Meet Our Faculty
Ronald Schmidt Jr.
- Title
- Associate professor
- Department
- Political Science
- Areas of interest
- American political thought, political theory, and American politics
What are the strengths of the political science program?
Our students. Basically two types of students are drawn to our program. Students interested in a career in law, and those absorbed in politics. They’re dedicated and very hard working. They help link us to the community outside the academy. An increasing number of our students go on to graduate school and that’s gratifying to see. Another strength is our faculty. We’re all maintaining research agendas, but we’re committed to quality teaching.
Was there an “aha” moment or any one experience that has influenced your teaching?
In the middle of college (at Univesity of California-Berkeley), I decided I wanted to be a professor. I’d just reached a certain point in my life where I decided it was best suited for me to do. My teaching style is a reflection of two professors I had as an undergraduate, but also of the way I read. When I was doing my own research, I tried to figure out what kind of narrative the writer was presenting. Basically, I broke down the arguments the writer made and looked at the stories they used to present their argument. As a teaching assistant at Berkeley, I had the opportunity to help students with their writing, helping them present their arguments more clearly. I’m still doing that today.
What is your role in students’ lives?
At Berkeley, there were 35,000 students, and you were to a large degree left to your own devices. I was comfortable with that, a certain distance. Some students are perfectly happy to have a classroom lecture experience. Others come in for help with their writing. It’s really their call.
What surprises you about USM students?
Their ability to juggle complicated lives really impresses me. Many of them have families and jobs, and they’re still able to put enormous amounts of time and energy into their work.
Where do you live and why?
I live in Portland, because I like living in cities. I spent some time in San Francisco, and Portland genuinely feels to me like a mini Bay area. There’s an active civic life here, a feel of a real community. I think Portland offers life in a city without a lot of the problems found in a city. USM is part of the life of Portland; I feel a responsibility to have some kind of public presence to help heighten USM’s profile. We need to remind people they have a really great, major university right here.
What might people not know about you?
I love to cook. I started doing it when I was working on my dissertation. It was something I could start and finish in a couple of hours.
