David Satter in the Wall Street Journal

David Satter has written an article for the Wall Street Journal titled "Awating the Next Revolution."  The article examines the political and economic problems that have transpired in Russia under Vladamir Putin, and the ways in which these problems threaten the country's movement toward a more democratic society. Mr. Satter writes:

In the best of all worlds Mr. Putin would resign, and free and fair elections, with nonpartisan monitors, would be held. But even that would not be enough. Russia needs a commission similar to the South African Commission on Truth and Reconciliation to review publicly not only the crimes of the Putin era but also crimes committed during the eight-year rule of his predecessor, Boris Yeltsin. Only this can provide a basis for democracy.

Mr. Satter teaches courses in the MA in Government program in the Center for Advanced Governmental Studies and is the author of It Was a Long Time Ago and It Never Happened Anyway: Russia and the Communist Past (Yale University Press, 2011).  Read the full article here.

Bob Guttman and Dustin Taylor on the primaries

Check out Governmental Studies faculty Bob Guttman's new blog entry on the Huffington Post about the primary election process.  The post, co-written with MA in Government student Dustin Taylor, argues that the extended primary process is here to stay... and that it pretty much works!

Michael Siegel's Op-Ed in the Baltimore Sun

Michael Siegel, one of the Center's adjunct professors who teaches an extremely popular course on negotiation, recently published an op-ed in the Baltimore Sun about the questions journalists should be asking candidates to evaluate their leadership potential.  Siegel writes:

The questions routinely asked of our presidential candidates are insufficient for assessing their potential ability to lead the nation. The following questions are based on my studies of the leadership style of recent presidents. The candidates' responses to these questions — as well as evidence of how they have already "answered" them in practice — would, I believe, provide more reliable guidance for their leadership potential in the White House.

Read the full article here.

Jim Kurtzke's Blog

Jim Kurtzke, a current MA in Government student, is sharing his experiences with his recent cancer treatment on this  blog, "Moral Kiosk."  He hopes to publish this work and help other cancer patients facing similar challenges.  Jim has completed his cancer treatment and is set to defend his thesis in two weeks.  

Upcoming Course for Certificate Program

This fall, one of our new faculty, Dr. Steven Mayer, will be offering a course titled "Program Development and Evaluation."  This course will critically examine several different methodologies commly used to measure performance in the nonprofit sector.  For an excellent overview of the philosophy behind the course, check out Dr. Mayer's recent blog entry on justphilanthropy.org.