Source: Jeff Pickering, 532-0456, jjp@k-state.edu
News release prepared by: Sheila Ellis, 785-532-6415, media@k-state.edu
Friday, September 14, 2007
K-STATE POLITICAL SCIENCE PROFESSOR MAKES EDITORIAL TEAM OF TOP JOURNAL
MANHATTAN -- Kansas State University student Tristan Tafolla says he is taught by one of the best.
Tafolla, senior in political science, Manhattan, is talking about Jeff Pickering, his world politics professor, who was selected for the editorial team of Foreign Policy Analysis, one of the most prestigious journals of its kind, said Joe Aistrup, head of K-State's department of political science.
Foreign Policy Analysis is one of the journals of the International Studies Association, the largest multidisciplinary group that studies international issues. The journal has a wide base of circulation and the members of its editorial team are an exclusive group, representing the top scholars in this area, Aistrup said.
"Dr. Pickering is one of the leading scholars in the area of conflict studies and international security," Aistrup said. "This position will cement his position as a leading scholar in these areas."
Pickering is an associate professor of political science and director of the department's graduate program. He received his doctorate from Indiana University and taught at St. Mary's College in Maryland before coming to K-State in 1997. He has published many articles in some of the top political science journals such as International Studies Quarterly and was awarded a $90,000 grant from the National Science Foundation for his research on foreign military intervention with K-State's Emizet Kisangani, an associate professor in economics.
Pickering has taught classes in world politics, international conflict and international security, among others, in the last 11 years at K-State.
"He is a very thorough professor," Tafolla said. "He always relates real world implications to his teachings."
Pickering, who also is the recipient of a Commerce Bank Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, said he loves the atmosphere at K-State.
"It is one of the few places that actually believes in teaching and research," he said.
According to Aistrup, Pickering's appointment brings academic attention to the political science department, as well as the department's master's and doctoral programs in security studies. "This can help us to attract even better students and to recruit other topflight scholars," Aistrup said.