Departmental News

After an internal search, Brianne Heidbreder, has been appointed Faculty Director of K-State First.

As Faculty Director, Dr. Heidbreder will oversee K-State First programs and staff. K-State First is the home to signature K-State academic experiences, including first-year seminars; learning communities — known as the CAT Communities; the common reading program — K-State First Book; and New Student Convocation. Positioned in the Office of Student Success, K-State First benefits from an ecosystem of programs and colleagues committed to supporting new student transitions.

Dr. Heidbreder earned her doctorate in political science from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2008. That same year, she joined the political science department at K-State as an assistant professor. In 2013, Heidbreder earned tenure and was promoted to associate professor. She has contributed her leadership to scholarly and service pursuits, most recently serving as director of graduate studies for the department of political science. An outstanding teacher, Heidbreder's excellence in the classroom has garnered several K-State awards, including the 2022 Commerce Bank and W.T. Kemper Foundation Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, the 2015 Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, and the 2013 William L. Stamey Teaching Award from the College of Arts and Sciences.

Heidbreder will succeed Professor Greg Eiselein who, after serving 13 years as the Faculty Director of K-State First, will return to full-time faculty status in the English department. Heidbreder brings to this role a commitment to student learning, a passion for teaching excellence, and an enthusiasm for building on existing strengths to ensure K-State First grows and contributes to K-State becoming the next-generation land-grant university.

Two political science professors have been named editors for the International Studies Association's flagship journal, International Studies Quarterly.

Jeff Pickering, professor of political science, has been named editor-in-chief of the journal, and Michael E. Flynn, associate professor of political science, will be an associate editor on the journal.

Kansas State University will co-host the journal for a period of five years along with the University at Buffalo - New York, with professors Sam Bell and Carla Martinez-Machain serving as co-editor-in-chief and associate editor respectively.

With more than 6,500 members worldwide, the International Studies Association is the largest professional association for the study of international relations in political science. As the association’s preeminent journal, International Studies Quarterly is considered among the leading academic journals in both the field of international relations and the discipline of political science.

Pickering has previously edited two other International Studies Association journals: International Interactions as editor-in-chief and Foreign Policy Analysis as co-editor.

As of 2023, three political science faculty members have received promotions in rank; Michael Flynn, Michael Tyburski and Angela Y.S. Park.

Michael E. Flynn, associate professor of political science, has been promoted to full professor. Dr. Flynn joined the department back in 2014, having received his Ph.D. in Political Science the year prior from Binghampton University. While at K-State, he has dedicated himself to instruction and research. Recently, his co-authored a book titled Beyond the Wire: U.S. Military Deployments and Host Country Public Opinion (2022), was published by Oxford University Press. In 2021, he was named Director of the Security Studies program, an interdisciplinary program housed in the History and Political Science departments.

Michael Tyburski, assistant professor of political science, has been promoted to associate professor with tenure. Dr. Tyburski joined the department back in 2016, having received his Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. During his career, he's published articles in a number of reputable political science journals. In 2022, he received the Jones Family Faculty Award for Eastern European Studies for his research regarding central and eastern European countries between 1990 & 2020.

Angela Y.S. Park, assistant professor of political science, has been promoted to associate professor with tenure. Dr. Park recently joined the department in 2019, receiving her Ph.D. in Public Administration at the University of Kansas the same year. In her four years at K-State, Dr. Park has received a number of accolades from the university and beyond. In 2022, she was one of the recipients of the Faculty Enhancement Program for $10,000. The year before, she was part of the team that received a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).

"These faculty represent Kansas State University's tradition of excellence in research, teaching and service to the university and beyond," said Provost Charles Taber. "We are proud of these newly tenured and promoted faculty. I congratulate them and look forward to their continued success."

Congratulations Drs. Flynn, Tyburski and Park!

The Political Science department announces the forming and member selection of the first Undergraduate Student Council!

The council will serve as a bridge between students and faculty, helping to better identify student interests, representing the department at various recruiting functions and building a better sense of community overall within the program.

Congratulations to the fifteen members of the Political Science Undergraduate Student Council:

• Laura Anderson, senior in political science and pre-law
• Taylor Barnhart, senior in political science
• Robert Bruckner, sophomore in political science and pre-law
• Connor Bryant, concurrent Master's student in political science, history and Security Studies
• Cathleen Cowell, senior in political science
• Carson Cuesta, freshman in political science
• Mark Early, junior in political science and history
• Erick Echegaray Enciso, senior in political science, history and pre-law
• Reagan Montgomery, freshman in political science
• Sabrina Nevares, freshman in political science
• Natalie Nusz, junior in political science and philosophy
• Alexandra Partin, concurrent Master's student in political science, history and Public Administration
• Marta Richenburg, senior in political science, history and pre-law
• Samuel Schweier, junior in political science
• Bently Taulbert, sophomore in political science and pre-law

Nathaniel Birkhead, associate professor of political science, has been named department head of political science in the College of Arts and Sciences.

Birkhead joined Kansas State University in 2012 after earning his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Colorado and a doctorate in political science from Indiana University.

"Dr. Birkhead, our newest Coffman chair and a previous Commerce Bank and W.T. Kemper Foundation Outstanding Teaching Award winner, has an outstanding record as a leader in helping students make those connections between class learning and real-world application," said Chris Culbertson, College of Arts and Sciences interim dean. "His leadership, enthusiasm and creativity will serve the political sciences department well."

Birkhead uses technically sophisticated methods to answer broad questions about the representational relationship between constituents and their elected officials, and American institutions — especially Congress and state legislatures.

He recently received a National Science Foundation grant to develop an open knowledge network for public policy. Birkhead's work has been published in several leading journals, including Political Research Quarterly, Legislative Studies Quarterly and American Politics Research. He is the co-author of the book "Congress in Reverse: Repeals from Reconstruction to the Present," published in 2020 by the University of Chicago Press.

Birkhead is K-State's 2022-2023 Coffman Chair for Distinguished Teaching Scholars and has previously been recognized as one of K-State's top teachers, earning the Commerce Bank and W.T. Kemper Foundation Outstanding Teaching Award in 2016 and the Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in 2017. He also received an Open/Alternative Textbook Award in 2018.

"The department has a long list of strengths: award-winning teachers, strong research output, innovative faculty who develop new programs, and students who are engaged and enthusiastic," Birkhead said. "I am excited to help capitalize on these strengths as we address the challenges facing us for the next several years."

As Kansas State University's 2022-2023 Coffman Chair for Distinguished Teaching Scholars, Nate Birkhead will assess experiential learning at the university, including identifying and assessing where its use is most successful and developing recommendations for ensuring its most effective use.

The Coffman Chair was created in 1995 to highlight K-State's commitment to excellence in undergraduate teaching and learning. Each chair is an acknowledged leading teaching scholar and is provided the time and resources to conduct a research project or develop programs to improve educational methods at the university. Recipients retain the title of teaching scholar throughout their career at K-State.

Dr. Birkhead is an associate professor of political science who teaches about the American political system at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. He also serves as director of his department's undergraduate internship program. He helps around 35 students a year earn credit for serving internships with various political organizations, including in congressional and state legislative offices, the US Department of Justice and Homeland Security, and a number of various interest groups such as the Kansas Farm Bureau and the Chamber of Commerce.

His research and interest in effective pedagogy — including the use of experiential learning techniques in his courses — and engaging undergraduates in research are among the reasons Birkhead wanted to serve as Coffman Chair for Distinguished Teaching Scholars.

"Beyond my role as internship director, I regularly use experiential learning in class, whether it is in the form of involving students in research projects or through hands-on applications of course concepts," Birkhead said. "I am certainly not alone in utilizing experiential learning as a part of pedagogical practice, but the science of teaching and learning still has many questions on how exactly instructors can tailor experiential learning to suit pedagogical goals. That is, I know that what we're doing is valuable, but I want to help add to our understanding of when and what kinds of experiential learning opportunities are going to offer the best utility for students and instructors."

During the first two months of Birkhead's term as Coffman Chair, he will develop a survey for K-State faculty across disciplines to determine what types and how common experiential learning techniques are used in their fields, as well as the and the nature of experiential learning opportunities most used in their subjects. A teaching assistant will be hired to help Birkhead administer the survey.

The second phase of his Coffman Chair term will be used to assess experiential learning techniques. Birkhead will work with professors identified in his first phase who use such techniques so he can develop pre-test and post-test measures of learning outcomes to assess the effectiveness of each technique.

"While implementation of experiential learning techniques has been common across the country, what has not kept pace has been assessment of these techniques' effectiveness," Birkhead said. "There are many studies that show students have positive experiences with outside engagement — including my own research on this topic — but many questions remain."

Birkhead also will use the survey to compile a directory of faculty across campus using experiential learning techniques who can serve as contacts for other faculty members considering adding or revising an experiential learning component to their courses. He also plans to share results from his Coffman project in a pedagogical journal.

Birkhead, who joined K-State in 2012, has previously been recognized as one of K-State's top teachers, earning the Commerce Bank and W.T. Kemper Foundation Outstanding Teaching Award in 2016 and the Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching in 2017. He also received an Open/Alternative Textbook Award in 2018.

Along with teaching at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, Birkhead is sought after for student mentoring and research. He serves as a research mentor to students who are working on projects as part of the College of Arts and Sciences' undergraduate research program. Recently, he received a National Science Foundation grant and hired seven students to help him with data collection for the project to develop an open knowledge network for public policy. He has also served as a research mentor for the Manhattan High School University Level Research Mentorship program.

Birkhead's work has been published in serval leading journals, including Political Research Quarterly, Legislative Studies Quarterly and American Politics Research. He is the co-author of the book "Congress in Reverse: Repeals from Reconstruction to the Present," published in 2020 by the University of Chicago Press. He also has given invited talks across the nation on effective teaching and more.

A native of Colorado, Birkhead earned his bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Colorado and a doctorate in political science from Indiana University.