We are partisans for democracy
What does it mean to be a partisan for democracy? We don’t take sides on the political spectrum, but we do defend the rights everyone has as a democratic citizen — from voting to protesting to consuming information from a free press that serves as a check on political leaders.
The McCourtney Institute for Democracy draws from the humanities and social sciences to examine democracy from multiple angles. This cross-discipline collaboration is evident in our research, education, and outreach efforts.
We educate the next generation of democratic citizens through our Nevins Fellows program, monitor attitudes toward democracy with the Mood of the Nation poll, and host speakers and events that bring people from diverse backgrounds and points of view together to discuss the role of democracy in our society.
We make all of this happen in partnership with our centers of excellence, the Center for American Political Responsiveness and the Center for Democratic Deliberation, and many other organizations throughout the College of the Liberal Arts and the broader Penn State community.
Stay Informed:
Democracy Works Podcast
This episode explores how the relationship between national and state politics changed from the first Trump administration to the second one, and how the administration is using its levers of power differently this time around to target companies, law firms, universities, and more. Our guest is Jake Grumbach, who has wide-ranging expertise in democratic institutions, labor, federalism, racial and economic inequality, and much more.
Grumbach is an associate professor at the Goldman School of Public Policy at UC Berkeley. He has a new paper that examines what happened to a company’s bottom line when it defied a Trump administration executive order about DEI programs. He previously joined us on the show in 2022 to discuss his book Laboratories Against Democracy: How National Parties Transformed State Politics, investigates the causes and consequences of the nationalization of state politics.
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