Washington Center

Fall Quarter 2023

The American Congress: Design and Practice

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Tuesdays, 10:00am - 1:00pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 19 - November 28, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 28, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

Congress and other branches of the U.S. government were designed nearly two and a half centuries ago under circumstances and reflecting values and philosophies that bear little relationship to contemporary America. All of these institutions have evolved over time in response to changing conditions domestically and internationally; and the American electorate had undergone significant change as well, especially in the last half century. All of these developments place dramatic and consequential pressures on government, elected officials and voters alike. How are they responding and what can we anticipate, based on historical analysis, will change as a result of these unprecedented, simultaneous crises? What is the appropriate level of idealism, pragmatism and collaboration as ways to govern a diverse and divided democracy?

This course will focus on the performance of Congress, the American government and the electorate during a period in which four historic forces are colliding simultaneously:

The coronavirus pandemic and related societal disruptions; the widespread political/social responses to systemic racism affecting policing and other public institutions and policies; the electoral season that elevates partisan anger through the campaigns across the nation; and lastly, the diminished confidence of the American people in the structure and performance of their own government.                 

 

About the Professor: Professor John Lawrence served as a senior staff person in Congress for nearly four decades, the last eight as Chief of Staff to Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He also served as staff director of two committees and on personal staff. He has taught at UCDC since 2013, and at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy and has lectured widely on history and contemporary American politics at Columbia, Princeton, Oberlin and other venues. Professor Lawrence holds a Ph.D. in American History from the University of California (Berkeley), and an undergraduate history degree from Oberlin College. 

 

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

                                                                             

Course ID: 
UCDC191B01F23

Reducing Poverty and Inequity: Lessons from International Development

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Tuesdays, 1:00pm - 4:00pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 19 - November 28, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 28, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

This course introduces students to the role of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as agents of advocacy and socio-political, economic and cultural change. The emphasis is on a) examining ways in which the NGO sector operates at the local, national and international levels, b) understanding the range of issues NGOs promote and advocate for; c) examining the tools and strategies they use in their advocacy; and, d) assessing the impact NGOs have on the policy making process as well as the targted communities.

The course is designed for students interested in questions of advocay, activism and nongovernmental interventions, all of which are central to the dynamic cultural and political landscapes where NGOs operate. Some of the NGOs we will explore focus their advocacy on promoting political rights, gender equality and minority rights, while others focus on ending poverty, violence, human trafficking, exploitative labor, health problems and environmental degradation.

About the Professor: Professor Loubna Skalli-Hanna is a teacher, scholar and practitioner with subject area expertise in development, gender, youth and communication. She has taught at numerous universities in Morocco and the United States, including the American University (2003-2015). She is the author, co-author and editor of numerous peer reviewed journal articles, book chapters and books. As a practitioner, Professor Skalli Hana co-founded many women’s organizations and participated in the activities of a few others. She also consulted with numerous intern/national development organizations and agencies including USAID, World Learning, U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of State. Professor Skalli Hana earned her BA from Mohamed V University in Rabat (Morocco), her MA in social and cultural anthropology from Essex University (England), and her PhD in International Communication from the Pennsylvania State University.

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

Course ID: 
UCDC191E01F23

General Research: Developing Critical Writing and Thinking Skills Through Independent Research

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Thursdays, 1:00pm - 4:00pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 21 - November 30, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 30, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

The general research seminar introduces you to some of the main tools of social science research methods. You will learn and apply tools that will help you a) ask and try to answer critical questions about the world around you; b) understand the logic and significance of evidence-based research for analytical writing, policy recommendations and decision-making; and. c) explore research tools for your own research project. You will learn how to formulate focused and researchable questions, identify reliable data and relevant sources, and produce a robust literature review. You will also learn the uses and merits of case studies, and develop tools to reading statistical analyses and findings to better support your own research projects. Finally, you will be introduced to the elements of a policy brief and will be encouraged to use your internship experience to apply your research skills for the final research project.

Ultimately, this class aims to strengthen your research competence and confidence in using tools relevant to whatever career path you choose.

About the Professor: Professor Loubna Skalli-Hanna is a teacher, scholar and practitioner with subject area expertise in development, gender, youth and communication. She has taught at numerous universities in Morocco and the United States, including the American University (2003-2015). She is the author, co-author and editor of numerous peer reviewed journal articles, book chapters and books. As a practitioner, Professor Skalli Hana co-founded many women’s organizations and participated in the activities of a few others. She also consulted with numerous intern/national development organizations and agencies including USAID, World Learning, U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of State. Professor Skalli Hana earned her BA from Mohamed V University in Rabat (Morocco), her MA in social and cultural anthropology from Essex University (England), and her PhD in International Communication from the Pennsylvania State University.

 

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

Course ID: 
UCDC191A01F23

Law and Politics of Memory

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Term or Semester: 
Day and Time: 
Thursdays, 6:30pm - 9:30pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 21 - November 30, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Course Number: 
Sponsored by UC Santa Cruz Politics / Legal Studies 158
Category: 
Quarter Elective
Description: 

This class will invite students to consider the law and politics of memory with a special focus on Washington, D.C.  In this class we will consider why we choose to memorialize some aspects of our history, but not others, and what impact those choices have on our contemporary politics and society. We will compare D.C. with other cities, considering how memorials and monuments might be used to create a stronger democracy.  Although the majority of the class will be focused on public memorials, we will also consider how memory operates in our political and legal life more broadly.



A key part of understanding how memorialization may or may not work to impact those who come into contact with those memorials, will be your own ethnography of how people interact with a particular memorial that you will select. For this reason, in addition to a number of readings about the law and politics of memory, you will also learn and deploy ethnographic research methods in this class. Ethnography asks the researcher to place themselves in a space and to observe as a participant/observer how others use, define, and/or transform a space.  Effective ethnography requires the ethnographer to recognize their own projections onto the space, and asks the ethnographer to interrogate how their cultural background informs their observations.  Students will observe how people interact with or ignore memorials, what meaning the memorials may or may not have in the collective life and imagination.



Learning Outcomes

To deploy a social science framework to explain political and legal contestation over memorialization.

To understand the role of memory in nation-building and democratic governance.

To develop ethnographic skills.

To recognize and express interesting ideas of intellectual value.

To develop an engaging voice as a speaker and writer.

To organize ideas effectively to communicate in specific contexts.

To use language clearly, powerfully, and with appropriate detail.

 

About the Professor: Jackie Gehring is an associate teaching professor of Politics and Legal Studies at UCSC. Jackie arrived at UCSC in the Winter of 2017 after serving as Department Chair and Associate Professor of Political Science at Allegheny College. She earned her Ph.D. in Jurisprudence and Social Policy from the University of California, Berkeley, and has also been a visiting scholar at the Center for the Study of Law and Society at UC Berkeley, as well as at universities in Europe.

 

Course ID: 
UCDC15001F23

International Relations & Contemporary Civil War

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Thursdays, 10:00am - 1:00pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 21 - November 30, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 30, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

Civil wars, and wars that begin as some sort of civil war, are by far the most common and destructive form of organized political violence in the modern world. However, studies of these wars only reached substantial numbers in the wake of the Cold War. Before that, scholars of comparative politics tended not to study war and scholars of international relations (IR) tended not to study violence contained in a single country. In this course, we examine the problem of civil war from the bottom-up, asking if this relatively new scholarship in civil war is doing a good job predicting, explaining, preventing or limiting civil wars. We ask, “What’s so civil about war, Anyway?” And do the answers to that question mean that IR scholars will have to rethink or change their tried and true models of why we fight, and what will make peace?

In this course, we will take great advantage of our location in the seat of American power to chat with scholars, decision-makers, military officials, those working at NGOs and Activists. We will hear straight from those making and shaping American foreign policy decisions, as well as those from embattled countries, to get the clearest view, in all its complexity, of modern civil war.

 

About the Professor: Bridget L. Coggins is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her research interests lie at the intersection of domestic conflict and international relations, including studies of secessionism, rebel diplomacy, civil war and terrorism, maritime piracy, illicit trafficking, and refugees. Coggins' first book is Power Politics and State Formation in the 20th Century: The Dynamics of Recognition (Cambridge 2014). Her second major project examines the international security consequences of state failure, combining large N data and detailed case studies of Somalia, North Korea, Colombia, and Afghanistan. Coggins scholarly work appears in Foreign Policy Magazine, International Organization, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Journal of Global Security Studies, Journal of Peace Research, and at various university presses. She speaks Spanish, Mandarin, and a bit of Korean, and taught previously at Dartmouth College.

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

 

Course ID: 
UCDC191E02F23

Comparative Law and Society

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Tuesdays, 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Quarter Dates: 
September 19 - November 28, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 28, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

Remember back throughout your life to disputes among people, possibly about fairness or justice.  You probably have heard people say, “I’ve got a right.”  “It’s a free country and it’s my right.”  Or, “You don’t have the right to do x.”  The concept of civil rights plays a prominent role in the way we define ourselves and our society in the U.S.  But how much of the discourse we hear and speak about rights actually is true?  Do we really “have a right to do x?”  Does having a shared right help to create group identity?  How might claiming rights influence a social movement? 

In this course you will be invited to examine the role of rights in law, politics, and society, and the ability/inability of legal rights to shape, to change, to define. . . our reality.  We will consider in an in-depth manner the nature of rights, the mobilization of rights, and the institutional nature of rights.  We will draw on comparative examples from other countries in order to better understand whether ‘rights’ are an American idea or if they also have an important part to play in other countries.  You will also be asked to consider how important culture and national institutions are in shaping our understanding of rights.  You will be invited to consider what the advantages and disadvantages of the American approach to rights are and what makes a legal right most effective in different situations and for different people and groups.

 

About the Professor: Jackie Gehring is an associate teaching professor of Politics and Legal Studies at UCSC. Jackie arrived at UCSC in the Winter of 2017 after serving as Department Chair and Associate Professor of Political Science at Allegheny College. She earned her Ph.D. in Jurisprudence and Social Policy from the University of California, Berkeley, and has also been a visiting scholar at the Center for the Study of Law and Society at UC Berkeley, as well as at universities in Europe.

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

 

Course ID: 
UCDC191I02F23

Polarizer-in-Chief: Presidential Leadership in the 21st Century

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Thursdays, 3:00pm - 6:00pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 21 - November 30, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 30, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

Many Americans can name several presidents and even have opinions on “good” versus “bad” presidents. But what do presidents actually do, what resources and limitations do they have in their ability to act, and how do we measure their performance and our expectations for their leadership? With a divided Congress and record polarization, what can we expect during the next year and a half of a Biden/Harris administration? This course will put the modern presidency in historical and theoretical context, drawing on a variety of readings and approaches to determine which framework best explains presidential (in)action. At its core, this class is about the question of executive power in democratic government and how we understand what we see happening just down the street from the UC Washington Center. In addition to studying and reflecting on the theme of presidential power, we will also consider the limits to this power and how presidents achieve their goals. Ultimately, we aim to understand the work of the presidency and some of the different perspectives by which we might analyze or assess presidents and their administrations. 

About the Professor: I am a Ph.D. of American government and politics with specializations in the American presidency, public policy, and polarization. My research focuses on presidential governance via executive orders and how political factors influence the ability of presidents to issue their most significant orders. I have taught UCDC’s presidency seminar since Fall 2017. While earning my degree at the University of Maryland, I taught classes about public policy and Congress to students who had internships related to those fields in a format similar to the UCDC program. Outside of the classroom, I work at Community Change & Community Change Action, non-profit organizations focused on building a movement led by everyday people to create change in their communities and across the country. As the Electoral Data Manager, I work with many different teams and partner organizations to identify target audiences and track the work we are doing in communities affected by injustice.

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

Course ID: 
UCDC191C01F23

Washington History, Institutions & Rituals: Myth vs. Reality

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Thursdays, 2:00pm - 5:00pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 21 - November 30, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 30, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

Much is said about Washington. Much of it is wrong. This course will immerse students in the history, institutions and rituals of nation’s capital. You will learn about Washington’s transformation from a remote federal city to the world’s most powerful capital. We will analyze the accuracy of Washington’s depiction throughout history, how it is represented – and misrepresented -- in modern culture, and why it is ridiculed by politicians who want to work there. We will examine the glorification and vilification of Washington in literature and film and assess the truth behind popular Washington myths. We will probe Washington policy debates and rituals and survey the research tools used to separate fact from fiction. You will have an opportunity to study and visit monuments and museums, as well as iconic institutions as the National Portrait Gallery and Ben’s Chili Bowl.

About the Professor: Professor Marc Sandalow is an Associate Director of the University of California Washington Program (UCDC). He is the author of three books, including “Madam Speaker,” a biography of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He has been a journalist for 30 years, including 21 years at the San Francisco Chronicle and more than a decade as the paper’s Washington Bureau Chief. He is a former columnist and contributing editor for the California Journal, and is a currently a political analyst for Hearst Argyle television stations and KCBS radio in San Francisco. Professor Sandalow has been the UCDC program since 2008.

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

Course ID: 
UCDC191M01F23

Washington Media: Fake News, Social Media, and the Reshaping of American Politics

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Wednesdays, 2:00pm - 5:00pm
Quarter Dates: 
September 20 - November 29, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 29, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

Do Twitter or Facebook threaten democracy? What is the difference between “fake news” and journalism? Should the media report what people want to know or ought to know? Does objectivity exist?

This seminar examines the extraordinary changes to political communication and journalism over the past half century and the consequences for American democracy. The first year of Biden’s presidency and the aftermath of Trump’s are a great backdrop to assess the news media’s mission, goals, and biases. We will look at the media’s incentives to fuel controversy, politicians’ efforts to manipulate – or lie to -- the media, and how the digital revolution has fundamentally restructured – for better and worse -- the future of political communication. Classes will combine lecture, discussion, and exercises with an emphasis on current developments. Readings include scholarly articles, a book of your choice, and a steady diet of news and journal pieces to keep up with political developments.

Students will complete a major research project on a newsworthy topic which will be written in journalistic form in addition to shorter writing and speaking assignments. All assignments are aimed at sharpening research and writing skills, with a focus on identifying target audiences and communicating with clarity. Assignments may be adjusted to meet individual campus requirements. 

About the Professor: Professor Marc Sandalow is an Associate Director of the University of California Washington Program (UCDC). He is the author of three books, including “Madam Speaker,” a biography of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. He has been a journalist for 30 years, including 21 years at the San Francisco Chronicle and more than a decade as the paper’s Washington Bureau Chief. He is a former columnist and contributing editor for the California Journal, and is a currently a political analyst for Hearst Argyle television stations and KCBS radio in San Francisco. Professor Sandalow has been the UCDC program since 2008.

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

Course ID: 
UCDC191F01F23

The U.S. Supreme Court: Conflict, Change and the Court

Credits: 
4
Instructor: 
Day and Time: 
Wednesdays, 8:00am - 11:00am
Quarter Dates: 
September 19 - November 28, 2023
Semester Dates: 
August 23 - November 28, 2023
Campus: 
UCDC
Category: 
Core Seminar
Description: 

Immigration. LGBT rights. Healthcare. Abortion. The death penalty. Cell phone privacy. The U.S. Supreme Court has decided cases on all of these topics in recent years, and its decisions ultimately touch the lives of all Americans. In this class we will study the Supreme Court's place in the U.S. legal system. Topics we will cover include: how a case gets to the court, the justices, the role of lawyers before the court, the purpose of oral argument, the court building and its symbolism, and media coverage of the court.

In addition, students will listen to the arguments in current Supreme Court cases and spend class time discussing them. In papers, students will be asked to rigorously explain why the justices likely took those cases and how they will come out based on what they hear at oral argument. This class is geared not only toward anyone who is interested in the law or government service but also toward anyone interested in working on or being informed about the biggest issues of the day.

About the Professor: For the last decade Professor Jessica Gresko has been a reporter for The Associated Press, first in Miami and now in Washington. As a legal reporter, she covers court cases at all levels, both local and federal. She has been at the Supreme Court for many recent high-profile decisions including cases on gay marriage, healthcare and the death penalty. Professor Gresko earned her B.A. from Columbia University in New York and a M.S.L. (Master’s in the Study of Law) from Georgetown University Law School. She grew up in Southern California and took her first journalism class at UCLA.

 

Requirement for ALL semester students:

The first four weeks of this semester (August 23 to September 13) will be spent in a special topics module taught by Professor Marc Sandalow on Wednesdays from 6:30-9:30p.m. This module will account for 15% of the core seminar final course grade. Please contact Professor Sandalow (marc.sandalow@ucdc.edu) with questions.

Your selected seminar will begin the week of September 18 and your seminar instructor will officially be your instructor of record for the term, responsible for computing and submitting final course grades at the end of the term.

**NO additional registration required.

 

Course ID: 
UCDC191I01F23

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