Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program
School of Politics, Public Affairs, & International Studies (SPPAIS)
Dept. 3197
1000 E. University Ave.
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: 307-766-6119
Email: wallop@uwyo.edu
Co-Director, Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program
Jean Garrison, Professor of Political Science and International Studies, is the College
of Arts and Sciences Seibold Professor for 2021-22. She led UW’s community engagement
initiative from June 2017-August 2020 first as special assistant to the president
for engagement and then founding director of the Office of Engagement and Outreach
and UW’s chief engagement officer. Her administrative positions at UW have included
serving as the founding director of the Center for Global Studies (2014-2019; 2020),
which provides international funding opportunities for faculty and student research
and organizes a variety of outreach programs around the state, former director of
the Global and Area Studies Program/International Studies Program, and interim department
head for Modern and Classical Languages. In Fall 2015 she was a fellow at the Kolleg-Forschergruppe
(KFG) – Transformative Power of Europe at the Freie Universität Berlin and is the
past recipient of a Council on Foreign Relations International Affairs Fellowship
where she served in the Office of Chinese and Mongolian Affairs in the U.S. State
Department. She also has been a visiting fellow with the Maureen and Mike Mansfield
Foundation in Washington, DC. She is the author of three books, Games Advisors Play:
Foreign Policy in the Nixon and Carter Administrations, The Making of U.S.-China Policy:
Nixon to G.W. Bush, and China and the Energy Equation in Asia, and numerous peer-reviewed
articles and book chapters in the area of American foreign policy. She has received
numerous teaching awards, the College of Arts and Sciences Extraordinary Merit in
Research and Extraordinary Merit in Advising awards, and is past recipient of the
President’s Stewardship Award. She holds a Ph.D. in political science from the University
of South Carolina and B.A. from UW also in political science. As the Seibold Professor
for 2021-22, she will pursue research on civic engagement programs, work to partner
on national security curriculum with Warren Air Force Base, and pursue her ongoing
work on American foreign policy and political polarization with partners at Freie
Universität Berlin.
Co-Director, Wallop Civic Engagement Program & Wallop Faculty Fellow
Jason B. McConnell, Assistant Professor of Political Science, holds a Ph.D. in Political
Science from Washington State University, a J.D. from the UW College of Law, and also
M.A. and B.S. degrees in political science from UW. His research focus is on judicial
politics with an emphasis on civil rights & civil liberties. In 2017 he co-authored
the 8th edition of The Equality State, a textbook on Wyoming government, with colleagues
James King, Andrew Garner, and Robert Schuhmann. An updated 9th edition is forthcoming.
Jason is a two-time winner of the “Top Prof” award, as well as a two-time awardee
for Promoting Intellectual Engagement in the First Year. While at Washington State
University, he was awarded the President’s Award for Leadership and Service. He teaches
cross-listed courses in political science and criminal justice, as well as public
administration, including Constitutional Law, Free Speech, Civil Rights & Civil Liberties,
and Empirical Analysis. Jason’s primary research agenda explores free speech and speech
suppression. His work in this field, over the last ten years, has focused on speech
issues on contemporary college campuses. His research on collegiate student athletes’
use of social media revealed the delicate balancing act performed by administrators,
as they attempt to protect their institution’s public image while trying to avoid
infringing upon the athlete’s rights to express themselves. More recently, his research
has examined the relationship between perceptions of racism, sexism, and bigotry and
perceptions of university policies designed to combat those issues while also protecting
free expression. That work is ongoing, as is a newly started project focused on federal
employee decision-making, when they object to directives from elected officials. McConnell’s
work looks broadly at the role of discourse in our democracy.
Director, Strategic Partnership, Research and Economic Development Division
Curtis Biggs is the Director of the Industry and Strategic Partnership Office for
the Research and Economic Development Division at UW. Biggs has enjoyed 16 years in
higher education administration, serving in dean, associate dean, and director roles
at 2-year and 4-year institutions in Wyoming, Montana, and New Jersey. He is affiliate
faculty for the New Jersey City University doctoral program in Community College Leadership.
His career includes work in strategic enrollment and retention strategy; community
college executive leadership, dual/concurrent enrollment program and policy development;
distance learning development and implementation; international student support and
compliance services; and educator professional development. Biggs serves on the Wyoming’s
Tomorrow Legislative Task Force, Wyoming Association of Career & Technical Education
Advisory Board, and Wyoming Perkins V State Advisory Council. He is a past member
of the University of Wyoming International Advisory Council, and has served the State
as a member of the Wyoming Workforce Development Council, the Serve Wyoming board,
and various local CTE advisory committees. Biggs earned a bachelor’s at the University
of Nebraska-Lincoln, master’s degree at the University of Montana, and is completing
a Ph.D. in International Educational Leadership at the University of Montana. His
research interests include rural higher education student success, advancement of
teacher instructional capacity and persistence through global experiences, and exploration
of effective models in educator professional development.
Managing Director, Trustees Education Initiative, Director, Wyoming School-University
Partnership
Colby Gull is the Managing Director of the Trustees Education Initiative, as well
as the Director of the Wyoming School - University Partnership at the University of
Wyoming. Prior to coming to the University he served as the superintendent of schools
for Uinta County School District #6, Lyman, Wyoming and superintendent of schools
in Challis, Idaho. Colby taught special education at Cedar High School in southern
Utah where he also coached track and cross-country. Colby earned his B.S. in elementary
education and special education from Southern Utah University. He also holds a master’s
degree in educational leadership from Southern Utah University. Colby earned his EdD
from Idaho State University in Education Leadership and Administration. Customized
learning, rural education, and interdisciplinary programming are among Colby’s research
interests.
Graduate Assistant, Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program
Kofi Owusu-Ansah is a graduate student in the M.A International Studies program at
the University of Wyoming's School of Political Science, Public Affairs, and International
Studies and a Graduate Assistant for the Wallop Civic Engagement program. He is from
Ghana and earned a B.A. in Economics from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and
Technology in Ghana. His undergraduate research examined macroeconomic factors influencing
economic growth and savings in West Africa, with Ghana as a case study. His primary
research interests include circular economy, environmental politics, and strategies
for sustainable and global development in developing economies.
Graduate Assistant, Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program
Alia Jackson is a Graduate Assistant with Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program
at the University of Wyoming, serving her 2nd year of full-time service. Alia provides
support to ongoing projects, including the Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program
and Saturday University. Her work focuses on engagement with teachers and administrators
at schools across Wyoming, as well as content creation and review for the Malcolm
Wallop K-12 Curriculum Project. She holds a B.A. in International Studies from the
University of Wyoming.
Technology and Media Production Intern, Trustee's Education Initiative
Dustin Hansen is an undergraduate student at the University Of Wyoming currently majoring
in communication. Dustin’s area of study focuses on media production, including audio,
video and photography. Dustin plans to graduate in May 2020 and produce online media
professionally. Dustin's passion is to work with others to develop and enhance their
projects. Skilled at helping teams achieve their goals in sound and video design,
Dustin has an ear and vision to make projects stronger and more appealing to the audience.
He is currently working with The Wallop Civic Engagement Program and is the proud
recipient of the Wallop award. Dustin is honored and humbled to put his talents toward
the audio and video productions bearing the Malcolm Wallop name. In addition to the
Wallop program, Dustin plays roles in a number of other UW and statewide projects,
including the American Heritage Center Digital Archives project and numerous Trustees
Education Initiative education podcast and video productions. Dustin was also instrumental
in the producing, editing, and publishing the Wyoming Department of Education “Wyoming
WebEd Radio” show. Designed to support educators across the state with classroom resources
to implement during and beyond the pandemic, Dustin assured the quality and timeliness
of weekly live and recorded sessions. In his spare time, Dustin enjoys producing his
podcast “Save Station Radio”, discovering innovative new video games, and walking
his dog
Wallop Profiles in Wyoming Resilience Project intern
My name is Holly Wodahl and I am a senior at the University of Wyoming. I am currently
pursuing majors in Political Science, International Studies, and Environment and Natural
Resources, with minors in French and Honors. I have lived in Laramie for most of my
life and was grateful to take advantage of the Hathaway Scholarship and further my
education close to home. Upon my graduation in May of 2022, I plan to attend law school
and pursue a career in public interest law. I have always been fascinated by social
justice and hope to enter this field professionally. I am extremely happy to be working
with the Civic Engagement Program and the Profiles in Wyoming Resilience project.
Malcolm Wallop Civic Engagement Program
School of Politics, Public Affairs, & International Studies (SPPAIS)
Dept. 3197
1000 E. University Ave.
Laramie, WY 82071
Phone: 307-766-6119
Email: wallop@uwyo.edu