An associate professor of politics and policy in the University of Virginia’s Woodrow Wilson Department of Politics and Frank Batten School for Leadership and Public Policy, Dr. Justin Kirkland says, “my two years at App were essential to all my educational and professional successes.”

Since earning her master’s degree at Appalachian, Summer Forester has finished her Ph.D. at Purdue University, received a Fulbright fellowship to study in Jordan and published papers in three journals: Security Dialogue, Feminist Review and Environmental Politics. She attributes much of this success to Appalachian’s M.A. program and its faculty.

With a background in marine biology, Christina Wiegand came to Boone to study environmental politics. In the M.A. program, she developed policy analysis techniques and has worked for the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries and Marine Recreational Information Program. She is now a social scientist with the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC).

Tyler Steelman is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, specializing in American politics and political psychology. He credits his Appalachian faculty and the research he conducted under their supervision with preparing him for a career in academia.

Courtney Bradway completed her bachelor’s degree in pre-legal studies and continued her education at Appalachian through the Accelerated Admissions Program. After moving to Washington, D.C., she held positions in three congressional offices and is now director of congressional liaison in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Legislation at the Department of Health and Human Services.

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