The 2010 Texas governor’s race promises to be an historic contest as U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison challenges incumbent Rick Perry for the Republican nomination and several Democrats vie to run against the GOP candidate next November.
The University of Texas at Austin has experts available to discuss various aspects of the race, from politics to policy, with members of the media. Below is a list of faculty members and their areas of expertise.
For additional information or assistance, please contact Gary Susswein, director of public affairs in the College of Liberal Arts, at 512-471-4945, susswein@austin.utexas.edu.
STATEWIDE POLITICS AND ELECTIONS
James Henson
Director, Texas Politics Project and Lecturer in the Department of Government
College of Liberal Arts
512-471-0090
j.henson@austin.utexas.edu
Henson runs the Texas Politics Project, which seeks to educate students and Texans about state government, politics and history through a dynamic Web site and a speaker series. It also conducts quarterly statewide issues polls.
Daron Shaw
Professor of Government
College of Liberal Arts
512-232-7275
dshaw@austin.utexas.edu
Shaw was an analyst and consultant in the 1992, 2000 and 2004 presidential campaigns. He has written two books on voters and election campaigns and teaches classes on survey research analysis, public opinion and voting behavior, campaigns and elections, political parties and American government.
Bruce Buchanan
Professor of Government
College of Liberal Arts
512-232-7212
bruceb@austin.utexas.edu
Buchanan is a nationally renowned expert on politics and government. He has written multiple books on the American presidency and is frequently quoted in media stories about state and national politics.
Sherri Greenberg
Lecturer and Center for Politics and Governance Fellow, the Max Sherman Fellow in State and Local Government
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-8324
srgreenberg@mail.utexas.edu
Greenberg served for 10 years in the Texas House of Representatives, from 1991 to 2001. She chaired the House Pensions and Investments Committee and the Select Committee on Teacher Health Insurance and was a member on the House Appropriations Committee.
Paul Stekler
Professor of Public Affairs and Professor of Radio-Television-Film
LBJ School of Public Affairs, College of Communication
512-471-6679
stek@mail.utexas.edu
Stekler is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose work includes “George Wallace: Settin’ the Woods on Fire,” “Last Man Standing: Politics, Texas Style” and “Vote for Me: Politics in America,” a four-hour PBS special about grassroots electoral politics.
Sean Theriault
Associate Professor of Government
College of Liberal Arts
512-232-7279
seant@mail.utexas.edu
Theriault’s research includes American political institutions, primarily U.S. Congress. He also studies party polarization in the U.S. Congress. An award-winning teachers He has also published articles on subjects ranging from presidential rhetoric to congressional careers and the Louisiana.
USE OF NEW MEDIA
Homero Gil de Zuniga
Assistant Professor of Journalism
College of Communication
512-471-0553
hgz@mail.utexas.edu
De Zuniga’s research revolves around new media consumption (podcasts, blogs, etc.) and the role it plays in political and civic engagement among individuals. His work examines the implications of new media use at political and civic participatory levels and whether they will get someone to the polls.
EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
H.W. Brands
Professor of History
College of Liberal Arts
512-475-7238
hwbrands@mail.utexas.edu
Brands has written more than 20 books on such leaders as Benjamin Franklin, Andrew Jackson and Theodore Roosevelt. He was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for his most recent book “Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.”
MEDIA COVERAGE OF POLITICS
Natalie (Talia) Stroud
Assistant Professor of Communication Studies
Assistant Director, Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Participation
512-471-1934
tstroud@mail.utexas.edu
Stroud studies the media’s role in shaping people’s political attitudes and behaviors. Her forthcoming book, “Niche News” (Oxford University Press, 2011) explores the causes, consequences and prevalence of partisan selective exposure, and the preference for like-minded political information.
CAMPAIGN FINANCE
Brian Roberts
Professor of Government
College of Liberal Arts
512-232-7243
brian.roberts@austin.utexas.edu
Roberts’ research has focused on politics and financial markets, corporate political participation, and distributive politics. He teaches a course on money in U.S. politics and has published papers in political science, economics and finance.
PUBLIC POLICY DECISION-MAKING
Bryan Jones
The J. J. “Jake” Pickle Regents Chair in Congressional Studies
College of Liberal Arts
512-531-9257
bdjones@austin.utexas.edu
Jones’ research centers on the study of public policy processes, American governing institutions, and the connection between human decision-making and organizational behavior. He is a director of the Policy Agendas Project, which is housed at The University of Texas at Austin. The project is the major resource for examining changes in public policy processes in American national institutions.
TOLL ROADS AND TRANSPORTATION
C. Michael Walton
The Ernest H. Cockrell Centennial Chair in Engineering
Cockrell School of Engineering
512-471-1414
cmwalton@mail.utexas.edu
Walton researches intelligent transportation systems and studies engineering, planning, operations and policy analysis. He is chairman of the Texas Department of Transportation’s “2030 Committee,” which is overseeing a comprehensive update of Texas’ transportation needs through 2030.
Chandra R. Bhat
The Adnan Abou-Ayyash Centennial Professor in Transportation Engineering
Cockrell School of Engineering
512-471-4535
bhat@mail.utexas.edu
Bhat conducts mathematical modeling of how people make decisions about travel. His models evaluate the effectiveness of alternative traffic congestion alleviation strategies such as telecommuting, work schedule changes, toll roads, ridesharing incentives and non-motorized travel such as bicycling and walking.
ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT
David Eaton
The Bess Harris Jones Centennial Professor in Natural Resource Policy Studies
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-8972
eaton@mail.utexas.edu
Eaton teaches a course on environmental and energy policy and has written on rural water supply, international water resource conflicts, energy management and environmental problems of industries.
Michael Webber
Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Associate Director of the Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy
Cockrell School of Engineering
512-475-6867
webber@mail.utexas.edu
Webber’s research includes energy policy, energy and water, alternative and renewable energy, biofuels and energy in Texas. The Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy seeks to inform the energy and environmental policy-making process with scientific and engineering expertise.
WATER ISSUES
Daene McKinney
The W.A. (Bill) Cunningham Professor of Engineering
Cockrell School of Engineering
512-471-5644
daene@aol.com
McKinney develops methods to simulate, optimize and analyze environmental and water resource management problems. He concentrates on trans-boundary water and environmental issues, including along the United States-Mexico border. He is interested in the relationship between economic development and environmental protection and is developing a comprehensive database about water quality and flow in the Rio Grande.
David Maidment
The Hussein M. Alharthy Centennial Chair in Civil Engineering
Cockrell School of Engineering
512-471-0072
maidment@mail.utexas.edu
Maidment directs the Center for Research in Water Resources. His research includes water-quality modeling, water resources assessment, hydrologic simulation, global hydrology and the interaction between surface water and groundwater.
HEALTH CARE
John Mckiernan-González
Assistant Professor of History
College of Liberal Arts
512-475-7260
tulua@mail.utexas.edu
Mckiernan-González studies the intersection of public health, civil rights and social movements. He has done research on 19th and 20th popular mobilization and American public health policies at the Mexican border, race and cross-border labor politics, and Latino public history.
David Warner
The Wilbur J. Cohen Professor in Health and Social Policy
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-6277
david.warner@mail.utexas.edu
Warner’s major teaching and research interests are in economics, health policy and health finance. He has been a consultant to a number of organizations in the health sector, and is a former member of the Board of Directors of Austin’s Brackenridge Hospital.
EDUCATION
Jane Lincove
Assistant Professor of Public Affairs
LBJ School of Public Affairs
Phone: 512-232-2561
Email: lincove@mail.utexas.edu
Lincove’s research focuses on education policy and the economics of education in the U.S. and in developing countries. She has also worked for several non-profit children’s advocacy organizations.
Linda Ferreira-Buckley
Associate Professor of Rhetoric and Writing
College of Liberal Arts
512-471-7843
linda-fb@uts.cc.utexas.edu
Ferreira-Buckley teaches courses in writing, histories and theories of rhetoric and literacy, writing pedagogy and Victorian literature. She has published on the history of rhetoric and is at work on a book on the rhetorical education of Barbara Jordan.
ECONOMY AND LABOR
Daniel Hamermesh
The Sue Killam Professor in the Foundations of Economics, Population Research Center faculty
College of Liberal Arts
512-475-8526
hamermes@eco.utexas.edu
Hamermesh is an expert on economic and labor issues. A regular contributor to the New York Times’ Freakonomics blog, he has done research on labor demand, time use, social insurance programs and the American Time Use Survey.
Michael Brandl
Senior Lecturer in Finance
McCombs School of Business
512- 232-3355
michael.brandl@mccombs.utexas.edu
Brandl is an expert on the Texas economy and economic issues relevant to a gubernatorial political debate. His research interests include economic growth, financial economics and labor economics. He was recently a source for the Economist’s special section on the Texas economy.
RACE AND RELIGION IN POLITICS
Christopher Ellison
Professor of Sociology, Population Research Center faculty
College of Liberal Arts
512-232-6312
cellison@prc.utexas.edu
Ellison’s research into the role of religion in society has included studies on regional and religious variations in public opinion and policy preferences. He is co-editor of Religion, Families, and Health: New Directions in Population-based Research.
BORDER AND IMMIGRATION
Nestor Rodriguez
Professor of Sociology, Population Research Center faculty
College of Liberal Arts
512-471-5514
nrodriguez@prc.utexas.edu
Rodriguez’s research focuses on Guatemalan migration, U.S. deportations to Mexico and Central America, the unauthorized migration of unaccompanied minors, evolving relations between Latinos and African Americans/Asian Americans and ethical and human rights issues of border enforcement.
Peter Ward
The C.B. Smith Sr. Centennial Chair in US-Mexico Relations; Population Research Center faculty
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-6302
peter.ward@mail.utexas.edu
Ward is former director of the Mexican Center of the Institute of Latin American Studies. His principal research interests are Latin American urbanization, contemporary Mexican politics, housing policy and planning, Mexico City and colonia-type agencies.
Neil Foley
Associate Professor of History
College of Liberal Arts
nfoley@mail.utexas.edu
512-471-3261
Foley’s research centers on the changing constructions of race, citizenship and national identity in the American Southwest and Mexico, and comparative civil rights politics of African Americans and Mexican Americans.
John Mckiernan-González
See bio and contact information above
HISPANIC HISTORY AND VOTING AND CIVIL RIGHTS ISSUES
Emilio Zamora
Professor of History
College of Liberal Arts
e.zamora@mail.utexas.edu
512-475-8706
Zamora has conducted research on the history of Mexicans in the United States and their relationship with Mexico, the history of the U.S. working class and Texas history. A native of the Texas-Mexico border region, Zamora speaks Spanish and is available for Spanish language interviews.
BORDER AND IMMIGRATION
Hector Dominguez-Ruvalcaba
Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese
College of Liberal Arts
512-471-2780
hectordominguez@mail.utexas.edu
Dominguez-Ruvalcaba’s areas of interest are queer Latin American Studies, gender violence in the U.S.-Mexico border and criminal organizations. A native of Mexico, he speaks Spanish and is available for Spanish language interviews.
