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“Dissident Political Thought”, “What The United States Does Wrong In The World: Views From India and Answers From Washington”); the good contacts between a professor and a student, the dialogue during lecture and a lot of questions from the floor; high requirements addressed to students and professors (in the end of semester students fill in a special evaluation form); modern teaching techniques (power point presentations, documentary movies, extracts from comedy show, simulations etc.); pluralism in teaching (you can see a traditional academic lecture and up to date computerized lecture, serious classes and classes where there is a space for jokes); interdisciplinary approach and a look at politics through economic, historic, legal and sociologic “glasses”; a combination of the theory and the analysis of current poli-tics and political practice, up to date and interesting topics for simulations. All above mentioned characteristics of educational process deserve the attention of professors here at my university inKazan, Russia.

In summing up my stay the US, I can say that it was an important and useful experience for my professional and research activities. I wish to express my deep gratitude toward the Government Department, Skidmore College, and Professor and Chair Katherine Graney who helped me greatly during my stay there.

Oleg Zaznaev Professor and Chair

Department of Political Science

Kazan (Volga Region) Federal University, Russia

SCUSA was an academically rigorous and stimulating challenge. What really made my time at West Point, however, was observ-ing the fun, engaging way in which cadets commit themselves to their studies and training. SCUSA attendees spent the three nights in the barracks (the West Point dorms) on cots, sharing rooms with the West Pointers themselves. The speakers and roundtable sessions of the conference were informative and enlightening, but the most valuable part of the experience, in my opinion, was the opportunity for an in-sight into the lives and training of the cadets.

These West Point men and women - my peers - were qualified to gain admission into the premiere military academy in the world, and their steadfast dedication is leading them into some form of advanced national service. For someone who has spent little time exaggerating my patriot-ism or considering the US military’s impact on my own life, SCUSA left me able to put a more personal face on the US military. I drove out of the academy feeling pride for people that I had previously spent most of my academic career lumping under a banner of US military policy. Despite your stance on the US military’s past and present roles in global affairs, a few days with the cadets at West Point will undoubtedly leave you feeling confident about the intellect, passion, and upstanding character of the future of US military leadership. If you haven’t seen West Point yet, I highly recommend a visit with a scheduled tour of the campus. Make sure to check out the view of the Hudson from top floor of the library, and make sure you talk to some of the cadets (they’re the strong-looking peo-ple wearing grey uniforms). I’m sure they’ll have a story for you too.

Jenny Kaufmann ‘12

Centered on domestic work in Bolivia, my thesis examines how reliance on the informal economy restricts partic-ipatory citizenship and how individuals use unions to combat this limitation. Through the examination of academ-ic articles, union documents, and personal interviews, I evaluate the ability of unions to strengthen individuals’ capacity to engage in civil society and exercise full citizenship. I conclude with a speculation about the role that unions may have in supporting democratic stability in the country.