Miller Center

Syllabi by Topic

Syllabi from scholars on a variety of courses that address topics that pertain to Governing America in a Global Era are found below. Dave Robertson has produced a particularly impressive bibliography on American Political development which can be found here.

If you would like to add your syllabi or reading list to this page, please contact gage@virginia.edu.

For a list of syllabi organized by instructor, click here.

Last updated 3/11/08

American Political Development

American Constitutional Development
Graduate; 2008
Ken Kersch
Boston College

American Constitutional Development
Undergraduate; 2004
Ken Kersch
Princeton University

American Government: A Historical Introduction
Undergraduate; 2006
Andrew J. Polsky
Hunter College, City University of New York

American Government from an Historical Perspective
Undergraduate; 2008
Ann Cohen
Hunter College, City University of New York

American Political Development
Graduate; 2003
Sidney Milkis
University of Virginia

American Political Development
Undergraduate; 2006
Andrew J. Polsky
Hunter College, City University of New York

American Political Development
Graduate; 2005
Andrew J. Polsky
Hunter College, City University of New York

American Political Development
Graduate; 2006
Beth Rosenson
University of Florida

American Political Development in the Twentieth Century
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
Elizabeth Sanders
Cornell University

American Political Development
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2006
Eric Schickler
University of California, Berkeley

American Political Development
Undergraduate; 2003
Randall Strahan
Emory University

American Political Development
Graduate; 2003
Steven Teles
Brandeis University

American Political Development
Graduate; 2007
Vesla Weaver
University of Virginia

California and the West in National Politics
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2004
Margaret O'Mara
Stanford University

Civil Liberties
Graduate; 2005
Ken Kersch
Princeton University

Civil Liberties
Undergraduate; 2005
Ken Kersch
Princeton University

Congress, President, and the Court in American Politics
Undergraduate; 2007
Daniel Wirls
University of California, Santa Cruz

The Constitution in American Political Development
Undergraduate; 2003
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

Democracy in America
Undergraduate; 2007
Charles Kromkowski
University of Virginia

Political Economy of American Development, 1860-1900
Graduate; 2005
Richard Bensel
Cornell University

Seminar in American Political Development
Undergraduate; 2003
Andrew D. Grossman
Albion College

Seminar in American Political Development
Graduate; 2007
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

Themes in American Political Development
Graduate; 2006 - 2007
Ira Katznelson
Columbia University

Tutorial in American Political Development
Undergraduate; 2005
Nicole Mellow
Williams College

Twentieth-Century American Political Development Colloquium
Graduate; 2007
Brian Balogh
University of Virginia

War, Trade, and American Political Development
Undergraduate; 2007
Shelley Hurt
Vassar College

American Politics

American Politics
Undergraduate; 2008
Shelley Hurt
Vassar College

American Politics Field Seminar
Graduate; 2007
Elizabeth Sanders
Cornell University

Cultural Issues and Cultural Conflict in American Politics
Graduate; 2006
Byron E. Shafer
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Democracy and the Military: Problems in U.S. Civil Military Relations
Undergraduate; 2007
Elizabeth Kier
University of Washington, Seattle

Engines of Change in American Politics
Graduate; 2005
Byron E. Shafer
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Honors Media and Politics
Undergraduate; 2007
Beth Rosenson
University of Florida

Interpretations of American Politics
Undergraduate; 2005
Nicole Mellow
Williams College

Introduction to American Politics
Undergraduate; 2003
Leo Lovelace
Chapman University

Introduction to American Politics
Graduate; 2007
David R. Mayhew
Yale University

Introduction to American Politics
Undergraduate; 2007
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

Introduction to Labor Studies
Undergraduate; 2005
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

Introduction to Politics
Undergraduate; 2007
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

Local Government Law
Graduate; 2005
Richard Schragger
University of Virginia School of Law

The Politics of Business Regulation
Undergraduate; 2003
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

The Politics of Place - Red and Blue America
Undergraduate; 2006
Nicole Mellow
Williams College

Proseminar in American Politics
Graduate; 2005
Howard Reiter
University of Connecticut

Religion and Politics in America
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
Doug Rossinow
Metropolitan State University

Religion and Public Leadership in Contemporary America
Undergraduate; 2007
R. Drew Smith
Morehouse College

Freshman Writing Seminar: Southern Politics
Undergraduate; 2007
Elizabeth Sanders
Cornell University

Seminar in Political Economy
Graduate; 2008
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

Twentieth Century American Politics
Undergraduate; 2006
Ira Katznelson
Columbia University

Business and Economic History

American Business History
Undergraduate; 2006
Jonathan Bean
Southern Illinois University Carbondale

The Global Economy - A History
Undergraduate; 2005
Louis Galambos
The Johns Hopkins University

Senior Seminar: The Business of Vice in U.S. History
Undergraduate; 2008
Jonathan Bean
Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Topics in U.S. Economic History: Business and Labor History
Undergraduate; 2004
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

Cities and Suburbanism

Building Silicon Valley: An Urban and Political History
Undergraduate; 2003
Margaret O'Mara
Stanford University

Cities in the North American West, 1840-1940
Undergraduate; 2003
Margaret O'Mara
Stanford University

Modern American Cities
Graduate; 2005
Michael Katz
University of Pennsylvania

The Suburban West
Undergraduate; 2003
Margaret O'Mara
Stanford University

Suburbanism in International Perspective
Undergraduate; 2007
Christopher Sellers
State University of New York, Stony Brook

Urban Law and Policy
Graduate; 2007
Richard Schragger
University of Virginia School of Law

Congress

American Congress
Undergraduate; 2007
Charles Kromkowski
University of Virginia

The American Congress
Graduate; 2004
Eric Patashnik
University of Virginia

Institutions
Graduate; 2007
Richard Bensel
Cornell University

Conservatism

American Conservatism
Undergraduate; 2004
Joseph Crespino
Emory University

The Conservative View in U.S. History
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
Jonathan Bean
Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Conservatism in the United States
Graduate; 2003
Michael Kazin
Georgetown University

Cultural and Intellectual History

Recent American History: Politics and Popular Culture in Twentieth Century America
Graduate; 2007
Bruce Schulman
Boston University

Topics in American Studies: American Cultural Criticism
Undergraduate; 2007
Casey Blake
Columbia University

U.S. Cultural and Intellectual History
Graduate; 2007
Casey Blake
Columbia University

U.S. Intellectual History since 1865
Undergraduate; 2006
Casey Blake
Columbia University

Education

Closing the Achievement Gap
Undergraduate; 2007
Chris Howard
College of William and Mary

Educational Research in the United States: Problems and Possibilities
Graduate; 2007
Richard Arum and Jonathan Zimmerman
New York University

History of American Education
Graduate; 2007
Jonathan Zimmerman
New York University

History of American Education and Society: Education and the Culture Wars
Graduate; 2007
Jonathan Zimmerman
New York University

Schooling in Diverse Societies
Undergraduate; 2008
Jonathan Zimmerman
New York University

Environmental Policy and History

American Environmental Policy
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
Richard Andrews
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Environment and Work in the Global Economy
Undergraduate; 2007
Richard Andrews
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Environmental Decision-Making
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2008
Richard Andrews
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Environmental History of North America
Undergraduate; 2007
Christopher Sellers
State University of New York, Stony Brook

Environmental Policy Instruments
Graduate; 2007
Richard Andrews and Dale Whittington
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Environmental Politics
Undergraduate; 2007
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

International Perspectives on the History of Work and Environment
Graduate; 2007
Christopher Sellers
State University of New York, Stony Brook

International Relations

Advanced IR Theory
Graduate; 2007
Elizabeth Kier
University of Washington, Seattle

American Foreign Policy
Undergraduate; 2007
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

American Grand Strategy
Undergraduate; 2005
Jeffrey Legro
University of Virginia

Causes and Consequences of US Foreign Policy
Undergraduate; 2005
Elizabeth Sanders
Cornell University

Crisis Decision Making in U.S. Foreign Policy
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2003
Amy Zegart
University of California, Los Angeles

Foreign Policy of the United States
Graduate; 2005
Jeffrey Legro
University of Virginia

Great Powers, Grand Strategies, and International Order
Jeffrey Legro
Undergraduate; 2007
University of Virginia

International Conflict
Undergraduate; 2007
Elizabeth Kier
University of Washington, Seattle

International Politics: The Geopolitics of the Twenty-First Century
Undergraduate; 2005
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

International Security
Graduate; 2007
Elizabeth Kier
University of Washington, Seattle

Islamism and American Foreign Policy
Undergraduate; 2003
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

The Policies and Politics of American Defense
Undergraduate; 2007
Daniel Wirls
University of California, Santa Cruz

Seminar: American Foreign Policy in the Cold War and After: Presidents Understanding Conflict
Undergraduate; 2008
Kenneth Thompson
University of Virginia

Methods

Historical Research and Writing: U.S. History
Undergraduate; 2007
Jonathan Bean
Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Introduction to Historical Method
Undergraduate; 2008
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

Political Analysis
Graduate; 2007
John Gerring
Boston University

Political Analysis: A Primer
Undergraduate; 2007
John Gerring
Boston University

Qualitative Research
Graduate; 2007
Elizabeth Kier
University of Washington, Seattle

Research Methods
Undergraduate; 2007
Chris Howard
College of William and Mary

Turning Points in US History: Micro-Analytic Methods
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
Philip Zelikow
University of Virginia

Undergraduate Research Seminar
Undergraduate; 2004
Edward D. Berkowitz
The George Washington University

Military History and Wartime

American Military History
Undergraduate; 2008
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

Senior Seminar: Going to War in American History
Undergraduate; 2006
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

The United States at War, 1861-1945
Undergraduate; 2006
Carl Bon Tempo
University of Waterloo

Miscellaneous

American History, 1607-1877
Undergraduate; 2008
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

Cinema and Society in Europe Since 1945
Undergraduate; 2008
Tony Judt
New York University

Democratic Governance
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
John Gerring
Boston University

Global Justice
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
John Gerring
Boston University

Global Public Health Since World War II
Undergraduate; 2007
Louis Galambos
The Johns Hopkins University

Moral and Ethical Issues in Sport
Graduate; 2006
Richard Lapchick
University of Central Florida

Political Culture
Graduate; 2007
Richard Bensel
Cornell University

Political Economy of Advanced Societies
Undergraduate; 2007
Cathie Jo Martin
Boston University

Modernity

The Birth of Modern America, 1896-1929
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2006
Bruce Schulman
Boston University

Core in American History, Part IV
Graduate; 2005
Margaret O'Mara
Stanford University

Modernity and Modernization in International History
Graduate; 2007
Nick Cullather
Indiana University, Bloomington

Shaping the Modern World, 1893-1943
Undergraduate; 2007
Philip Zelikow
University of Virginia

The Transformation of Modern America, 1912-1945
Undergraduate; 2007
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

United States History, 1890-1945
Undergraduate; 2007
Edward D. Berkowitz
The George Washington University

New Deal - Present

America in the 1970s
Undergraduate; 2006
Carl Bon Tempo
University of Waterloo

America in Depression and War
Undergraduate; 2003
Meg Jacobs
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

American Political History: Politics, Culture, and the Making of the Modern American State
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2003
Michael Fein
Brandeis University

The Cold War
Undergraduate; 2007
David Coleman and Marc Selverstone
University of Virginia

Cold War America
Undergraduate; 2005
Carl Bon Tempo
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

The Cold War in World History
Undergraduate; 2003
Philip Zelikow
University of Virginia

The Great Depression in the United States, 1929-1942
Undergraduate; 2007
Jonathan Bean
Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Postwar America, 1945-Present
Undergraduate; 2006
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

The Sixties Experience
Undergraduate; 2006
Doug Rossinow
Metropolitan State University

The United States after World War II
Undergraduate; 2007
Lizabeth Cohen
Harvard University

The United States Since 1945
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2003
Matthew Lassiter
University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

The United States Since 1968
Undergraduate; 2008
Bruce Schulman
Boston University

The Vietnam War
Undergraduate; 2007
Doug Rossinow
Metropolitan State University

Viewing America: The United States from 1945 to the Present
Undergraduate; 2008
Brian Balogh
University of Virginia

Policy History and Policy Making

American Political Institutions and Processes
Undergraduate; 2007
Eric Patashnik
University of Virginia

American Public Policy
Graduate; 2006
Eric Patashnik
University of Virginia

Colloquium in U.S. Policy History
Graduate; 2005
Jonathan Bean
Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Gender, Sexuality, and Public Policy in the 20th Century U.S.
Undergraduate; 2003
Jane De Hart
University of California, Santa Barbara

History and Public Policy
Graduate; 2007
Edward D. Berkowitz
The George Washington University

Policy Conflict in American Politics
Graduate; 2006
Byron E. Shafer
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Science, Technology, Power and Politics
Undergraduate; 2008
Shelley Hurt
Vassar College

U.S. National Policymaking
Undergraduate; 2006
David R. Mayhew
Yale University

Political Activism

African-American Churches and Social Activism
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2004
R. Drew Smith
Morehouse College

Social Movements in American Politics
Undergraduate; 2005
Elizabeth Sanders
Cornell University

Political Parties

American Political Parties
Graduate; 2007
Sarah Binder
The George Washington University

Left, Right, and Center: Party Politics in Modern America
Undergraduate; 2008
Margaret O'Mara
University of Washington, Seattle

Parties and Ideologies
Undergraduate; 2006
David R. Mayhew
Yale University

Political Parties in America
Undergraduate; 2006
Nicole Mellow
Williams College

Political Thought

American Political Thought
Undergraduate; 2006
Ken Kersch
Princeton University

Comparative Politics: Twentieth-Century Founders
Undergraduate; 2005
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

Foundations of American Political Thought
Undergraduate; 2004
Rogan Kersh
Syracuse University

German Political Philosophy
Undergraduate; 2004
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

Modern American Political Thought
Undergraduate; 2005
Rogan Kersh
Syracuse University

Tutorial on Hegel's "The Philosophy of Right"
Undergraduate; 2003
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

World Politics
Undergraduate; 2007
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

Presidency

The American Presidency
Undergraduate; 2005
Nicole Mellow
Williams College

The American Presidency
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
Richard Pious
Columbia University

The American Presidency
Undergraduate; 2007
Russell Riley
University of Virginia

The American Presidency
Undergraduate; 2008
Dave Robertson
University of Missouri-St. Louis

The American Presidency
Undergraduate; 2007
Elizabeth Sanders
Cornell University

The American Presidency at War
Undergraduate; 2008
Andrew Polsky
Hunter College, City University of New York

The Constitutional Law of Presidential-Congressional Relations
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2008
Richard Pious
Columbia University

The History of the Modern American Presidency
Undergraduate; 2007
Edward D. Berkowitz
The George Washington University

The Politics of Presidential Selection
Graduate; 2004
Byron E. Shafer
University of Wisconsin-Madison

Race and Politics

History of the Civil Rights Movement
Undergraduate; 2007
Julian Bond
University of Virginia

Race and Ethnic Politics in the United States
Undergraduate; 2007
Vesla Weaver
University of Virginia

Race and Ethnicity
Graduate; 2004
Paul Frymer
Princeton University

Social Policy and Inequality

American Politics and Social Welfare Policy
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
Robert Lieberman
Columbia University

The American Welfare State
Undergraduate; 2007
Chris Howard
College of William and Mary

The American Welfare State in Comparative Perspective
Undergraduate; 2003
Jacob S. Hacker
Yale University

Historical-Social Policy Research
Graduate; 2007
W. A. Achenbaum
University of Houston

Philosophy of Science for Social Work Practice
Graduate; 2007
W. A. Achenbaum
University of Houston

Social Security Reform
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2004
Eric Patashnik
University of Virginia

The State and Social Policy
Graduate; 2008
Margaret O'Mara
University of Washington, Seattle

Wealth and Inequality in the Modern Corporate Age
Undergraduate; 2006
Christopher Sellers
State University of New York, Stony Brook

Wealth, Want & Power
Undergraduate; 2007
Michael Fein
Babson College

The Twentieth Century

American History, 1877-Present
Undergraduate; 2006
Edward D. Berkowitz
The George Washington University

American History, 1877-Present
Undergraduate; 2007
Patrick Reagan
Tennessee Tech University

American History Since 1877
Undergraduate; 2007
Carl Bon Tempo
University of Waterloo

Colloquium in American History, 1877-Present
Graduate; 2006
Brian Balogh and Mel Leffler
University of Virginia

Public Power, Private Lives: Writing Twentieth-Century U.S. History as Biography
Undergraduate; 2006
Lizabeth Cohen
Harvard University

Readings in the United States in the 20th Century: Proseminar
Graduate; 2004
Lizabeth Cohen
Harvard University

Twentieth-Century America
Undergraduate; 2008
Jonathan Bean
Southern Illinois University Carbondale

United States History: The Twentieth Century
Undergraduate; 2004
Michael Bernstein
University of California, San Diego

Who Is an American? National Identity in the 20th Century United States
Undergraduate; 2007
Carl Bon Tempo
University of Waterloo

U.S. Constitution and the Judiciary

American Constitutional Law
Undergraduate; 2007
Ken Kersch
Boston College

American Legal History: Law and the State in Twentieth-Century America
Graduate; 2005
Daniel R. Ernst
Georgetown University Law Center

Constitutional Democracy in America
Undergraduate; 2008
Ken Kersch and Harvey Mansfield
Harvard University

Constitutional History: From the Articles of Confederation to the Civil War
Graduate; 2007
Michael Klarman
University of Virginia School of Law

Constitutional Interpretation: Separation of Powers and Federalism
Undergraduate; 2007
David M. O'Brien
University of Virginia

Constitutional Law
Graduate; 2007
Michael Klarman
University of Virginia School of Law

Constitutional Rights
Undergraduate; 2003
Leo Lovelace
Chapman University

Constitutional Theory
Graduate; 2007
Michael Klarman and Michael Seidman
University of Virginia School of Law and Georgetown University Law Center

Law and Society
Undergraduate; 2007
Ken Kersch
Princeton University

Lawyers and the State in Modern America Seminar
Graduate; 2004
Daniel R. Ernst
Georgetown University Law Center

Seminar on Civil Rights and Liberties
Graduate; 2006
David M. O'Brien
University of Virginia

Seminar on Constitutional Law and Theory
Undergraduate/Graduate; 2007
David M. O'Brien
University of Virginia

The United States Constitution
Undergraduate; 2005
Will Morrisey
Hillsdale College

U.S. History: America and the World

Americans Abroad
Undergraduate; 2008
Jonathan Zimmerman
New York University

America's Image in the World
Undergraduate; 2008
Nick Cullather
Indiana University, Bloomington

Global America: Class, Race, and Empire Since 1890
Undergraduate; 2007
Alan Dawley
The College of New Jersey

United States Diplomatic History Since 1914
Undergraduate; 2006
Marc Selverstone
University of Virginia

The United States in World History
Undergraduate; 2005
Alan Dawley
The College of New Jersey