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Lugar Program

The Lugar Program at Denison

THE RICHARD G. LUGAR PROGRAM IN POLITICS AND PUBLIC SERVICE is named after Senator Richard G. Lugar of Indiana, class of 1954, Rhodes scholar and Denison trustee.

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Denison's Richard G. Lugar Program in Politics and Public Service is open to students of all academic majors and partisan perspectives who are interested in American politics and public policy or in foreign policy and international affairs

The program is open to students of all academic majors and partisan perspectives who are interested in government and public policy. The program has two tracks:


Students must earn at least a C in every Lugar Program course, including those meeting the foreign language requirement for track two.

The Lugar Program welcomes former members of Congress to Denison almost every academic year. Typically, we host two former members per visit, a Democrat and a Republican. While here, they appear in classes and meet with students, faculty and others in the Denison and Granville communities. A theme common to these visits is the importance of public service.

The Lugar Program concentration

Track One

Students in track one of the Lugar program must fulfill the following requirements:

Most congressional internships take place during the sophomore or junior year. Most Lugar students in Track One opt for three-week internships beginning in mid-May. However, several students have elected to enroll in American University's Washington Semester Program (American Politics) and intern in a congressional office for an entire fall or spring term.

Track Two

Students in Track Two of the Lugar Program must fulfill the following requirements:

The Washington Semester Program has a number of programs suitable for students in track two including:

Students enrolled in track two may fulfill part of their language requirement during the summer at the Graduate School of International Policy Studies in the Monterrey Institute in California or a similar program.

What do our students do after Denison?

At least five Lugar students who followed track one have found employment as congressional staffers upon graduating from Denison.

Many of our students have gone on to law school, and some have completed graduate studies in political science and other disciplines.

Track two represents a new response to the challenges and opportunities of the post 9/11 world. Track two helps prepare students interested in obtaining a master's certificate at the Graduate School of International Studies (GSIS) of the Monterrey Institute in California or at a similar institution. Students in the Monterrey program undertake further language study, complete an internship and develop a specialization in such areas as security, weapons of mass destruction, international trade and the international environment. This combination of foreign-language expertise and specialized coursework leads to employment in governmental agencies, international organizations and in the private sector.

Track two is designed to facilitate graduate study for students who are interested in careers in homeland security, international business, global environment, and other international sectors but who presently do not want to earn a Ph.D., law degree, MBA or MPA.

Who are our professors?

Director and Professor Emmett H. Buell, Jr. joined the faculty at Denison in 1969. He earned a B.A. and an M.A. at Louisiana State University and a Ph.D. at Vanderbilt University. His teaching and research interests include the American presidency, presidential selection, the politics of Congress, voting in presidential and congressional elections and U.S. public opinion. He is widely published and presently is engaged in a study of negative campaigning in presidential elections.

Associate Professor Andrew Z. Katz joined the faculty at Denison in 1993. He earned a B.A. at Brandeis University and an M.A. and a Ph.D. at Johns Hopkins University. His research addresses the relationship between public opinion and foreign policy. He teaches The Conduct of U.S. Foreign Policy, International Security Policy, Introduction to International Politics, Foreign Policy Formulation, The Middle East in World Affairs, America in Vietnam and International Relations Theory.

Associate Professor James R. Pletcher joined the faculty at Denison in 1983. He earned a B.A. at the University of Michigan and an M.A. and a Ph.D. at the University of Wisconsin. His research focuses on the politics, agriculture and economic development of developing areas such as Africa and Southeast Asia. Pletcher teaches Comparative Politics of Developing Nations, Politics of the Global Environment, Politics of the Third World, Politics of Sub-Saharan Africa and International Political Economy.

Associate Professor Paul A. Djupe joined the faculty at Denison in 1999. He holds a bachelor's degree from Gustavus Adolphus College and an M.A. and Ph.D. from Washington University, St. Louis. Among the courses he teaches are American Political Behavior and Institutions, Analyzing Politics, Political Organization in the U.S. and American Public Policy. He has published various works in religion and politics. Djupe also serves as faculty sponsor for Denison's chapter of Pi Sigma Alpha political science honorary.

Assistant Professor Sue F. Davis joined the faculty at Denison in 2002. She earned her bachelor's degree from University of Nevada-Las Vegas, and her doctorate from Emory University. She teaches courses in the area of comparative politics, including the Politics of Russia, Eastern Europe, Ethnic Conflict and Revolutions, along with Research Methods. She has published a number of articles and two books on topics in Russia and Central Asia. Her current research interests include the former Soviet republic of Georgia and the impact of labor and the Orthodox Church on civil society and democratization in Russia.

Assistant Professor Katy A. Crossley-Frolick joined the faculty in 2007. She earned her B.A. at North Central College and her M.A. and Ph.D. at Loyola University. She teaches courses in the area of Introduction to International Politics, Transitions to Democracy, and International Organizations. Her research interests focus on democratic transitions, U. S. foreign policy and national security, human rights, and security studies.

Assistant Professor Eric Boehme joined the faculty in 2005. He earned his B.A. at DePaul University and both his M.A. and Ph.D. degrees at Rutgers University. He teaches courses in Introduction to American Political Thought, Introduction of Concepts in Political Philosophy, and The Development of Political Thought (Ancient, Machiavelli to Mill, Marx to Present). His research interests focus on the political development of citizenship in the United States, race and ethnicity, continental philosophy, social theory, tort law, and duty to rescue law.

For more information about the program, contact:

Emmett Buell, Director
The Lugar Program
Blair Knapp Hall, Room 304
Denison University
Granville, Ohio 43023

Phone:  (740) 587-6502
Fax:  (740) 587-6601
E-mail:   buell@denison.edu