To celebrate its 100-year anniversary, the University of Wisconsin Political Science Department welcomed alumni, current students and faculty to a series of tours, panel discussions and a gala dinner Friday and Saturday.
The focus of the event was to commemorate the department’s notable past, present and future by hosting a series of distinguished speakers who are graduates.
“We have been ranked among the top dozen [political science] programs in the country for a very long time,” said Mark Beissinger, chair of the department. “In addition, we are known as one of the top teaching departments within the university.”
Political science is currently the largest major in the College of Letters and Sciences, something Beissinger says is a combination of inherently interesting subject matter and outstanding teaching.
One of the events held Saturday was a showcase of the newest Political Science faculty and their current research and academic focus.
“All of our new faculty get back student evaluations that are hard to match,” said UW Professor David Weimer, the event’s moderator, emphasizing their quality as teachers.
“One of the pleasures of being in Madison is the quality of the undergrads here,” new instructor Joe Soss said.
Beissinger said another major aspect of the department’s future is the Center for the Study of Politics, something that is still in the creation process.
“This will provide an infrastructure for faculty to get major research grants, something [there isn’t] currently a lot of support for,” Beissinger said, adding that the center is exciting in terms of research and is something that provides students with opportunity and experience.
“Undergrads really get involved in the research process,” Jon Pevehouse said during the new faculty showcase. “This is something this university does very well, and I’m proud to be a part of it.”
Since the department’s creation in 1904, the study of Political Science has changed a lot, and Beissinger said the UW curriculum has been transformed tremendously over the years to follow those changes.
“Not only have the amount of classes offered increased, but the focus of study has changed too,” Beissinger said. “We are very pluralistic because we try to cover a variety [of foci] within the discipline.”
He also said there have been a number of programs that have emerged out of the Political Science Department, which include the La Follette School of Public Affairs and the International Studies program.
Although the department was not officially started until 1904, the subject matter of political science dates back to the founding of the university.
According to Beissinger, a book on the history of the department will be published sometime next year, showing that political science has been present since the founding of the university and how it has emerged and developed through the years.
“Looking at [our] history is a very important thing, and is something that tends to get lost in other departments,” he said. “Part of this weekend was focused on the results [of the project].”
