Civic Engagement in American Democracy

Deondra Rose is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Political Science at Duke University, specializing in the feedback effects of landmark social policies on the American political landscape.

Philip Bennett is the Eugene C. Patterson Professor of the Practice of Public Policy Studies and Journalism at Duke University. He served as the managing editor of The Washington Post from 2005 to 2009, overseeing a staff of 800 journalists and contributing to the paper's collection of ten Pulitzer Prizes during his tenure. Previously, he was the foreign editor for six years, during which the international reporting team won multiple awards, including two Pulitzer Prizes. Bennett's journalism career began in 1982 at The Lima Times in Peru before moving to The Boston Globe, where he covered significant events in Latin America, including wars in Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala. He later became the Globe’s foreign editor. Between 2011 and 2013, while on the Duke faculty, he was also the managing editor of FRONTLINE, a public affairs television series on PBS. At Duke, Bennett teaches courses on journalism related to national security secrecy, media coverage of Islam, narrative journalism, and war reporting. He is also the director of the Rutherfurd Living History Program and has lectured on the future of journalism and new media projects.

Nicholas Carnes is an Assistant Professor of Public Policy and Political Science at the Sanford School of Public Policy at Duke University. His research primarily explores U.S. politics, focusing on legislative decision-making, representation, social class, economic inequality, and state and local politics. In his book White-Collar Government: The Hidden Role of Class in Economic Policy Making, Carnes examines how the underrepresentation of working-class individuals in American legislatures leads to policymaking that favors upper-class economic interests. He is currently completing a comprehensive study on the barriers that prevent working-class Americans from seeking public office and identifying programs that could help increase their representation in political institutions. Through his work, Carnes aims to shed light on the critical intersection of class and governance in shaping economic policies.

Bill Adair is the Knight Professor of the Practice of Journalism and Public Policy and the Director of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy.

Frederick "Fritz" Mayer is a Professor of Public Policy, Political Science, and Environment, as well as the Associate Dean for Strategy and Innovation at Duke University’s Sanford School of Public Policy. He teaches courses on the political economy of public policy, globalization and governance, political analysis, and leadership. Mayer directs POLIS: The Center for Political Leadership, Innovation and Service, focusing on the intersection of narrative and politics. His research emphasizes the importance of shared stories in facilitating collective action within communities, as discussed in his book Narrative Politics: Stories and Collective Action (Oxford University Press, 2014). Additionally, he examines the impacts of globalization, particularly concerning labor and environmental issues related to economic integration. His earlier work includes Interpreting NAFTA: The Art and Science of Political Analysis (Columbia University Press, 1998), which analyzes the political processes surrounding NAFTA's creation. Mayer's recent research explores the implications of global value chains in international trade and the influence of large firms on trade terms. His extensive experience includes serving as a senior international trade and foreign policy advisor to former U.S. Senator Bill Bradley and various roles in Washington D.C., including policy analyst at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. He holds an A.B. in history and literature from Harvard College, along with an M.P.P. and a Ph.D. in public policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.