News and Events in 2009

Pi Sigma Alpha  Best Paper Competition

We are pleased to announce that Audrey Curtis (Class of 2009) entered the  Pi Sigma Alpha  Best Paper Competition in the category of Best Undergraduate Honors Thesis and her thesis "Manly Women:  A Look at the Effects of Masculine Qualities on Women's Political Success," was awarded "Runner-Up." There was a record number of submissions this year and we are very proud of Audrey's accomplishment.

International Studies Association West Conference: The Human Consequences of State Political Action

Mr. Daniel Tapia-Jimenez will present his paper entitled "Typical approaches to an atypical problem: an evaluation of US economic aid to Pakistan." The conference will be held in San Francisco September 25-26, 2009.

Panetta Institute Congressional Internship Program

Ms. Juleah Cordi has been selected to participate in the Leon & Sylvia Panetta Congressional Internship Program. She will be in Washington, D.C. for the fall 2009 semester. Juleah has been very active during her time at Dominican. This past year she has served as Vice President for the Dominican Political Science Association, has been a Resident Advisor, and a Student Ambassador. Academically she is very accomplished as well. She is a member of Pi Sigma Alpha (Political Science Honors Society) and Gamma Sigma and has recently presented a paper at the Southwestern Political Science Association's annual meeting in April 2009. Last year she participated in Dominican's campus-wide event the Vote-Smart Challenge 2008 as a member of the Foreign Policy team and has served as a judge for the Marin YMCA Youth and Government's bill sponsor program for the past 3 years. Juleah plans on attending graduate school in Public Policy after graduation (in May 2010) to pursue her dual interests in Agriculture policy and Health Care policy. Juleah is an intelligent, genuine, and kind young woman who will be greatly missed on campus next fall. We are extremely proud of her and thrilled that she will be representing the department and Dominican University in Washington,D.C..

Audrey Curtis Publishes with the Pi Sigma Alpha Undergraduate Journal

The department is proud to announce, Audrey Curtis’ paper, Manly Women: A Look at the Effects of Masculine Qualities on Women's Political Success has been accepted for publication in the spring 2009 issue of the Pi Sigma Alpha Undergraduate Journal of Politics. Audrey's paper aims to find a correlation between the number of masculine traits possessed by female politicians and the level of power they achieve. The Pi Sigma Alpha Undergraduate Journal of Politics publishes manuscripts of the highest quality in all areas of political science from undergraduates of any class or major. In general, papers selected for publication have been well-written with a well-developed thesis, compelling argument, and original analysis. The Journal is a student-run enterprise with editors and an Editorial Board who are undergraduate Pi Sigma Alpha members at Union College. Audrey is a senior honors student majoring in political science and English here at Dominican University of California. She has been a member of Pi Sigma Alpha (the National Political Science Honor Society) since fall 2007.

Model United Nations 2009

In April 2009, ten students from the Department of Political Science and International Studies will participate in the 59th Annual Model United Nations Far West Conference in San Francisco. The theme for the conference is “Looking Backwards, Moving Forwards: Reconciling History with Humanity.” The Dominican contingent is representing France and Syria. The Model United Nations Far West Conference enables colleges to participate in model sessions of the United Nations in an effort to advance the students understanding of the principles and means by which international relations may be maintained.

Southwestern Political Science Association Annual Conference 2009

One area in which we are very proud of our students is research and conference participation. Each year students from the department and their faculty adviser work closely to develop paper topics to submit to various conferences within the discipline as well as for general undergraduate research. This year four students have been invited to present their research at the 2009 Southwestern Political Science Association Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado April 7-11. We congratulate our four students as they prepare to present the following papers:

• Alexandra Cimatu “Poverty, Tradition, and Women: An Economic and Cultural Argument for High Birthrates in the Developing World”
• Juleah Cordi “Choking the Small American Farm: Changes in Modern Agricultural Policy”
• Audrey Curtis “(Wo)Manly Politicians: Studying Voter Preference for Masculine versus Feminine Female Politicians
• Walter Wrigglesworth “Less Communism, More Community: An Analysis of China's Movement towards Capitalism and away from Totalitarianism”

Department of Political Science and International Studies Fall 2008 Open House

In early October the department along with DPSA (Dominican Political Science Association) hosted its annual fall open house. The event included several student speakers who shared their experiences in the department as well as initiation ceremonies for Pi Sigma Alpha and Phi Alpha Delta. We congratulate Juleah Cordi, Adrienne Formentos, and Jenna Joyner as the newest initiates to Pi Sigma Alpha. We also congratulate the following students who were initiated as members or sworn in as officers to Phi Alpha Delta: Abigail Infante, Alejandra Mendoza, Kristina Montano, Tony Rubalcava.

Ying Yang’s summer study abroad experience in Thailand

Senior student Ying Yang spent three months studying and working in Thailand this past summer. Ying shares with us a little bit about her experience as well as some incredible photos she took while she was overseas:

"Study abroad is such a fun and positive learning experience. What is better than having your university make it one of its biggest recommendations???!! I studied abroad in Bangkok, Thailand and the experience opened my eyes to new things. I was able to have conversations in Thai within the three months that I was there. I built new bridges and crossed new frontiers. I still keep in touch with the friends that I met. I taught English to Thai students and enjoyed the night life. Not only did I earn units for courses, I was able to bring back my experience and share it with the school. Dominican allowed me to go and learn and it welcomed me back with proud arms. I have always wanted to study abroad and having Dominican behind me made things easier. The staff here understood my call and helped me pave my way to Thailand. I went to Thailand and Dominican helped me get there."

Southwestern Political Science Association 2008

Walter Wrigglesworth and Audrey Curtis presented papers at the 2008 Southwestern Political Science Association Annual Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada on March 12-15. Walter's paper was entitled, "From Red to Blue: A Look at the Ramifications of China's Transition from Communism to Capitalism and Democracy" (he also presented this paper at the 2008 National Conference on Undergraduate Research at Salisbury University in Maryland on April 10-12). Audrey's paper was entitled, "Manly Women: A Look at the Effects of Masculine Qualities on Women's Political Success."