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|John Moeller| |Jim Rhodes| |Michael Engelhardt| |Becky Bowman| |Paul Gardner| |Jason Stonerook| |Chelle Meyer|

Pictured above L-R: Becky Bowman, John Moeller, Michael Engelhardt, Jason Stonerook,
Paul Gardner, Jim Rhodes and Chelle Meyer

John Moeller (moellerj@luther.edu)

John Moeller came to Luther College in 1981, after teaching at Texas Tech, Livingston University (Alabama) and Pan-American University (Texas). Moeller earned a B.A. from Lawrence University and an M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Science from Duke University. He teaches courses in law (Constitutional Law, Introduction to Law, Civil Rights and Liberties), political theory (Political Thought, American Political Thought) and environmental politics. He has also taught a number of interdisciplinary courses (Caesars’ Coin, Moral Dilemmas in Literature, Social and Political Issues in Film and Fiction, Science and Politics of Global Warming). He is especially interested in making connections between political theory and political practice and often combines social science writings with imaginative literature in his classes.

Moeller has served as chair of the Political Science Department and Director of the Environmental Studies Program and currently oversees Luther’s participation in the Lutheran College Washington Semester Consortium. In 2006 he was appointed for a five-year term as director of the newly endowed Center for Ethics and Public Life. The goal of the Center is to place discussion of and concern for public issues at the heart of what Luther College students do. The Center will do that by developing a range of activities, including a public lecture series, residencies, reading and discussion groups, and summer programming for new students entering Luther.

Moeller’s research and writing has focused on the role of the Supreme Court in the American political system, political themes in the popular Western, the ideas of Alexander Bickel, and the jurisprudence of Justice John M. Harlan II.

Jim Rhodes (rhodesji@luther.edu)

Jim Rhodes joined the Luther faculty in the fall of 1968 after completing graduate course work at the University of Michigan, completing the dissertation in 1973. He had earlier earned an M.A. in English from the University of Arkansas.

Rhodes has served as chair of Political Science and the Director of Luther’s International Studies program. He follows contemporary world affairs to update his academic and teaching fields of international relations (The Politics of War and Peace and International Relations) and comparative politics (Comparative Political Analysis, Politics of Africa, Asia, and Latin America). His main area of research started out in Latin American politics but has broadened over the years to be global. Rhodes regularly contributes reviews to CHOICE, the American Library Association’s publication for college and research libraries and that has lately included a large number of books on China. He believes scholarship belongs not just in libraries but in the public square to assist leaders and citizens in developing and judging public policies. Rhodes hopes students from his courses have gained a perspective that will enable them both to be aware of contemporary international events and to judge them critically.

Michael Engelhardt (engelhmi@luther.edu)

Mike Engelhardt arrived at Luther in 1988 after earning a B.A. from Hope College in 1979, an M.A. from University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1980 and a Ph.D. from the same institution in 1984.

Engelhardt’s research interests are in the area of American Foreign Policy, with a special interest in military policy and nuclear nonproliferation. He is the author of several published articles in these areas as well as a co-author of a textbook on American Politics. Engelhardt teaches courses in American Politics, Congress and the Presidency, Political Parties and Interest Groups, Politics and the Media and has recently developed a new course on the Politics of the Middle East. He also coaches the Luther Mock Trial team and is the faculty sponsor of Luther College Republicans.

Becky Bowman (bowmre01@luther.edu)

Originally from small-town Iowa, Becky Bowman came to Luther in the fall of 2008. She received her BA from Yale University, and her MA from George Washington University before serving as a Peace Corps volunteer for two years in Turkmenistan. She received her JD from the University of Iowa and is currently finishing her PhD. Before coming to Luther, she taught a few courses at Cornell College. This year, Bowman is teaching Global Politics, Latin American Politics, and Paideia. Her research interests include higher education policy in Central Asia.

Paul Gardner (gardnerp@luther.edu)

Paul Gardner came to Luther College in 1985 after teaching at Illinois State University. Gardner earned a B.A. in Sociology from St. Ambrose University, and an M.A. from Iowa State University and a Ph.D. from the University of Kentucky in Political Science.

Gardner’s course responsibilities include Politics and Religion, Terrorism and Democracy, Introduction to the Politics of Social Policy and American Politics. Two trips to Northern Ireland in addition to the 9/11/01 attacks on America encouraged an interest in terrorism that resulted in the development of the Terrorism and Democracy course. Gardner has taught in several interdisciplinary courses including Luther’s Paideia program for first year students.

He is currently chair of Political Science. Gardner has also directed Luther’s Nottingham Program and serves as the faculty sponsor of the Luther Democrats. During the fall of 2004, Gardner was a guest lecturer on terrorism and American foreign policy at Andrzeja Frycza Modrzewskiego College in Krakow, Poland. His most recent scholarly publication is “Ronald Reagan and the Universality of Democracy.” Gardner’s essays have also appeared in the Chicago Tribune and Christian Science Monitor.

Jason Stonerook (stonja01@luther.edu)

Jason Stonerook graduated from Luther College in 2000 and received his Master of Arts degree in political science from Iowa State University in the spring of 2004. Later that fall he began teaching in the political science department at Luther. His scholarly interests include American politics, political leadership, the actions of citizens in American life, and republican political thought. He also enjoys exploring the connection between politics and rock and roll music, especially in the work of Bruce Springsteen. He is the author of Rock 'N' Politics: A State of the Union Address, a book published in 2008.

Stonerook teaches courses on politics and the media, American political thought, and the politics of rock and roll music along with the introductory course in American politics. He also teaches in Luther's Paideia program for first year students.

Chelle Meyer (meyerche@luther.edu)

Chelle Meyer earned her B.A. from Luther College and has been working with the Political Science Department as well as the Sociology/Anthropology/Social Work, History & Africana Studies Departments as the Administrative Assistant for the past 14 years. She supervises 6-10 student assistants and enjoys working on the 3rd floor of Koren Hall. Chelle has volunteered for multiple community organizations such as the Decorah Community Schools' Shareholders Group, Conestoga Girl Scout Council and Winneshiek County Habitat for Humanity.