2006 Conference Program - Midwest Political Science Association

PaperPaperDisc.Challenging Others or Censoring the Self? Attitudes ofCensorship and Academic Freedom among UniversityFacultyChapman B. Rackaway, Fort Hays State UniversityMichael V. Suchoparek, Fort Hays State UniversityMitchell Hall, Fort Hays State UniversityEthan Harder, Fort Hays State UniversityMark Colwell, Fort Hays State UniversityOverview: A survey of university faculty on attitudes ofcensorship and academic freedom post-9/11.Theorizing Communities and Judicial Change: LegalAcademics in Canada, the UK, and New ZealandJason L. Pierce, University of DaytonOverview: This paper compares how the legal academies inCanada, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand shaped theroles that their respective courts assumed under the CanadianCharter, the British Human Rights Act, and New Zealand’s newbill of rights.Susan Burgess, Ohio University38-102 ROUNDTABLE: THE FUTURE OF THESTUDY OF STATE POLITICS AND POLICYRoomPanelistTBA, Sat 1:45 pmRichard F. Winters, Dartmouth CollegeChristopher Z. Mooney, University of Illinois, SpringfieldDavid Lowery, University of North Carolina, Chapel HillRon Weber, University of Wisconsin, MilwaukeeOverview: TBA39-11 NEIGHBORHOOD GROUPS AND PROTESTPOLITICSRoomChairPaperPaperDisc.TBA, Sat 1:45 pmJose F. Marichal, California Lutheran UniversityOrganizing For Justice: The Urban Poor AndEnvironmental Politics in Multi-Ethnic Southern CaliforniaArmando Xavier Mejia, University of Wisconsin, MadisonOverview: Paper examines three organized efforts by the urbanpoor to contest environmental injustice in Southern California.Case studies offer theoretical and comparative lessons forsuccessful grassroots environmental mobilization in multiethnicregions.The Fate of Institutionalized Protest: The Suburban O'HareCommissionBonnie Lindstrom, Northwestern UniversityOverview: The rise and fall of the Suburban O'HareCommission, a coalition of suburbs formed to oppose O'Hareexpansion, exemplifies the fate of locality-based protest when agrassroots group becomes institutionalized and identified withone political party.Jose F. Marichal, California Lutheran University40-14 STANDARDS BASED EDUCATIONALREFORMRoomChairPaperPaperTBA, Sat 1:45 pmSandra Vergari , SUNY, AlbanyRace and the Politics of Grade RetentionValentina A. Bali, Michigan State UniversityDorothea Anagnostopoulos, Michigan State UniversityOverview: Retaining low performing students in grade hasbecome a central though disputed component of currentstandards-based reforms. This paper examines the political andorganizational determinants of school district retention ratesacross racial groups.The Interaction Between Organizational Values andMorality PolicyWarren S. Eller, Texas A&M UniversityOverview: This paper addresses the potential outcomes of thecentralization of educational policy at the federal level onschool performance and violence prevention programs.PaperPaperDisc.Agenda Setting in Garbage Cans: Lessons from U.S. andJapanese Education ReformKeith Nitta, University of California, BerkeleyOverview: Garbage can processes in U.S. and Japaneseeducation agenda formation have 1) facilitated the spread oftrendy administrative reforms, 2) prevented rational planningand coordination, and 3) prevented pressing education problemsfrom being addressed.Education Policy in the State of OhioMatthew J. Carr, Kent State UniversityOverview: TBAJoseph Stewart, Jr., Clemson UniversitySandra Vergari, SUNY, Albany40-19 URBAN DESIRES: HOUSING, ECONOMICGROWTH AND AMENITIESRoomChairPaperPaperDisc.TBA, Sat 1:45 pmJuliet F. Gainsborough, Bentley CollegeDefining Patterns of Residential Blight for EconomicDevelopmentH. Douglas Adams, St. Louis UniversityOverview: Local governments, lacking a standard for blight,appear subjectively to designate blight to justify Tax IncrementFinancing. Using Census data, an index of residential blight isproposed to identify blight according to an objective standard.The Transformation of Federal Housing Policy andManagement, 1980-PresentStephen Page, University of WashingtonRachel Kleit, University of WashingtonOverview: An analysis of recent changes in federal housingprograms in historical context shows how the management ofpublic housing authorities now entails a novel combination ofdiscretion, obligations, and partnerships in different areas ofresponsibility.Juliet F. Gainsborough, Bentley College40-201 INFORMAL ROUNDTABLE: VARIATION ININCARCERATION RATES ACROSS THEFIFTY STATESRoom TBA, Sat 1:45 pmPresenter Variation in Incarceration Rates Across the Fifty StatesAnita Pritchard, Florida Atlantic UniversityMichael Wiatrowski, Department of EducationOverview: This paper examines variation in incarceration ratesacross the fifty states.40-202 INFORMAL ROUNDTABLE: HIGHEREDUCATION IRoom TBA, Sat 1:45 pmPresenter The Academic Church: The Culture Wars, AcademicFreedom and TenureDavid C. Paris, Hamilton CollegeOverview: This paper explores the image of postsecondaryinstitutions as a kind of “church” with reference tocontemporary policy debates. It suggests norms for professionalresponsibility and accountability, including with respect to thestate and market.Presenter Allowing Community Colleges To Grant Bachelor DegreesIn Florida: A Policy Framing Process At Florida Legislatureand Two Community CollegesGregory Pershin, Florida State UniversityOverview: The presentation deals with framing policiespermitting community colleges to grant baccalaureate degrees inFlorida.230