Self-Paced Course
January 30 - February 20, 2008
Course includes a live webcast on February 13, 2008.
Price: $195
Special pricing is available for faculty and students. Please call (814) 332-6202 for details.
The process of selecting presidential party nominees, a critically important mechanism in America's political system, has changed in numerous significant ways over the past two centuries. And, by most accounts, the current system will not endure another election. Indeed, a New York Times editorial on Sept. 2, 2007 described the current process as a "Wild West" approach and called for party leaders to "begin a discussion of reform proposals now."
A parallel and equally significant problem is the profound lack of interest in voting among our nation's youth, a phenomenon that is even more apparent in primary elections and caucuses. The program on February 13 will train a critical eye on the future of presidential nominations as a mechanism to engage young voters and explore innovative models for the nomination process.
This four-week course will explore the past, present and future changes within the presidential nomination process, focusing particular attention on likely reforms that could be in place before the 2012 election. The course will also train a critical eye on the future of presidential nominations as a mechanism to engage young voters and explore innovative nomination models.
February 13, 2008 | 8:00 p.m. EST
Allegheny College will host a nationally prominent panel moderated by Professor Daniel M. Shea. The panel will feature Andrew M. Rosenthal (Editorial Page Editor, The New York Times) and a group of prominent elected officials and practitioners who will participate in a moderated discussion of student ideas and their own about the direction of nomination reform in America. This event will be open to the public and will be streamed live as a webcast to all participants in the course.
Daniel M. Shea, Ph.D. is a professor of political science at Allegheny College and
director of the Allegheny College Center for Political Participation.
Professor Shea has a bachelor of arts in political science and American studies from the State University of New York at Oswego and a master of arts in campaign management/applied politics from the University of West Florida. He earned a Ph.D. in political science from the State University of New York at Albany.
Professor Shea has written or edited twelve books on the American Electoral process. His most recent project, Living Democracy (Prentice Hall, 2007), is an American government text designed to inspire young Americans to become more engaged in the political process.
