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Political Science News

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LAS celebrates leadership, alumni achievement
The College of LAS will recognize seven individuals during the 2026 alumni awards celebration in April. This year's honorees are researchers, philanthropists, and political thinkers who have made incredible impacts in their fields and communities. Alumni Achievement  Award...
Lean receiving the Thomas Clarkson Gold Medal from Deputy Prime Minster in Ireland
The Problem Solver
Senior in political science Leana Shin was honored in November at the Global Undergraduate Awards in Ireland for her research paper.The GUA is an international pan-disciplinary award program for undergraduate research. Shin’s paper was selected out of...

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University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign students Clara Alvarez-Leyva and Carlos Hernandez are recipients of the Voyager Scholarship, the Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service.
Illinois students awarded Voyager Scholarships
College of LAS students Clara Alvarez-Leyva, Carlos Hernandez and Danielle Mitchell are recipients of the annual Voyager Scholarship, the Obama-Chesky Scholarship for Public Service.With part of her scholarship funds, Alvarez-...
Pictured are Angelina Correa (bottom left), Meghan Kimbler (bottom middle), Mia Anguiano (bottom right), Janari Anderson (top right), Meena Joudeh (top middle-right), Liz Byrne (top middle-left), and Stephanie Filtcheva (top left).
The jury of second chances
Angelina Correa became a believer in peer court in high school when she served as a juror in the justice program meant to give juvenile criminal offenders a second chance at reform. When Correa, a rising sophomore double majoring in political science and...
Photo of Malea Dunn
2025 Best Political Science Senior Thesis
What was the title of your Thesis?   “The Politics of Sexual Shame”                                 ...
Hallene Gateway
LAS celebrates alumni achievement
Seven alumni of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences will receive recognition during the college’s 2025 alumni awards at a celebration in April. They are researchers, volunteers, and political thinkers who have made incredible impacts in their fields and communities.   LAS...
Spring 2024 Congratulations Teachers Ranked as Excellent, David Kinley Hall
Spring 2024 Teachers Ranked as Excellent
Congratulations to all the faculty and teaching assistants on the Spring 2024 List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent.  A special congratulations to the 17 instructors from the Department of Political Science who are on the list:  Seongjoon Ahn 230 TA Scott Althaus 519 Rob Carroll* 300 Don...
Rayna Patel and Erin Haslett
2024 Senior Thesis Awardees
We would like to congratulate Erin Haslett and Rayna Patel, winners of the 2024 Senior Thesis Award as part of the Political Science Honors Program. We asked Erin and Rayna to share a bit about their research experiences and future plans! Erin Haslett...
Justin Gerber
Alumni Spotlight

Justin Gerber

JUSTIN GERBER (’15) entered the University of Illinois not as a political science major  but after a semester of not feeling connected to his classes, he started to look for other options. Gerber explored the Department of Political Science after enjoying one of the classes and with help from the advisors in the department was able to switch majors. He enjoyed the mixture of real world thinking and history of the major. Mr. Gerber found that the major gives a unique skill set which allows him to be a critical thinker. After graduating, he started a career in marketing. He began with an...
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recent graduate in cap and gown

Alumni Awards

2026 Nominations

University of Illinois Political Science alumni have made significant contributions in many fields – academia, the law, government, politics, business, media and others. The Department of Political Science recognizes exceptional alumni each year through its alumni awards program. The nomination process is simple and open to all. We encourage you to nominate a candidate you think is deserving. Awards will be presented at an Alumni Awards Banquet in May each year.