Roy Edward
Casagranda
______________________________________________________________________________
Education
The University of Houston
M.A., Political Science, December
2001
Major Field of
Study: Political Theory
Secondary
Fields of Study: American Politics and Quantitative Methods
B.S., Political Science, Minor in
Anthropology, May 1994
The University of Maryland, European Division
A.A., General Studies, May 1990
Possible Future
Political Theory Dissertation
Topics
Title: Politics and Meaning in the
Age of Instrumentality
The thesis of Politics and Meaning in the Age of Instrumentality is
that the US has subordinated the political and normative realms of
action to the
economic realm of action in the same way that the worker is
subordinated to the conveyer belt. To demonstrate this I
devised the Three Realm of Action model, a model that distills action
into the normative, political, and economic realms. I use this
model to show the history and evolution of action and power within
Western Civilization. My conclusion is that, although the US
pretends to operate from the public sphere, it has in fact rendered the
public sphere inoperative. Instead, US political actors (from the
weakest to the most powerful) operate almost exclusively within the
private sphere through the economic realm. As a result
the US has subordinated itself to the whims of profit generation,
rampant consumerism, and market forces. Jürgen Habermas,
Hannah Arendt, and Nicolo Machiavelli are the authors who most heavily
influence the dissertation.
Title: The Origins and Development
of Western Civilization
The thesis of this topic is to first define and then locate both time
and geographical those elements that contributed to the creation of
Western Civilization. Since so much, if not most, of what is
considered western developed in the Middle East, its inclusion as a key
focal point will force a reevaluation of both Middle Eastern and
Western conceptualizations.
Primary
Research
Interests
Contemporary political theory,
modernity, democracy, war, American politics, American History, Middle
East politics, Middle East history, Western Civilization, and WWII
Philosophical
Influences
Nietzsche, Arendt, Habermas, Marcuse, Heidegger, Hobbes, ibn Sina, al
Faraby, and Plato
Teaching Interests
Contemporary
theory, modern theory, ancient theory, democratic theory, foreign
policy, US
Government, Middle East politics, the politics of war, and research
methods.
Production
Modules for HIST 465 WWII. This included four modules that could
be used as part of the HIST 465 online and in class formats.
Book
Edit
Mark, Jason. Island of Fire: The
Battle for the Barrikady Gun Factory in Stalingrad. Leaping
Horseman Books, 2007.
Conference
Papers
“US Foreign Policy in the Age of Instrumentality” presented at
Southwest Social Science Association, in Alburquerque, NM,
March 16, 2007
“Skowronek’s Cycle and Presidential Autonomy” presented at
Southwest Social Science Association, in San Antonio, TX,
April
13, 2006
“Empire of the Dollar Autocracy” presented at Southwest Social
Science Association, in San
Antonio, TX,
April 14, 2006
“Beyond the Rational and Self Interested: Identity Claims in an Electoral Republic”
presented at the Southwest Social Science Association, New Orleans, LA
March 2002
“Beyond the Rational and Self Interested: Voter Turnout, Meaning,
and
Identity Claims in Presidential Elections” presented at the Northeast
Political Science Association, Philadelphia,
PA, November 9, 2001
Lectures
in
2009
20th Century Iran (Austin Community College) – May 7
Searching for Solutions to the
Israel-Palestine Situation,
(Austin Community College) – March 6
Privelege and Identity,
(Ethics Resource
Center, Austin Community College) panel
member – February 26
The Conquest of Palestine,
(Mustard Seed Meeting) – February 22
The Incredible Shrinking Palestine,
(Austin Community College) – Febraruy 19
The Crusades: 1095 AD to 1291 AD ,
(Austin Community College) – February 5
The Arab Empire From 661 AD to 1095 AD,
(Austin Community College) – January 22
The Conquest of Palestine,
(Austin Coalition for Gaza, Gateway Community
Center) – January10
Lectures in
2008
The Rise of Islam,
(Austin Community College) – December 2
The Origin and Birth of the
East-West Paradigm,
(Austin Community College) – November 18
Political Identity,
(Ethics Resource Center, Austin Community
College) Panel Chair and
member – October 23
Age of the Technological Cave: Mass
Media and Politics,
(Austin Community College) – October 21
The Presidency Explained,
(Austin Community College) – October 7
Lectures in 2007
World Government: The
Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, (Austin
Community
College) Panel – November 2
A Brief History of the Middle East (Mo-Ranch Elderhostel)
– October 14-19
"The Ancient Middle East"
"The Rise of the Arab Empire"
"The Medieval Middle East"
"The Modern Middle East"
"The Contemporary Middle East"
Lectures in 2006
Seven Political
Moments in History (University of Texas, Austin)
“Industrialization and the Rise
of Modern Ideologies” – November 3
“Social Contract, Part 2: The
French Revolution” – October 20
“Social Contract, Part 1: The
English Civil War” – October 13
“The Birth of Modern Politics in
Medieval Italy, Part 2: Florence” – September 15
“The Birth of Modern Politics in
Medieval Italy, Part 1: Venice” – September 8
“The Politics of 18th Dynasty
Egypt” – June 9
“The Politics and Culture of the
Aztec Empire” – June 30
Politics and
Meaning in the Age of Instrumentality (Austin Community College)
Brown Bag –October 6
Legacy of the
Middle East (Katherine Anne Porter School) – September 12
Relevant
Work Experience
Government Department Austin Community
College
Assistant Professor, summer 2006 to
present
GOVT 2304 Introduction to Political Science
GOVT 2305 United
States
Government
GOVT 2306 Texas
Government
History Department, The University of Maryland
University College
Adjunct
Professor, Spring 2008 to present
HIST 141 Western Civilization I
HIST 142 Western Civilization II
HIST 465 World War II
Content Expert for WWII
Government and Politics Department, The University of
Maryland
University College
Adjunct
Professor, Spring 2007 to present
GPVT 170 American Government
Political Science Department,
Tomball College
Assitant
Professor, Spring 2002 – Summer 2004
GOVT 2301
American Government I
GOVT 2302
American Government II
Political Science Department,
University of Houston
Adjunct
Professor, Spring 2002 – Fall 2003
POLS 3341
Political Thought Since Machiavelli and the Renaissance
POLS 3313
Intro to International Relations
POLS 3360
Politics and Mass Media
POLS 4333
Islam and Democracy
Southwest High School
High
School Teacher and Campus Director, Fall 1999 – Spring 2002
U.S. History
II, U.S. Government, Algebra II
Duties
included supervising other teachers and curriculum development.
Houston Learning Academy
High
School Teacher and Campus Director, Fall 1996 – Spring 1999
U.S.
Government, World History, U.S. History II, Algebra II, Calculus,
Chemistry, Physics
Duties
included supervising other teachers and curriculum development.
Gila Academy and Wilderness Experience
Headmaster and High School Teacher,
Spring1995 – Spring 1996
Geometry,
Mythology, History of the Americas
Duties
included hiring, firing, budget management, curriculum development, and
recruiting.
Organizations
Co-Chair (Summer 2009 to
present)
Austin Philiosophy Forum (formerly Ethics Resource Center)
Co-Chair (Spring 2009)
Ethics Resource Center, Member
Planning Committee since Fall 2008,
Member
WWII Battlefield Tour Group
Research
Grants
Michael A.
Hawash Historical Foundation – “Battle of Stalingrad Research Grant”
part of
the “Soviet War Memoirs Project: In Honor the 65th Anniversary of the
Allied
Victory in World War Two,” by Seyfarth Shaw LLP, Volgograd, Russia,
August 17-27, 2007
ACC
Committees
Curriculum,
Faculty Evaluation, Hiring
Student
Organization
“Twelfth Revolution: Politics and History Club,” Austin
Community
College
Founder
and faculty advisor, Fall 2007 to present
“Student Organization for Media
Accuracy” (SOMA),
University of Houston
Faculty
advisor, Fall 2003 and Spring 2004
Political
Science Memberships
American Political Science Association
Southwest Political Science Association
Honorary
Society
Pi Sigma Alpha
Languages
Arabic (near native fluency), German (high fluency), Farsi (familiarity)
Hobbies
Wargaming, backpacking, rock climbing, battlefield touring, and travel.
Travel
Experience
Lived in: West Germany (five years), Egypt (two years), Lebanon (one
year), Algeria (one year), and England (one year),
Traveled to: Iran, Bahrain, Turkey, Romania, Czechoslovakia,
Yugoslavia, Canada, East Germany, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Greece,
Hungary, the Netherlands, Mexico, and 39 states in the U.S.
References
Current Employer:
Glen Hunt, Department Chair
ghunt@
austincc.edu
Dept.
of Government, Austin
Community College, Austin, TX
78701 512-223-4953
Previous Employer:
Linda Head, Dean
Linda.L.Head@ nhmccd.edu
Business, Technology, and Social Science, Tomball College, Tomball, TX
77375
281-351-3342
Academic References:
Donald S. Lutz, Ph.D.
dslutz@ uh.edu
Dept. of Political Science, University of Houston, Houston, TX
77204 713-743-3906
Phil Carspecken, Ph.D.
pcarspec@ indiana.edu
School of Education, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN
47405 812-856-8356
John Sloan, Ph.D.
jsloan@ uh.edu
Dept. of Political Science, University of Houston, Houston, TX
77204 713-743-3903