Mollie Cohen received her PhD in Political Science from Vanderbilt University. From 2017-2018, she was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Latin American Public Opinion Project and a postdoctoral researcher with the Trans-Institutional Brazil Health Policy Project. Cohen鈥檚 research focuses on elections, public opinion, voting behavior, and political representation, especially in the Latin American region. She will be teaching Introduction to Comparative Politics this fall.

What attracted you to UGA?

MC: The IA department is a very young and research active environment, and seemed like an exciting 鈥� and very collegial! 鈥� place to work. On top of that, Athens seemed like an awesome place to live.

What are you working on that you’re most excited about?

MC: I鈥檓 currently working on a book manuscript that examines why individuals cast blank and spoiled votes in Latin America and the world. These protest votes are cast at very high rates in some countries 鈥� they often 鈥渂eat鈥� the first-place candidate in legislative elections! 鈥� but scholars have tended to treat them as voter errors. Contrary to much existing scholarship, I find that much invalid voting in presidential elections isn鈥檛 accidental and isn鈥檛 an expression of anti-democratic attitudes. Rather, individuals intentionally invalidate their ballots in protest of the slate of candidates available or the policies those candidates propose. The book also looks at whether and how campaigns promoting invalid voting are successful. While these 鈥渁gainst-all鈥� campaigns receive a lot of news coverage, I find that they are only rarely able to successfully mobilize voters to spoil their votes, and that they are best able to do so when they are led by very popular individuals with a clear and convincing grievance to protest.

What was your favorite part of your college experience?

MC: During my last year at UCSD, I had the opportunity to participate in the Mexican Migration Field Research and Training Program. I went to Mexico and Los Angeles to conduct survey and semi-structured interviews with migrants in the U.S. that came from a small town in Mexico, and with citizens living in that town. That experience convinced me to pursue a career in public opinion: I really enjoyed developing survey questions, interviewing respondents, and writing up the results for publication. It was hard work, but was also extremely gratifying.

Please tell us one fun fact about you.

MC: As a child, I lived in Mr. Roger鈥檚 (actual, real-life) neighborhood. We ran into him on the street.

What are you looking forward to in the coming year?

MC: Working in a place with so much school spirit!!

What is one goal you have for yourself for the next year?

MC: To run my tenth half marathon.

Do you have any pets? If so, what kind(s)?

MC: Yes! My dog Nelson is a Boston Lab (a black lab/ Boston terrier 鈥� at least, that鈥檚 what we think). He鈥檚 a very good boy.

What do you consider your greatest accomplishment?

MC: Finishing my Ph.D.

Who inspires you in your research or career?

MC: My grandparents, and many strong female mentors.

If you could have one superpower, what would it be?

MC: To speak any language fluently without studying it.

What advice do you have for 快猫短视频 students?

MC: First, get to know your professors! We are all here in part because we want to interact with you and talk about your ideas and interests. A related bonus is that students who come to office hours perform better in class, without fail.聽Second, take care of yourself! School and your social activities are important, but your physical and mental health are more important.

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Margaret (Molly) Ariotti received her PhD from Pennsylvania State University with a focus in Comparative Politics, Political Methodology, and Geography. Her research interests include African politics (Francophone), institutions, government composition and formation, state capacity, local governance, bureaucracy, and public goods provision. Ariotti was a 2016-2017 recipient of the David L. Boren Fellowship of the National Security Education Program. She will be teaching Introduction to Comparative Politics and Comparative Political Institutions this fall.

Mollie Cohen received her PhD in Political Science from Vanderbilt University. From 2017-2018, she was a postdoctoral research fellow at the Latin American Public Opinion Project and a postdoctoral researcher with the Trans-Institutional Brazil Health Policy Project. Cohen鈥檚 research focuses on elections, public opinion, voting behavior, and political representation, especially in the Latin American region. She will be teaching Introduction to Comparative Politics this fall.

Emily Lawler received her PhD in Economics from Vanderbilt University. Her research focuses include health economics, development economics, and applied microeconomics. Lawler is particularly interested in analyzing the effects of public policies on maternal and child health. Her dissertation work focuses on the effects of vaccination policies on health and health behaviors. Lawler is teaching Foundations of Policy Analysis this fall.

Michelle Lofton received her PhD in Public Administration from Syracuse University. She is also an alumna of UGA鈥檚 MPA program. Her research interests broadly explore the intersection of public finance and public management by investigating financial tools and techniques to better inform management, strategy, and policy decisions. Lofton will be teaching Public Management and Public Financial Administration this fall.

Ryan Powers received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin鈥揗adison in 2017. Prior to starting at the 快猫短视频, he was a Postdoctoral Associate with the Leitner Program in International and Comparative Political Economy at the Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies at Yale University. He specializes in international relations and comparative politics. This fall Powers is teaching Introduction to International Relations and the Graduate Pre-seminar in International Relations.

Geoffrey Sheagley received his PhD from the University of Minnesota where he has since been an Assistant Professor of Political Science. His research and teaching focuses on political behavior, public opinion, and political polarization. He is particularly interested in the factors that lead citizens to hold more accurate and thoughtful opinions as opposed to being more biased and misinformed about the political process. Sheagley is teaching Introduction to Political Science this fall.

Megan Turnbull received her PhD in Political Science from Brown University. She studies political order, violence, and democratization with an empirical focus in Sub-Saharan Africa. 聽Her book project examines the relationship between democracy and state-building through the lens of government strategies toward armed groups. Turnbull is teaching Introduction to Comparative Politics this fall.

Eric Zeemering is MPA Director and Associate Professor in the Department of Public Administration and Policy. His research investigates local governance and intergovernmental relations, including interlocal contracting for municipal service delivery and the design and performance of networks for local environmental governance. He received his Ph.D. in political science from Indiana University in 2007.

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