2024 Presidential Candidates! Student Presentations

Usually the first research/project assignment in this class is for each of the students to learn more about each of the presidential candidates - before making an informed decision regarding internship placements.

Given our later departure date this semester, this was actually the 3rd assignment for the semester.  And many of the presidential candidates assigned when the Course Syllabus was drafted back in December 2023 are no longer in the race. Still, we all learned about all of the candidates who were/are in the race as of December 2023.

Students worked together in groups, and each group presented information about the candidate's background, platform, campaign strategy, etc, We analyzed candidate websites and campaign ads. And we reflected on, as one group put it, the "features and pitfalls" of the campaigns.

 

Professor David Redlawsk -- Why Iowa?? Guest Speaker

Once again, it was a pleasure to have Professor David Redlawsk , leading expert on the Iowa Caucuses, to meet with my Road to the White House class to discuss  Why Iowa??

After explaining the caucus system and describing Iowa's retail politics, Professor Redlawsk explained how Iowa winnows the field of candidates - and the importance of Iowa in the sequential nominating system.  

And thanks so much for the engaging Q&A with our students!

 

First Week of Classes! Citizenship Bingo

After months and months of planning - the Spring 2024 semester is finally underway!

So excited to meet as a seminar for the first time. Only - for our first day of class - there were coastal flooding warnings issued  - so we moved our first class to a live online class in MS Teams.  We're all pros at this now. 

We had a good class, reviewing the syllabus and starting to get ready for the trip to South Carolina - but we saved my "Citizenship Bingo" icebreaker for our second meeting.

(Citizenship Bingo questions are all drawn from the US Citizenship Exam)