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1 Po l i Sc i and MPA News l e t te r :
Save the
Dates:
January 18th:
Spring Classes
Begin
March 6th-
March 10th:
Spring Break
May 11th:
Graduate
Commence-
ment
May 13th: Un-
dergraduate
Commence-
ment
Volume , Sept/Dec 2016
Political Science Department
Introducing the Dr. Guy C. Clifford House
In May of 2016 the beloved
Summer Street house (which
houses the Political Science
Department of Bridgewater
State University) took on its
new name, the Dr. Guy C.
Clifford House in honor of for-
mer member Guy C. Clifford.
Dr. Clifford was the first faculty
member to join the depart-
ment in 1971 and later served
as chair from 1982-1985. The
plaque (pictured below), hon-
ors Mr. Clifford and his com-
mitment to students.
At the ceremony in May, all of
Mr. Clifford's family joined
BSU in dedicating the Political
Science Department to Dr.
Guy C. Clifford. Through teary
eyes, Dr. Clifford's sons spoke
about their admiration of their
father. President Fred Clark
also spoke at the ceremony,
“"We're so pleased and hon-
ored, truly honored, to name
this building, after your dad,
your granddad, your husband,
my teacher, my professor, my
mentor as well. Its a beautiful
day and a beautiful honor truly
for all of us".
Dr. Clifford's Son Bob giving his
remarks during the May Ceremony
2
BSU’s MPA Students Make Headlines
As the town of Bridgewater prepared
to put its plastic bag ban in place, offi-
cials turned to BSU for some exper-
tise.
Answering the call were Jordan Remy
of Plymouth, and Andrew Sukeforth of
Middleboro, both enrolled in BSU’s
masters of public administration pro-
gram. The duo has spent the past few
months helping the town prepare for
the ban. They worked in conjunction
with Dr. Madhavi Venkatesan, assis-
tant professor economics, who advo-
cated for the ban leading up to the
town council’s March 8 decision to im-
plement the ban. She worked with
BSU’s The Students for Sustainability
and collected 700 signatures in sup-
port of the measure, which goes into
effect on Sept. 5.assistant professor
of economics, who advocated for the
ban leading up to the town council’s
March 8 decision to implement the
ban. She worked with BSU’s The Stu-
dents for Sustainability and collected
700 signatures in support of the
measure, which goes into effect on
Sept. 5.
“I’m interested in a career in town
government and wanted to gain some
experience working on the partnership
between the town and the university,”
Mr. Sukeforth said. Learning about
Ireland’s approach to the plastic bag
issue also sparked his interest in do-
ing something locally.
Mr. Remy learned in a BSU classroom
just how much more sustainable the
practices of most people and commu-
nities across America could be.
“We use plastic bags every day and
never realize the effect they have,” he
said. “I thought (our work) could be
useful to the town of Bridgewater, to
the state, and even useful to the na-
tion as a whole.”
3
Brid
gew
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MP
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Plastic Bag Ban Continued
To help the community
prepare for the implemen-
tation of the ban, the two
created a survey to find
out what people knew
about the plastic bag is-
sue and the imminent
ban. Working with Profes-
sor Venkatesan, they
compiled the findings and
created a list of sugges-
tions they will present to
the council on Tuesday,
Sept. 6.
Plastic bags are a source
of intractable pollution.
They were introduced in
the 1970s, and today, four
out of every five bags is
made of plastic, according
to an article in National
Geographic. David
Barnes, a marine scientist
with the British Antarctic
Survey in Cambridge,
England, who studies the
impact of marine debris,
told the magazine that the
success of the plastic bag
has meant a dramatic in-
crease in the amount of
sacks found floating in the
oceans where they choke,
strangle, and starve wild-
life and raft alien species
around the world.
Locally, the bags can be
found stuck in trees and
as litter. Since they are
not biodegradable, their
environmental impact can
be long lasting.
Locally, the move to ban
the bags dates to 2011,
when Bridgewater resi-
dent Pat Neary, head of
the town’s green commit-
tee, showed the docu-
mentary Bag It, which
demonstrated the pollu-
tion and hazards caused
by plastic bags.
Dr. Venkatesan, a pas-
sionate environmentalist,
joined the fight, along with
BSU’s students. She be-
lieves education is an im-
portant part of changing
harmful behaviors.
“That’s the conduit that’s
missing in most of our ini-
tiatives,” she said. “That’s
a tremendous learning op-
portunity we’re losing out
on. If people understood
why we do these things,
they would know it was for
their own betterment.”
Mr. Remy and Sukeforth
stood with their survey at
various locations around
town and met the public
face to face to discuss the
ban. They learned how
much people knew about
the issue, how much they
cared, and whether they
would be willing to pay for
the right to use bags or
opt for reusable ones.
“I think everyone should
have this kind of first-hand
experience,” Professor
Venkatesan said.
The men learned much
about attitudes toward the
ban and conservation in
general.
“Basically you got a sense
of how people felt,” Mr.
Sukeforth said. “Most felt
strongly one way or the
other; there were not
many who didn’t know
about (the ban).”
Both men were surprised
by how many people were
in favor of the ban. Then
again, they also learned
quickly that sometimes
survey takers say what
they think the questioner
wants to hear. Many of
those queried were open
to discuss the issue and
clearly desired more infor-
4
ST
UD
EN
TS
’ AN
D F
AC
UL
TY
NE
WS
AN
D E
VE
NT
S A
RO
UN
D C
AM
PU
S
Plastic Bag Ban Continued
survey takers say what they think the questioner wants to hear. Many of those queried were open to discuss the issue and clearly desired more information.
“I think people want to do the right thing, but they’re hesitant or not sure how to,” Mr. Remy said. “That’s where our opportunity comes in to provide them with the correct steps to take in order to be more environmentally aware.”
One of the suggestions the men and Dr. Venkatesan will make before the coun-cil will be for more education.
The students have co-authored a paper with Professor Venkatesan and they will present it in May at the Sustainability and Social Science Research Symposium will be held at the University of Michigan.
Other faculty and staff involved in securing the internship were Diane Bell and Dr. Brian Frederick. Wendy Haynes, interim dean of the College of Graduate Studies, provided the funding for the students and professor to travel to Michi-gan. (Story and photo by John Winters, G ’11, University News & Me-dia) (Original Article from BSU Community Aid, 2016)
5
Meet the Political Science Departments
New Professors:
Na Sai just received her doctoral degree in public policy
from Georgia State University and Georgia Institute of
Technology in 2016. In this fall, she started her teaching
career in the Department of Political Science, given the
collegiality and cooperation within the department. She
is currently teaching Introduction to American Govern-
ment (POLI 172), Public Finance (POLI 390), Founda-
tions of Public Administration (MPA Program) (POLI
501), and Public Finance (MPA Program) (POLI 521).
Her research is focused on organization theory, human
resource management and education policy, especially
on investigating and analyzing the work-related behav-
iors of public school employees. In her spare time, she
enjoys playing badminton and planting flowers.
Dr. Inkyoung Kim
Inkyoung Kim joins Political Science Department as
an assistant professor in August 2016. She received
her Ph.D. in Political Science at the University of
Massachusetts, Amherst. Before coming to BSU,
she taught at Clark University and Reed College.
She is teaching POLI 275, Comparative Govern-
ment, POLI 488, Politics in the Developing World,
and POLI 475, Global Environmental Politics in fall
2016. Her research interests include regional envi-
ronmental cooperation, transboundary pollution, re-
gionalism, government and politics in East Asia, and
sustainable consumption patterns. She is a contrib-
utor to journals such as International Relations of
the Asia-Pacific and International Environmental
Agreements: Politics, Law and Economics. She
loves playing tennis and the piano.
Dr. Na Sai
6
Undergraduate Spotlight: Elizabeth Warren Interns
Internships are built into the Political Sci-
ence major curriculum for many reasons
including (but not limited to); gaining val-
uable work experience, help deciding ca-
reer path, learning more about your field
and of course networking opportunities.
Internships are treasure troves for stu-
dents, opening up opportunities that can-
not be given in just a classroom setting.
Bridgewater State University Junior, Sa-
rah Fender, had the honor of interning
with Senator Elizabeth Warren during
her summer break in 2016. Sarah is a
perfect example of someone who took
complete advantage of the internship op-
portunity, making her aware of where
she wants life to take her after Bridge-
water.
With her junior year approaching, Sarah
figured the summer would be a good
time to pursue an internship. Feeling mo-
tivated by the 2016 election, Sarah, an
English major, decided to declare her
major in Political Science. Her professor
saw the Elizabeth Warren internship po-
sition posted online and suggested she
go for it, which is exactly what she did.
Interning with a U.S Senator is no easy
task, especially one so deeply immersed
in her constituency. Sarah described her-
self as an “advocate for constituents”
when asked what her role was. A day in
the life at her internship involved listening
to voicemails from constituents
(sometimes with a concern or sometimes
just citizens updating the Senator on their
day-to-day life), processing mail, volun-
teering, planning events and much more.
Interns for Senator Warren are assigned
to regional directors, who work directly
with constituents of different districts.
7
Elizabeth Warren Interns Cont.
when asked what her role was. A day in the life at her internship involved listening to
voicemails from constituents (sometimes with a concern or sometimes just citizens
updating the Senator on their day-to-day life), processing mail, volunteering, plan-
ning events and much more. Interns for Senator Warren are assigned to regional
directors, who work directly with constituents of different districts.
Sarah would take the phone calls, log them into the computer, and the regional di-
rectors would directly contact federal agencies.
Sarah got to work closely with the regional director, including preparing research for
her in order to make sure she was fully prepared for different meetings and also
helping to write up briefs for meetings with neighborhood coalitions. Sarah credits
her background in English for helping her write concisely, and take thorough notes.
While interning with Senator Warren Sarah realized how much she enjoyed doing
constituent work, sparking her curiosity in what it would be like to work more directly
with policy. Now, she is interested in pursuing something similar to her work with
Senator Warren in Washington D.C, where she would deal directly with policy and
navigating federal agencies. Working on a policy team that helps with advocacy,
and formulating policy for constituents is something Sarah may not have considered
before embarking on her internship.
When asked what advice Sarah would give to someone else considering applying
for a similar internship she said, “It is important to have patience with yourself. In
that position you are representing a person, what you feel may not be what Eliza-
beth Warren feels”. Sarah learned the invaluable lesson of representation and pa-
tience, something essential for all Political Science majors.
“It is important to have patience with
yourself”
8
Undergraduate Spotlight: Elizabeth Warren Interns
Sarah Fender ended her
internship with Senator Warren
after the summer ended, and
Bridgewater State University
was proud to see another Po-
litical Science department stu-
dent begin an internship in her
office. Honors Senior Adam
Costa was encouraged this
past year to apply for a spot at
the Democratic National Con-
vention, he was accepted
along with two other students.
The Democratic National Con-
vention was held at the Wells
Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Penn-
sylvania from July 25th to July 28th
of 2016. Adam embraced this networking
opportunity, and met politicians from all
over the country including almost every sin-
gle Massachusetts politician. With all the
experiences and connections gained at the
DNC, Adam decided to apply to intern with
United States Senator Elizabeth Warren.
Adam discussed how interning with Senator
Warren gave him a whole different perspec-
tive on society, seeing all different income
levels come to the same source with their
problems. Little did he know that something
like having internet access was still a prob-
lem for many people living in Massachu-
setts. Adam would take phone calls about
social
security
issues, immigration issues, crime issues,
etc. on any given day, “You never say I
can’t help you, you can always find a way
to help”. Adam joked that he was like
Google for constituents who were not sure
how to find certain resources. On top of tak-
ing about 30-40 phone calls a day, Adam
also helped the Senator sort through an av-
erage of 1,000 letters received a week. Ab-
solutely nothing gets thrown away, all con-
stituent letters are logged and responded
to.
Currently, Adam is working with Dr. Donnel-
ly and Dr. Tarsi on his honors thesis, which
is focused on a comparative policy analysis
Senior Adam Costa with MA Congressman Jo-
seph Kennedy III at the DNC
9
Undergraduate Spotlight: Elizabeth Warren Interns
of youth crime reduction. I asked Adam
how his internship with the Senator has
helped him with his thesis, and he dis-
cussed how it has given him a new per-
spective on crime policy, “You’re build-
ing legislation that affects people’s
lives, you have to understand how pol-
icy and people mix”. Adam intends to
spend the next semester working
closely with his professors to finish his
thesis.
Adams passion to make a difference is
very apparent, and the Political Sci-
ence Department is proud to have indi-
viduals like him and Sarah represent-
ing them. I asked Adam was his piece
of advice would be to those just start-
ing out in the Political Science pro-
gram and his response was, “If you’re
just starting out you got to go to office
hours. This leads to opportunities you
never thought you’d have. The profes-
sors want to see us, they want us to
show initiative.” Take advantage of
your time at Bridgewater State University
before you realize it is too late. Get in-
volved, go to office hours and show your
dedication. Without having initiative, op-
portunities like attending the DNC and in-
terning with a United States Senator may
have never fallen into Adams lap.
Senior Adam Costa with Mayor Mitchell of New
Bedford
10
CPM Spring Modules 2017
Understanding/Promoting Ethical
Behavior: 3/25&4/01 (Cape Cod)
Leading Sustainable Organizations:
4/15&4/29.
Legal Practices in Human Re-
sources: 4/07&4/08&4/22
Managing Human Resources &
Nonprofit Leadership 2/11&2/18
Leadership Self-Awareness:
1/28&2/04
Web: http://www.bridgew.edu/academics/
colleges-departments/department-political-
science
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