category: Mount Saint Mary's

  • This page contains an archive of all entries posted to Pronto* in the “Mount Saint Mary's” category. They are listed from newest to oldest. For a list of other category archives, see the right sidebar; you may also look through the archives or search by keywords.

Comparative Politics final

Posted May 8, 2009 | Permalink | Comments (3)
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This fall I used Franklin Foer’s How Soccer Explains the World again in my introduction to comparative politics course. Again, I was relatively happy w/ how that went, as we tried to tie Foer’s observations back to the material we covered earlier in the semester. I was particularly happy w/ the final exam questions (all essay, all open-ended). Here they are, for your amusement:

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Spring 2009 syllabi

Posted December 13, 2008 | Permalink
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I’ve also updated my syllabi for next semester. I’ll be teaching Democracy and Democratization, Latin American Politics, and Comparative Politics.

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Does democracy need religion?

Posted November 4, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (7)
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On Monday evening, I participated in a panel discussion at Mount St. Mary’s University on the question: “Does the democratic form of government need to be anchored in religious values?” The participants included three other discussants: Monsegnor Stuart Swetland (VP for Catholic Identity), Kristen Urban (Political Science), and David Cloutier (Theology). It was a great experience, particularly since there was little disagreement between the panelists. Here are my comments:

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The Big Mac peace theory

Posted October 7, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (9)
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This Friday my research methods class hands in a brief (1½-2 page) assignment based on Thomas Friedman’s 1996 column, “Foreign Affairs Big Mac I.” Based on Friedman’s whimsical observation, they’re expected to develop a testable hypothesis & sketch out (in very broad strokes) a research design to investigate the cause of his observation that “no two countries that both have a McDonald’s have ever fought a war against each other.” Of course, the controversial assertion was been put to rest by the Russia-Georgia war of 2008. Still, I’m curious to see what my students come up w/.


Javi's fall trip

Posted October 7, 2008 | Permalink

We took a weekend Fall trip up to Dickinson, to visit friends. It was a great change of pace & a much needed break from our typical routine (we barely touched the internet and/or work-related reading). Javi entertained everyone w/ his new skills. And he seemed to enjoy his trip to the apple orchard & pumpkin patch.

We left directly from The Mount (K8 & Javi drove up w/ me at 6:30 am!) after my classes. We got back Sunday afternoon. Here are some pictures taken throughout the weekend (we seem to regularly forget to pull out our cameras, amidst all the excitement).

K8 & Javi at the Mount K8 & Javi at the Mount Javi walking Javi w/ pumpkin Javi w/ pumpkin

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Spring 2009 Latin American politics textbooks

Posted September 18, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (7)
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Next semester I’m teaching two sections of Latin American politics. I like to regularly switch up my readings, assigning 2-3 “country study” texts (and spend 2-3 weeks on each) in addition to a more general textbook. So far I’m leaning heavily towards the following cases: Brazil, Mexico, Venezuela. I also want each case to offer a different “theme.” Here are the books I’m currently considering (thoughts & suggestions welcome):

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Economic development (a hula hoop model)

Posted September 10, 2008 | Permalink
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It’s time to jump into in-class simulations. So I’m dusting off my hula hoop (after a summer in the trunk) to run my economic development simulation in my Third World Political Development class. Should be a fun afternoon.


My first week at the Mount

Posted September 6, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (3)

Blogging will be less frequent for a while. I’m slowly settling into my new job at Mount St. Mary’s University (which includes getting used to spending 6-8 hours per week commuting). But so far I’m settling in well enough after my first week.

Science Building Mount St Mary's Mount St Mary's Main walkway on campus Bradley Hall

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Books: Third world development

Posted May 12, 2008 | Permalink
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I’m starting to put together my syllabi for next year. And so I’ve been reading some new books that I plan to use for my classes. Currently, I’m working my way through an incredibly interesting book on Nepal: Many Tongues, One People by Arjun Guneratne.

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Moving to Maryland

Posted April 2, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (16)

The Monday deadlines came & went. And I’m pleased to share that I’ll be joining Mount Saint Mary’s University in the fall. I think it’s a great fit for me, personally & professionally. It’s also conveniently located near K8’s post-doc at the University of Delaware, which means I don’t have to move far away. Most importantly, it’s tenure track.

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