Faculty Research Interests

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J. Wesley Leckrone

My primary interests are in the fields of American federalism and state and local policy agendas. Recently I have been researching how the American federal system has affected the country’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which has resulted in four co-authored publications. I am also currently co-editing a book on Teaching Federalism: Multidimensional Approaches, which will be published as part of Edward Elgar’s Teaching Methods series. Much of my research on state politics focuses on Pennsylvania. I have recently co-edited Pennsylvania Politics and Policy: A Commonwealth Reader, Volume 1 (2018) and Volume 2 (2019). I am currently doing research for Governing the Commonwealth: Politics, Policy and Executive Power in Pennsylvania. The book examines how recent Pennsylvania governors have used their formal and informal powers to influence public policy across a range of issues including education, the environment, and social welfare.

I am currently co-authoring research adapting this model to local politics through an exploration of the agendas of large-city mayors as voiced through their State of the City addresses. I am in the beginning stages of writing Governing the Commonwealth: Politics, Policy and Executive Power in Pennsylvania. The book examines how recent Pennsylvania governors have used their formal and informal powers to influence public policy across a range of issues including education, the environment, and social welfare.

James E. Vike

James E. Vike

Associate Dean of Social Science

My current research interests spread across the disparate fields of bureaucratic politics and political engagement. My work on bureaucratic politics focuses on examining the extent of political influence on the regulatory scope and enforcement outputs of federal and state-level regulatory agencies.

My work on political engagement focuses on isolating key factors for promoting political engagement among young citizens without simultaneously triggering partisan polarization and uncivil discourse.