Politics
- Degree Type Bachelor of Arts
- Department Politics
- Academic Division The Williams School
- Offerings Major
At W&L, the study of politics is a combination of theory and practice and our proximity to D.C. is a plus. We are close enough for students to benefit from study in the nation’s capital, but far enough away to be one step removed from the day-to-day D.C. experience.
Politics
W&L offers a liberal arts approach to the study of politics. It’s interdisciplinary. Our department stresses the close reading of texts. We enable students to think seriously about the most important questions regarding being a member of a community and how we relate to other nations. Instruction is not focused on lectures, but on a question-and-answer approach between students and faculty. We offer small classes, and faculty have an open-door policy and are highly interested in their students’ success in the classroom and in the world beyond W&L.
The Department of Politics at Washington and Lee University teaches students to be informed and active citizens of a free society, able to think about politics with rigor and nuance. We offer a wide array of courses in American government, political philosophy, global politics, and statistics and methods. We encourage students to pursue their education in an interdisciplinary manner and we provide opportunities to augment their study in off-campus and experiential learning programs.
Opportunities
The study of politics at W&L includes opportunities to participate in our Mock Convention, publish in our Political Review, work with high school students in our Model UN program and engage in a host of community service projects.
Many have earned prestigious scholarships, such as Fulbright, Rhodes, Rotary and Watson fellowships. Some of our students go on to pursue graduate study and are now teachers of politics themselves. The major offers something for everyone. We support off-campus research and study, and conference participation. There are opportunities to study with professors during the academic year as well as the summer.
Washington Term
The Washington Term Program has provided more than 400 W&L students with memorable living and learning experiences in the nation’s capital since 1987. Students have used the six-week Spring Term course to launch careers in every branch of government. The program includes three components: an academic course, an internship and a lecture series.
“Politics rules the world. Everything else is ordered by policy. The most important questions we face in a civil society, such as what laws should be made, are decided through politics. Politics helps humans relate to each other in an ethical fashion.”
Lucas Morel
Professor of Politics and Head of the Politics Department
What’s Next for Bailey Jordan ’26
Jordan is moving back to her hometown in North Carolina to work in the marketing department at Allspring Global Investments.
Jackson Flower ’25 Publishes Paper in the Penn Undergraduate Law Journal
The article is based on a capstone paper Flower wrote for his minor in law, justice and society at W&L.
Malachi Zarahn ’28 Becomes First W&L Student Selected for UVA’s Roadmap Scholars Initiative
The two-year program is designed to help students chart their path into the legal profession.
Washington and Lee Names Six Faculty Members to Endowed Professorships in The College and The Williams School
These faculty have been recognized for their outstanding teaching, scholarship and service to the university.
Sofia Elverdin Selected as Co-Recipient of the Best Dissertation Prize From the American Political Science Association’s Women, Gender and Politics Section
The assistant professor of politics will receive her prize at the association’s annual meeting in Boston in September.
Summer Reading Recs
Four W&L professors share their must-reads to help you round out your reading list.
W&L’s Alexander Kagan ’27 Named a Constitutional Studies Fellow by the Hertog Foundation
Kagan will spend two weeks in an intensive learning experience focused on American constitutional history and development.
W&L’s Chuck Rutberg ’26 Selected for Teaching Assistant Program in France
Rutberg is looking forward to building on his French language skills before pursuing a career in the federal government.
Brody Sandifer-Williams ’28 and Edison Dokken ’28 Awarded the CIE Arabic Summer Scholarship
Washington and Lee’s Center for International Education awarded funding to the sophomores to study Arabic in Meknes, Morocco, this summer.
Best Foot Forward
Icy Keneah ’26 turned a childhood love of fun socks into a nonprofit serving communities in Rockbridge County and her hometown of Richmond, Virginia.
Beyond the Classroom
Lela Casey ’25 took her education around the world with a series of immersive language learning opportunities made possible by W&L’s Office of Fellowships.
Meet the Faculty
At W&L, students enjoy small classes and close relationships with professors who educate and nurture.
Lucas Morel
Provost Faculty Fellow and John K. Boardman, Jr. Professor of Politics, Department Head
- P: 540-458-8161
- E: morell@wlu.edu
Morel has taught at W&L since 1999. His teaching and research interests include American government, political theory, Abraham Lincoln, Ralph Ellison, and race and equality. He is a pre-law advisor and an accomplished writer.
Brian Alexander
Associate Professor of Politics
Alexander teaches courses primarily in U.S. government and international relations. He has more than 20 years of professional experience and is the director or the W&L Washington Term, held in Washington, DC, each Spring.
Seth Cantey
Lewis G. John Term Professor of Politics; MESA Program Head
- P: 540-458-8019
- E: canteys@wlu.edu
Cantey teaches courses on global politics, Middle Eastern politics, intelligence, terrorism and foreign policy. His commentary on current events has been picked up by various media outlets, such as USA Today and the Huffington Post.
Michaela Cushing-Daniels
Visiting Assistant Professor of Politics
Sofia Elverdin
Assistant Professor of Politics
Stu Gray
Darrold and Kay Cannan Term Professor of Politics
- P: 540-458-5879
- E: grays@wlu.edu
Gray teaches numerous courses in political theory, including the history of western political thought (Classical, Modern, and Contemporary) and South Asian political thought. His research focuses on global-comparative political theory and Indian political thought, including the contemporary reception and political use of Classical Hindu traditions.
Rebecca C. Harris
Professor of Politics
- P: 540-458-8199
- E: harrisr@wlu.edu
Harris teaches applied American Politics courses in government, public policy and environmental policy. Her interdisciplinary work focuses on genetic science and partisanship in food politics.
Robin LeBlanc
William Lyne Wilson Professor of Political Economy
- P: 540-458-8612
- E: leblancr@wlu.edu
LeBlanc is a political anthropologist focused on the civic engagement of non-elites in rich democracies. She teaches classes on global politics, urban politics, gender and politics, and political theory.
Mark Rush
Director of International Education and Professor of Politics
- P: 540-458-8904
- E: rushm@wlu.edu
Rush writes on U.S. politics, constitutional law, elections and democracy around the world, global affairs, and higher education. His current scholarly work includes presidential power, international politics, judicial activism, elections and democratic reform, civic education, higher education, and law and technology.
Sheahan Virgin
Assistant Professor of Politics
- P: 540-458-8376
- E: svirgin@wlu.edu
Virgin teaches courses on American national institutions and elections. His approach to teaching U.S. politics encourages students to utilize the broadly applicable methodologies of comparative institutionalism, basic causal inference, and normative democratic theory. His research focuses on electoral rules and reform.
