Unique opportunity for political scientist

Wellington political scientist Kate McMillan is relishing the opportunity to witness the United States' presidential election on US soil, having first had a crash course on the American political system at one of the US Department of State's Study of the US Institutes.

Study of the US Institutes participant Kate McMillan will study immigration and media issues in the US presidential election (right photo: Barack Obama)

A Senior Lecturer in Political Studies at Victoria University of Wellington, Kate was nominated for the Study of the US Institute on American Politics and Political Thought by Fulbright New Zealand in February, and was one of 18 participants selected from around the world to attend.

The six week Institute, scheduled to be held during the American summer at the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute, is entitled Constituting America and will investigate the American political system from both historical and contemporary points of view.

"The opportunity to learn about American politics and political history from a range of top scholars, to travel to significant political sites and meet officials, lobbyists and media is surely a privilege and joy for a political junkie any year," says Kate.

"But to attend it in 2008, election year, with Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton taking it down to the wire? It feels like the political scientist's jackpot!"

Of particular interest to Kate are the Institute's focuses on immigration and media, two topics which are the focus of her current research. Following the Study of the US Institute, Kate will return to New Zealand briefly before taking up another opportunity to visit the US during the American presidential election. She will be a Visiting Scholar at the University of California, San Diego's Centre for Comparative Immigration Studies for the three months leading up to the election, where she will compare how presidential candidates from the left and right discuss immigration issues in their direct political communications with voters - advertisements, websites, speeches etc.

Another research project Kate is conducting this year will examine televised leaders' debates and post-debate media coverage in the US, New Zealand and Australia, so she will be watching closely both the rules and format of the televised debates leading up to the Democratic National Convention in August.

Study of the US Institutes for Secondary Educators participant David Ivory from Christchurch

In addition to successfully nominating Kate for the Study of the US Institute on American Politics, Fulbright New Zealand also secured a place for Christchurch high school teacher David Ivory at an Institute for Secondary Educators. David is Head of the Social Studies Faculty at St Thomas of Canterbury College. He will attend an Institute exploring diversity, democracy and rights in the US at the Institute for Training and Development in Amherst, Massachusetts.