I am an associate professor of Government & International Relations at Connecticut College. My main interests are American politics, race and ethnic politics, public policy, and public law. My recent book, From the New Deal to the War on Schools: Race, Inequality, and the Rise of the Punitive Education State won the Best Book in Education Politics and Polices from the American Political Science Association. The book shows how the embrace of education as a cure-all by liberal policymakers both expanded the federal authority and support for K-12 education, but also ultimately set education policy on a path towards punitive reforms.
I received my Ph.D. and M.A. in political science from the University of Pennsylvania and my B.A. in philosophy and political science from Willamette University.
In addition to teaching, I have worked for nineteen summers as a fire lookout – which apart from being an incredible way to spend the summers, is also a good place to read and write. I’ve included a few photos from my summers throughout the website.