Faculty Expertise
Throughout your time at Washington College, you will work with faculty in classes, lab and field work, internships, and more. Faculty serve as teachers and mentors, and as advisors for your Senior Capstone Experience (SCE). Explore the research interests of our faculty below.
Political Science Faculty
Christine Wade
Christine Wade
• Chair of Political Science
• Professor of Political Science and International Studies
• Louis L. Goldstein '35 Chair of Public Affairs
• Director of Latin American Studies Minor
Areas of Expertise
International and comparative politics of Latin America
Research
I am a specialist in the international and comparative politics of Latin America,
with a focus on Central America and the Caribbean. Much of my field research is conducted
in El Salvador and Nicaragua, interviewing public officials, analysts and members
of civil society. I have also served as an accredited election observer for various
presidential, legislative and local elections in El Salvador.
Andrew Oros
Andrew Oros
• Professor of Political Science and International Studies
• Director International Studies Program
• Director of Peace and Conflict Studies Minor
Areas of Expertise
International and comparative politics of East Asia
Research
I am a specialist on the international and comparative politics of East Asia and the
advanced industrial democracies, with an emphasis on contending approaches to managing
security and on the linkage between domestic and international politics.
Joseph Prud'homme
Joseph Prud'homme
• The Burton Family Chair in Religion, Politics, and Culture
• Associate Professor of Political Science
• Affiliated Faculty in Religious Studies
Areas of Expertise
Political philosophy, legal theory, intellectual history, religious studies
Research
I work in the areas of political philosophy, legal theory, intellectual history and
religious studies.
Carrie Reiling
Carrie Reiling
• The Burton Family Chair in Religion, Politics, and Culture
• Associate Professor of Political Science
• Affiliated Faculty in Religious Studies
Areas of Expertise
International political economy, gender, African politics, peace and conflict, global environmental politics, humanitarianism
Research
Politics and lived experiences are intertwined, so I encourage students to apply politics
to their own experiences. I practice a feminist participatory pedagogy that pushes
students to acknowledge their assumptions about themselves and about international
politics to promote awareness of the richness and complexity of political issues,
cultures, and groups. I aim to lead students to understand the actors and mechanisms
in international politics and to develop knowledge and empathy as citizens in a globalized
world. My classroom is open and inclusive, and I adapt my teaching techniques to students'
diverse learning styles and backgrounds while cultivating their interest about the
world. Furthermore, I design my classes with students' interests in mind to ground
their knowledge in an understanding that politics is embedded in the world around
them.
Flavio Hickel Jr.
Flavio Hickel Jr.
• Associate Professor of Political Science
Areas of Expertise
American political institutions and development, identity politics, and public opinion.
Research
My research and teaching interests are in American political institutions and development,
identity politics, and public opinion. My current research explores the exclusionary
and polarizing potential of national identity politics with a substantive focus on
the Latinx community and Immigration policy. Drawing upon Social Identity Theory,
I seek to better understand the conditions under which individuals prioritize one
social identity over the other and the impact of such decisions on political attitudes
and behavior.
Sarah Brown
Sarah Brown
• Associate Professor of Political Science
Areas of Expertise
Politics of Space and Place, Social Movements
Feminist Theory, Identity and Politics, Politics of Education
Research
My research examines the relationship between material spaces, identity, and politics.
I study the impact of buildings and infrastructure on civic agency and political participation,
as well as activist attempts to achieve political change by changing material spaces.
One of my main projects focuses on local and global feminist movements that have destroyed,
reformed, built or reimagined spaces to express or extend political freedom. I also
work on education and citizenship, and political efficacy and activism in a variety
of contexts.
Pat Nugent
Pat Nugent
• Thomas V. Mike Miller Director of Civic Engagement
• Assistant Research Professor of Civic Engagement, Department of Political Science
Areas of Expertise
At Washington College, Nugent teaches a variety of courses focused on twentieth century
American history and culture, including “Activist / Artist,” “American in the 1960s,”
“History and Memory of the WWII Home Front,” and “The Past in Urban Places.” He also
works closely with fellow faculty, staff, students, and community members to help
steer two important Starr Center initiatives: the National Home Front Project, a grassroots
oral history initiative to collect the memories of Home Front civilians, and Chesapeake
Heartland: An African American Humanities Project, a collaboration with local organizations
and the National Museum of African American History and Culture to preserve, digitize,
and make accessible four centuries of materials related to African American history
in Kent County, MD.