Graduate Student Profiles

	RJ Boyajian, Ph.D. student, is interested in political economy and human rights in the Middle East. She serves the department as undergraduate advisor. | Curriculum Vitae
	Robert Burr, M.A. student, is researching Iraqi political parties and their relation with the religious and ethnic cleavages in Iraq. He is the Director of the Nevada Civil War Volunteers, a non-profit living history and educational group.
	Brandon Condren, M.A. student, is researching energy security and economic interdependence in the Sino-Japanese context. He serves as Research Assistant for Professor Ostergard by collecting data on political assassinations in Afghanistan and helping with research grant applications.
	Orion Cuffe, M.A. student, researches climate policy in local public organizations and the vulnerability and resilience of human systems. He is a Green House Gas Emissions Auditing Intern at the Sierra Business Council and a Board Member of the Police Advisory Board. He is also a member of the Graduate Student Association Council.
	Michael Jacobs, Ph.D. student, is researching bilateral investment Treaties and their effects on foreign direct investment flows. He is teaching PSC 231 World Politics and PSC 336 International Community spring 2011. | Curriculum Vitae
	Crystal Jewett, M.A. student, researches energy security and US-East Asia Relations. She received the Virginia Demmler Political Science scholarship from the Nevada Women’s Fund for both the 2009-10 and 2010-11 school years. | Curriculum Vitae
	Diana Jonmarie, Ph.D. student. Scholarly Interests include:  Ancient, Contemporary, and Post-Modern Political Theory/Philosophy; American Politics, legal systems and institutions; Law / judicial politics and analysis  Diana was named Distinguished Teaching Assistant (2011-2012) for Core Humanities. | Curriculum Vitae
	Trish Keesee, Ph.D. student, researches American Congressional voting behavior. She is a member of the Graduate Student Association Council. | Curriculum Vitae
	Matt Lesenyie, M.A. student, is examining how lobbyists educate their clients on matters of politics, process and strategy, and how lobbyists and clients each define legislative success. He is the Vice President of the Black Graduate Student Association.
	Stephanie Macgill, M.P.A. student, is analyzing local policy responses to federally mandated social service collaboration. She is a 2011 Presidential Management Fellows Nominee and a member of the Graduate Student Association Council. | Curriculum Vitae
	Batyr Odeyev, M.A. student | Curriculum Vitae
	Nathalie Rudi, M.A. student, is interested in human rights and 21st century diplomacy. In 2010, she interned at the Parliament of the Republic of Moldova and at the Balti Public Transportation Department. | Curriculum Vitae
	Walter Tovar

2010-2011 Conference Presentations

Orion Cuffe traveled to four poster presentations in 2010 and also presented “Climate Policy Innovation at the Local Level” at the Graduate Climate Conference, hosted by the University of Washington in October 2010.

Michael Jacobs presented “The Internal Dynamics of BITs: A First Take” at the American Association of Behavioral and Social Sciences Conference in Las Vegas in February 2011. He will also present "An Investigation of the Internal Dynamics of Bilateral Investment Treaties: every BIT Counts” at the WPSA in San Antonio in April 2011.

Crystal Jewett presented her research on Sino-US relations at the Northwest Political Science Association conference in Spokane, Washington in October, 2010. She will present her paper “The EU, the US and China: Towards the New International Order in Energy Security” at the International Conference on EU-US-China Relations, hosted by the College of Europe, in
Bruges, Belgium, in April 2011.

Matthew Lesenyie will be presenting his research on lobbying and interest groups at the MPSA in Chicago in March 2011.

Stephanie Macgill will be presenting “Homelessness Planning Networks and Representative Bureaucracy” at the WPSA in San Antonio, Texas in April 2011.

Nathalie Rudi presented “The Logic of Terrorism” at a conference supported by the Moldo-Austrian Center and hosted by the Moldova State University in 2010.