Diplomas/Degrees
Diplomas/Degrees
Ph.D. in Political Science, Claremont Graduate University (2016)
M.A. in Political Science, Pennsylvania State University (2008)
M.A. in International Studies, University of Chicago (2004)
M.A.R in Social Ethics, Yale University (2003)
B.A in Political Science, University of Winsconsin-Madison (2000)
Licenses and Certifications
Licenses and Certifications
IBM Data Science Practitioner – Instructor Certificate
Data Science and Design Thinking
Professional Experience
Professional Experience
Professional Training
Summer 2024
Bayesian Thinking in STEM, Vassar College, NY
Fall 2021
Competed for the search committee implicit bias training (facilitated by Anne Mungai) and an online review of the Affect Misattribution Procedure via the Project Implicit Social Attitudes (https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/).
Summer 2021
Obtained an IBM data science practitioner—instructor certificate. Completed a synchronous 4-week online instructor-to-instructor course (Data Science and Design Thinking) at the Innovation Center, Adelphi University, NY.
Summer 2014
Attending the Empirical Implication of Theoretical Models (EITM) Summer Institute hosted by the University of Houston, Houston, TX.
Summer 2006
Taking courses on quantitative methods of social research, Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research, Ann Arbor, MI.
Personal Statement
Personal Statement
I am an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science and International Relations (POLIR) at Adelphi University. My core teaching area is comparative politics and research methods, with regional expertise in East Asian and ASEAN politics. My research investigates how economic forces shape regional politics and influence public policy preferences. Also, by applying insights from the well-established territorial unit data in European countries to Asian contexts, I explore how the spatial distribution of economic inequality impacts citizens’ policy preferences and voting behavior while utilizing various empirical models to analyze these dynamics.
Recent Courses
Recent Courses
S/T: Political Economy Of Inequality
Comparative Political Analysis
International Politics Of East And Southeast Asia
Research Design And Methods
Seminar In The Social Sciences Comparative Political Analysis
Seminar In The Social Sciences International Politics Of East And Southeast Asia
Seminar In The Social Sciences Political Economy Of Inequality
Courses Previously Taught
Courses Previously Taught
Comparative Politics
Political Economy of Inequality (UG)
Comparative Politial Institutions (G)
Government Designs Around the World (UG)
Politics of Developing Nations (UG)
Comparative Political Analysis (UG)
Comparative Political Systems (UG)
Research Methods
Quantitative Methods of Political Analysis (UG)
Scope and Methods of Political Science (UG)
Research Design and Methods (UG)
Data Training in Political Science (UG)
Computer Applications for Social Science Research (G)
International Relations
International Political Economy (UG)
International Politics (UG)
International Politics of East and Southeast Asia (UG)
*UG = Undergraduate Course, G = Graduate Course
Specialization/Interests
Specialization/Interests
My research areas are at the intersection of comparative politics, international relations, and research methods. My current research focuses on the question of how the spatial distribution of economic inequality affects political outcomes. I study this relationship from various empirical models.
Teaching Philosophy
Teaching Philosophy
My primary teaching responsibility in the Political Science and International Relations department is to offer several combative politics & research method courses. These courses engage students in Comparative Politics (comparing systems across nation-states) and International Relations (examining the interactions of nation-states) subfields while equipping them with various methodological tools to understand and conduct social science research. Students analyze political systems worldwide, with a particular focus on the comparative political economy of institutions. By political economy, I mean the interplay between economic and political processes, such as how government taxation and spending policies influence income inequality and economic growth.
As expected, my approach to teaching Political Science moves beyond simply transmitting subject knowledge within narrowly defined academic boundaries. I strive to spark students' interest in political issues and processes while fostering critical thinking and argumentation skills. This specific pedagogical vision underpins my goal of being a highly effective educator who engages with students in ways that (1) cultivate critical thinking, (2) train students to become more effective writers, and (3) promote quantitative reasoning.
Steps to critical thinking
Critical thinking forms the foundation of my teaching philosophy. Critical thinking is a disciplined process of questioning assumptions, recognizing biases, and examining evidence to arrive at a well-supported conclusion.
My Politics of Developing Nations course addresses gender underrepresentation by examining electoral policy remedies such as gender quotas, reserved parliamentary seats for women, and alternating male and female candidates on party lists. I challenge students to consider how these systems might inadvertently disadvantage women running for parliamentary seats. For example, we analyze how single-member districts can undermine the assumed intent of gender quotas when political parties actually nominate women in constituencies where they are unlikely to win, effectively circumventing the quota’s intent. Discussing such ideas in class enriches students’ understanding of structural challenges and the complexities of electoral reforms. This approach enhances students’ ability to engage in critical discussions about policy designs and their real-world outcomes.
To assess students’ critical thinking, I emphasize their ability to distinguish evidence-based arguments from mere viewpoints when applying course materials. Assessment methods include research papers (where students test hypotheses or critique extant theories using comparative tools), discussion forums (encouraging evidence-based recommendations), and reflective assignments on course readings. These approaches ensure students engage deeply with the materials and develop their critical thinking skills across diverse contexts.
Teaching for effective writing
The second pillar of my teaching philosophy is fostering effective writing skills, a focus central to my courses. At Adelphi, one of the greatest challenges I’ve encountered is undergraduate students' tendency to write descriptively rather than argumentatively. Drawing on Max Weber’s assertion that the core of social science lies in establishing plausible causal explanations, I define effective “social science” writing as one that (1) poses a clear research question, (2) develops a parsimonious, theory-driven causal hypothesis, (3) supports the argument with robust evidence, and (4) assesses the generalizability of the findings. While these steps can be challenging for students, I am encouraged by the noticeable improvements in the organization, coherence, and analytical depth of their writing as they progress in any given course and from course to course.
To support students’ writing development, I provide detailed writing guides and facilitate peer feedback sessions during in-class writing workshops. Students then revise their proposals as a follow-up assignment, fostering a productive feedback loop and enhancing peer learning. Additionally, I encourage students to schedule one-on-one research consultation meetings with me, focusing on organizational clarity and argument mapping. The response has been positive, with nearly half of the students scheduling at least one meeting with me during the semester.
Writing assignment formatting is also my approach to supporting student writing. I have found that students’ writing quality improves significantly when they are encouraged to produce a series of two (or three) concise, well-connected papers. For example, in my Political Economy of Inequality course, students first write a diagnosis paper on inequality, addressing two key tasks: 1) identifying a specific area of inequality and 2) explaining inequality either as a cause or an outcome. In another assignment, they write a policy proposal informed by their diagnosis. These two writing pieces are designed to integrate into a cohesive inequality research project, promoting careful case selections and more focused, structured writing.
Teaching aids for quantitative reasoning.
Promoting quantitative reasoning is the third pillar of my teaching philosophy. I define quantitative reasoning as making informed and reasoned decisions by interpreting, analyzing, and applying quantitative data in real-world contexts.
When assigning empirical research papers, I have noticed that students often face challenges in effectively presenting supporting evidence to substantiate their arguments. Initially, I observed that students would copy figures—retaining numeric summaries or inferential statistics—from Google searches or scholarly articles, believing these visuals adequately represented their ideas. However, such use is often limited in supporting their arguments and can be misleading without critically engaging with the substance and context of those copied figures.
To address this gap, I incorporate lessons on using online social science databases into my course designs, emphasizing hands-on practice in organizing, extracting, and presenting quantitative data, as well as effectively using the data as supporting evidence. This approach empowers students to make evidence-based reasoning through active learning, such as data analytics and visualization.
I have incorporated this quantitative reasoning approach into my International Political Economy course through a data visualization and summary writing assignment. In this task, students create a country dossier that evaluates its economic performance comparatively. The process begins with students identifying key aspects to compare, informed by their research interests, which may stem from theoretical motivations or intuitive insights. They then decide how to measure these aspects and extract the relevant economic indicators from recommended online databases, such as the World Bank’s World Development Indicators. Students import these indicators into Tableau, a data visualization tool, to create statistical summary tables, trend graphs, or color-filled maps for displaying the data geographically. Leveraging these visualizations, they conduct a comparative analysis and articulate their findings in summary writing. Overall, this county dossier design offers students hands-on practice, integrating data visualization and evidence-based summary writing into a cohesive and engaging learning experience.
The outcomes of this quantitative reasoning-focused approach have been promising. For example, at the start of my most recent International Political Economy course in Fall 2023, a class survey indicated that most students had limited training in data visualization and quantitative, evidence-based reasoning writing. However, through Tableau-integrated learning in this course, 87% of students successfully met all required data visualization and summary writing criteria, showing significant improvement and skill development.
Encouraged by students' active engagement and progress, I have extended this approach to my other teaching practices. A recent success in this effort, during Fall 2023 and Spring 2024, was the adoption of the DataCamp Classrooms program (https://www.datacamp.com/blog/category/datacamp-classrooms). This initiative allowed students to participate in self-paced online data training courses as part of my independent studies, complemented by biweekly in-person workshops that I facilitated to develop their quantitative reasoning skills further. Additionally, as part of my ongoing efforts to vary my teaching of quantitative reasoning, I participated in a National Science Foundation-funded instructor training session at Vassar College during the summer of 2024. This workshop focused on teaching Bayesian thinking, which promotes a probabilistic, evidence-based reasoning framework that emphasizes updating beliefs in light of new evidence. I plan to integrate Bayesian thinking into my Data Analysis in Political Science and International Relations course, tentatively scheduled for Spring 2026, to deepen students’ understanding of quantitative reasoning.
While adhering to these core teaching principles —critical thinking, effective writing, and quantitative reasoning—I am equally committed to developing and implementing various instruction tools that foster hands-on learning experiences. For instance, in my Government Design Around the World course, students engage with Playing Politics, a series of short games designed by J. Tobin Grant. Students compete in groups to build coalitions that shift policy closer to their team’s preferences. These role-playing activities illuminate the complexities and dynamics of coalition-building in proportional representation systems while motivating students to negotiate and articulate their political positions. Other examples include Jeopardy-style review sessions (or crossword puzzles), which involve team-based competitions where students take turns answering questions across various categories related to the course material. Additionally, students in my Research Design and Methods course learn about the concept and characteristics of samples through a hands-on activity that involves sampling M&M chocolate candies by color. Working in groups, students analyze their samples to understand and compare the characteristics of the collected data, providing them with practical experience in both data collection and analysis.
Research Interests
Research Interests
The modifiable areal unit problem
Political geography of inequality
Voting behavior by economic geography
Measuring the geographic distribution of economic productivity
Effects of regional inequality on partisan politics
Spatial approach to the relationship between economic inequality and voting behavior
Redistributive politics in developing countries
Trade and welfare spending
Politics of higher education spending
Covid, public provision, and suburban poverty
Explaining endogenous borders
Chapters
Chapters
José Alemán, Dong Wook Lee, & Dwayne Woods. 2023. “States of Emergency: In Whose Interest Are They Invoked?” In Segell, Glen. (Ed.), Globalization, Security, Development and Global Values – Essays in Honor of Arno Tausch. Switzerland: Springer, pp. 157-185
Articles
Articles
Lee, Dong Wook & Melissa Rogers. "Vote Your Region or Your Income? Decomposing Variance in Redistributive Voting." Forthcoming at Territory, Politics, Governance. [View]
Abstract
We examine whether regional economic productivity predicts support for redistributive parties and voting cohesion across income levels. Using a European sample, we find rich and poor in productive regions vote significantly more for redistributive parties than their counterparts in less productive regions. Yet voters may be cross-pressured, some favoring policies that enhance regional productivity and others their pocketbook interests. Decomposing vote variance, we show high variability in rich voters in productive regions and poor voters in less productive regions. Rich voters in less productive regions vote cohesively. This research highlights the importance of place-based factors in vote choice and variance.
Lee, Dong Wook, Melissa Rogers, and Hillel Soifer. (2005). “The Modifiable Areal Unit Problem in Political Science.” Political Analysis. [First View]
https://doi.org/10.1017/pan.2025.2
Abstract
Building on the availability of geospatial data, improvements in mapping software, and innovations in spatial statistics, political scientists are increasingly taking geography seriously. As we adopt the tools of geographers, we must also consider the methodological challenges they have identified. We focus on the modifiable areal unit problem (MAUP)—the idea that the size of aggregate spatial units and the location of their borders affect the empirical results we obtain. We first describe the logic of the MAUP, and then demonstrate the MAUP through simulations, showing MAUP-related inconsistency in regression results in randomly generated and real-world data. We identify MAUP concerns, and best practices, in top journals in political science. We conclude by suggesting how scholars may respond in theoretical and empirical terms to concerns about validity and reliability that arise from the MAUP. Replication files for Lee, Dong Wook, Melissa Rogers, and Hillel Soifer. The Modifiable Areal Unit Problem in Political Science. Forthcoming, Political Analysis.
Eunyoung Ha and Dong Wook Lee. 2022."Partisanship, Fiscal Transfers, and Social Spending in Korea: The Politics of Partial Decentralization." Forthcoming @ Journal of East Asian Studies. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/jea.2021.33
Abstract
In the last three decades, many Asian democracies have decentralized their political systems to promote the democratic, equal, and efficient distribution of national resources across regions. Nonetheless, most of these countries, including South Korea, are still in a stage of “partial fiscal decentralization,” in which locally elected officials have spending authority, while a significant portion of their financing relies on transfers from the central government. This paper argues that the decentralized distribution is significantly influenced by the partisan interests of central and local governments. The central government transfers more funds to local governments that their co-partisans govern, and local incumbents follow partisan policy priorities to obtain the allocation of available fiscal resources. This argument is strongly supported by the empirical analysis of subsidy transfers and regional social expenditures in South Korea from 2002-2015. First, we find that the central government in Korea transfers larger subsidies to politically aligned regions. Second, regional governments with larger subsidy transfers have higher levels of social expenditures. Third, governors or mayors affiliated with a progressive party spend significantly more on social welfare and education than do those affiliated with a conservative party.
Lee, Dong Wook and Melissa Rogers. 2019. “Measuring Geographic Distribution for Political Research.” Political Analysis. 27(3): 263-280. [View]
Abstract: Political scientists are increasingly interested in the geographic distribution of political and economic phenomena. Unlike distribution measures at the individual level, geographic distributions depend on the “unit question” in which researchers choose the appropriate political unit to analyze, such as nations, sub-national regions, urban and rural areas, or electoral districts. In this research, we identify concerns with measuring the geographic distribution and comparing distributions within and across political units. In particular, we highlight the potential for threats to inference based on the modifiable areal unit problem (MAUP) whereby measuring concepts at different unit aggregations alters the observed value. To help manage measurement error when the unit of observation is unclear, or the appropriate data is not available, we introduce a new measure of geographic distribution which accounts for fluctuations in the scale and number of political units considered. We demonstrate, using Monte Carlo simulations, that our measure is more stable across political units than commonly used measures and it reduces measurement fluctuations associated with MAUP.
Lee, Dong Wook, and Melissa Rogers, 2019. “Interregional Inequality and the Dynamics of Government Spending.” The Journal of Politics. 81(2): 487-504. [View]
Abstract:We examine the distribution of economic productivity across subnational regions as a factor explaining the level and allocation of central government expenditure. As regional productivity becomes more dispersed, the preferences influencing national decision making should diverge, thus impeding agreement to expand the central state. However, if regional productivity becomes more right-skewed, an increasing number of less productive regions may be able to press for greater central outlays. Dispersion and skew of interregional inequality also shape the allocation of centralized spending. With growing economic dispersion across regions, decision makers are more likely to fund policy categories that aid citizens in all regions over those that are locally targeted. By contrast, with the distribution of regional productivity skewing farther to the right, central expenditure is likely to become more locally targeted. We find strong evidence for these propositions in error correction models using new measures of interregional inequality and government policy priorities for 24 OECD countries.
Ha, Eunyoung, Dong-wook Lee, and Puspa Amri, 2014. “Trade and Welfare Compensation: The Missing Links.” International Interactions. 40: 631-656. [View]
Abstract: This study uses theory from embedded liberalism to reorient the debate over efficiency versus compensation in the trade and welfare literature. We detail the causal mechanisms and provide empirical results that show how welfare spending can be a necessary condition to further trade liberalization. We argue that increases in welfare compensation lead to stronger public support for trade, which allows states to further advance along the path toward trade liberalization. Based on the 1995 and 2003 ISSP (International Social Survey Program) for ten OECD countries, our multilevel statistical analyses (individual and country level) show that (1) workers in import-exposed sectors tend to strongly oppose trade, but this effect is substantially diminished when they receive unemployment compensation, and (2) public support for free trade is significantly associated with higher levels of trade openness.
Dar, Luciana, and Dong-wook Lee, 2014. “Partisanship, Political Polarization, and State Higher Education Budget Outcomes.” Journal of Higher Education 85(4):469-498. [View]
Abstract: in this article, we explore how partisanship affects state higher education policy priorities and expenditures. We assume that party coalitions are heterogeneous and policy preferences/priorities differ via mediating factors. We find that Democratic Party strength positively affects state funding for higher education but that the effect diminishes as political polarization or unemployment increases.
Conference Presentations
Conference Presentations
Paper (with Eunyoung Ha). “Mass-Elite Communication and Political Polarization in South Korea.” Presented at the 28th IPSA World Congress of Political Science Conference, July 12-16, Seoul, South Korea.
Paper (with Xian Huang). “Class, Place, and Interregional Economic Inequality in Chinese Fairness Perceptions." Presented at Annual MPSA Conference, April 3-6, Chicago, IL.
Paper (with Jose Aleman). “It’s Time to Revisit the External Determinants of State Terror.” Presented at Annual MPSA Conference, April 3-6, Chicago, IL.
Paper (with Melissa Rogers). “Political Parties and the Geography of
Economic Preferences.” Presented at MPSA 2024, Chicago, IL. April 4-7, 2024. Previous versions were presented at APSA 2023 (my co-author’s in-person attendance), Los Angeles, CA, August 31-September 3, 2023, and at APSA 2022 (in-person attendance), Montreal, Quebec, Canada. September
15-18, 2022.
Paper (with Susan Kilgore and SeKewn Kim). “Equity and Equality?
Evidence from the Geographic Dispersion of COVID-19 Testing Sites in Long Island.” Presented at MPSA 2024 (in-person attendance), Chicago, IL. April 4-7, 2024. A previous version was also presented at MPSA 2023 (my co-author’s in-person attendance), Chicago, IL. April 13-16, 2023.
Paper: (with Eunyoung Ha). “Economic Inequality, Mass-Elite Communication, and Political Polarization in South Korea.” The 2022 World Congress of for the 11th World Congress of Korean Studies, October 20–21, 2022, Seongnam City, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea
Paper: (with Melissa Rogers). “Political Parties and the Geography of Economic Preference." APSA, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, September 15-18, 2022.
Paper (with Eunyoung Ha). "Left government and currency crisis in emerging markets". MPSA, virtual meeting. April 7-10, 2022.
Paper (with Melissa Rogers). "Voting your region or income? Decomposing variance in redistributive voting”. MPSA, virtual meeting. April 7-10, 2022.
Paper: (with Matthew Jenkins). "Covid YouTube videos, source, and audience engagement in South Korea". Political Communication Conference, Seattle, WA. September 23, 2021.
Paper: (with Melissa Rogers and Hillel Soifer). “The modifiable areal unit problem in Political Science”. APSA, virtual meeting. September 10-13, 2020.
Chair and Discussant: Panel entitled “Election in the land of rising inequality”. APSA, virtual meeting. September 10-13, 2020.
Paper: (with Eunyoung Ha). “Partisan politics, central government transfers, and social policies in South Korea: Evidence from local government data analysis”. The World Congress for Korean Politics and Society, Konkuk University, Seoul, South Korea. June 24-26, 2019.
Chair and discussant: Panel entitled “Student research conference concurrent panels”. International Studies Student Research Conference, Claremont Graduate University. Claremont, CA. May 3, 2019.
Paper: (with Raul Madrid). “The political geography of wage inequality and public opinion towards Latinos: A text analysis approach”. WPSA, San Diego, CA. April 17-20, 2019.
Chair and discussant: Panel entitled “Theoretical approaches to citizenship and community”. WPSA, San Diego, CA. April 17-20, 2019.
Chair and discussant: Panel entitled “Politics of patronage, parties, and criminal institutions”. WPSA, San Diego, CA. April 17-20, 2019.
Invited Presentations
Invited Presentations
Comparative Politics Workshop, University of Southern California, CA: Voting Your Pocketbook or Voting Your Places: Decomposing Variance in Economic Voting (co-authored with Melissa Rogers). September 2022. Also, invited to Inequality Conference 2022, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany, and Webinar Talk, University of California Santa Barbara, CA.
Sept.2022. University of Southern California:
April 2022. University of Konstanz, Germany:
In_equality Conference 2022, “Voting your region or vote your income? Decomposing variance in redistributive voting” (with Melissa Rodgers).
October 2020. Claremont Graduate University: Inequality and Policy Research Center, “How to measure inequality”. The video link is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqrar28CBq4.
October 2020. Claremont Graduate University: Computational Justice Lab, “Voting your pocketbook or voting your places: decomposing variance in economic voting” (with Melissa Rogers).
September 2020. Claremont Graduate University: Tuesday Talks, “The modifiable areal unit problem in Political Science” (with Melissa Rogers and Hillel Soifer).
February 2020. London School of Economics: Comparative Politics Workshop. “Voting your pocketbook or voting your place? Decomposing variance in vote choice” (with Melissa Rogers).
April 2019. University of California San Diego: US Immigration Policy Center, “Political geography of wage inequality and public opinion towards Latinos: A text analysis approach” (with Raul Madrid).
Other Work
Other Work
The National Institute of Aging pilot study (GR20038). “Fitting the Geographic Distribution of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementia to Political Divisions for Health Policy Effectiveness: A Modifiable Areal Unit Problem Approach.” This is an administrative supplement report to parent ”Network on Life Course Health Dynamics and Disparities in 21st Century America (#2424AG045061)”. Lead PI: Javier M. Rodriguez; Co-PIs: Dong Wook Lee, Sandra P. Garcia, and Melissa Rodgers.
Project Status: Completed.
Grants
Grants
2022
Research grant ($8,670) on state and local policies in New York. Funded by the Smauels Center at Baruch College’s Austine W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs. Lead PI: Dong Wook Lee; Co-PIs: Sunsan Kilgore and Se Kwen Kim.
2021
National Institute of Aging, Subaward ($65,457) (Lead PI: Javier M. Rodriguez; Co-Investigators: Melissa Z. Rogers, Sandra P. Garcia, and Dong Wook Lee). Funding period: April 15, 2021, to June 30, 2022.
Adelphi Faculty Development Grant ($2,700) (Co-PI: Dong Wook Lee; Susan Kilgore).
2020
Adelphi Faculty Development Grant ($1,500) (PI: Dong Wook Lee).
2019-2020
Faculty Research/Creative Activity Release (Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021), Adelphi University.
2014-2015
Dissertation Research Grant, Claremont Graduate University ($10,000).
2014
National Science Foundation Grant, Empirical Implication of Theoretical Model Summer Program, University of Houston ($2,000).
Research Conference Travel Grant, Institute for Humane Studies, George Mason University ($350).
2009-2016
Teaching and Research Assistant Fellowship, Department of Politics and Policy, Claremont Graduate University.
2012-2013
Graduate Student Council Travel Award, Claremont Graduate University.
2009-2011
Graduate Tuition Fellowship, Claremont Graduate University.
2005-2008
College of Liberal Arts Scholar Fellowship, Pennsylvania State University.
2002
Two Brothers Fellowship for Language Training in German, Yale University.
2001-2002
Graduate Teaching Fellowship, Department of East Asian Language and Literature, Yale University.
Theses Advised
Theses Advised
Honors College Thesis (Reader):
Hughes, Ryan (Spring 2024). "The Exploitation of a Region: A Study on the Impact of Exploitation on Economic Development Historically in Latin America"
Smith, Billy (Spring, 2022). "Inside the Mind of an American Independent Voter: How do we elect the President of the United States of America in the 21st Century?"
Andrade, Isabella (Spring, 2022). "What Leads to the Rise of Populist and Anti-establishment Political Parties in France?"
Shin, Shin. (Spring, 2021). "A Case Study Analysis of the Anti-Defamation League’s work in Public Policy through the lens of John Kingdon’s Public Policy Model."
Senior Capstone (Adviser):
Shchukina, Sofia. (Summer, 2021). "Leadership Quality, Pandemic Isolationism, and Global Health Risk."
Guaman, Joseline. (Spring, 2020). "The Eclipse of Media in National Identity: A Case Study of the Inter-Korean Relationship."
Senior Capstone (Reader):
Wang, Eran. (Spring, 2023). "Twenty-Thousand Feet Above Sea Level: Glacial Lake Outburst Flood".
Projects Mentored
Projects Mentored
Jasmine Aldazabal, EU Internship/Reserrch Project (Fall 2023)
- Supervising research on "Analyzing the Modern-Day Efficacy of the United Nations Security Council Veto Power."
Gurjot Waraich, Electoral Study Project (Fall 2023)
- Data training (DataCamp 5 modules)
- Election data collection / statistical analysis
- Supervising research on the economic effects of the presidential voter turnout (2016-2020).
Anna Varveris, Data Project "Disregarded Subculture in NYC" (Fall 2023)
- Data visualization
- Policy mapping
- R/RStudio statistical software
Saira Amar, Research Assistant (Spring 2021-Spring 2022)
- Geographic Information Systems (GIS) basic training
- Online data mining training
Honors and Accomplishments
Honors and Accomplishments
Grants and Awards:
2024
Training at Vassar College with a stipend for the first tier of Bayesian Thinking in STEM program. This was funded by NSF ($2,000)
2024
Outstanding Mentor Award (by Dean's Student Circle).
2022
Research grant ($8,670) on state and local policies in New York. Funded by the Samuels Center at Baruch College’s Austine W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs. Lead PI: Dong Wook Lee; Co-PIs: Susan Kilgore and Se Kwen Kim.
2021
National Institute of Aging, Subaward ($65,457) (Lead PI: Javier M. Rodriguez; Co-Investigators: Melissa Z. Rogers, Sandra P. Garcia, and Dong Wook Lee). Funding period: April 15, 2021 to June 30, 2022.
Adelphi Faculty Development Grant ($2,700) (Co-PI: Dong Wook Lee; Susan Kilgore).
2020
Adelphi Faculty Development Grant ($1,500) (PI: Dong Wook Lee).
2019-2023
Adelphi Faculty Research/Creative Activity Release (Fall 2019, Fall 2020, Fall 2021, Fall 2022, Fall 2023)
2014-2015
Dissertation Research Grant, Claremont Graduate University ($10,000).
2014
National Science Foundation Grant, Empirical Implication of Theoretical Model Summer Program, University of Houston ($2,000).
Research Conference Travel Grant, Institute for Humane Studies, George Mason University ($350).
2012-2013
Graduate Student Council Travel Award, Claremont Graduate University.
2009-2016
Teaching and Research Assistant Fellowship, Department of Politics and Policy, Claremont Graduate University.
2009-2011
Graduate Tuition Fellowship, Claremont Graduate University.
2005-2008
College of Liberal Arts Scholar Fellowship, Pennsylvania State University.
2002
Two Brothers Fellowship for Language Training in German, Yale University.
2001-2002
Graduate Teaching Fellowship, Dept. of East Asian Language and Literature, Yale University.
Professional Activities
Professional Activities
Journal Reviewer:
American Political Science Review
Journal of Politics
Political Analysis
British Journal of Political Science
International Journal of Comparative Sociology
Conference panel chair & discussant
Discussant: Panel entitled "Political Economy of East Asia". APSA, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, September 15-18, 2022.
Chair and Discussant: Panel entitled “Election in the land of rising inequality”. APSA, virtual meeting. September 10-13, 2020.
Chair and discussant: Panel entitled “Student research conference concurrent panels”. International Studies Student Research Conference, Claremont Graduate University. Claremont, CA. May 3, 2019.
Chair and discussant: Panel entitled “Theoretical approaches to citizenship and community”. WPSA, San Diego, CA. April 17-20, 2019.
Chair and discussant: Panel entitled “Politics of patronage, parties, and criminal institutions”. WPSA, San Diego, CA. April 17-20, 2019.
University Service
University Service
Department Level:
Committee:
The Hugh A. Wilson Award Committee for Social and Economic Justice.
• Spring 2025 (Chair: Dong Wook Lee)
• Responsibility: Selecting student applicants who demonstrate excellence in serving the public interest, supporting traditionally vulnerable groups, and promoting social and economic equality. The application review process includes evaluating resumes, cover letters, and letter of recommendations.
Student Opportunity Committee.
• Fall 2023 – Present (Chair: Maggie Gray).
• Responsibility: Developing Internship Programs / Global Immersion Experiences (for Political Science and International Relations Majors).
Search Committee for a Tenure-Track Position in Public Policy.
• Spring 2022 (Chair: Traci Levy).
• Responsibility: Representing as the Diversity Advocate, Reviewing
Applications, and Attending Job Interviews.
The Best Political Science Paper Awards Committee.
• Spring 2022 (Chair: Regina Axelrod).
• Spring of 2021, 2020 (Chair: Maggie Gray).
• Responsibility: Selecting the Best Senior Seminar Paper.
School (College of Arts and Sciences) Level:
Committee:
Political Science Liaison to LGS.
• Fall 2023 – Spring 2024 (Director: Susan Briziarelli).
• Responsibility: Attending LGS Faculty Meetings and International Relations Majors (also in LGS) Advising.
BA degree in Interdisciplinary Studies.
• Fall 2021 – Spring 2023 (Chair: Micah Oelze).
• Responsibility: Course Planning and Advising.
• Student: Heran Wang (History and Political Science).
College of Arts and Sciences Academic Affairs Committee.
• Fall 2020 – Fall 2022 (Chair: Ryan Ehrhart).
• Responsibility: Reviewing New Course Proposals, New Majors/Minors, and Program Changes.
IS Faculty Committee.
• Fall 2019 – Spring 2022 (Chair: Jonathan Hiller).
• Responsibility: Decision-making Body for IS Courses. Student Advising (Political Science Track).
Directorship:
Interim Director of International Relations Program.
• Fall 2022.
• Responsibility: Course Planning and Majors Advising.
Faculty Affiliation:
LGS Affiliated Faculty.
• Spring 2025 – Present (Director: Susan Briziarelli).
• Responsibility: Teach in the LGS Courses and Participate in LGS Activities.
Asian Studies Program Affiliated Faculty.
• Spring 2022 – Present (Director: Kirsten Ziomek).
• Responsibility: Helping Support for the Minor Program, Its Events, and Students.
Language Assessor:
Korean Language Proficiency Testing as Requested by IS (Director Jonathan Hiller) and LGS (Director: Susan Briziarelli).
• Fall of 2024, 2023.
• Responsibility: Test Administration and Reporting.
Guest Lecturer:
Interdisciplinary 360 Food for Thought (Anthropology: Kathryn Krasinski)
• Date: October 28, 2021.
• Title: “Food as a Measurement in Social Science Inquiries.”
University Level:
Committee:
Research/Creative Works Day Committee.
• Fall 2024- Present (Co-chairs: Wei Liu and Karolina Lempert).
• Responsibility: Program Planning and Moderating the Student Presentations.
Recruiter:
Representing the POLIR Department at the University’s Accepted Student Day Event.
• Dates: May 11, Mar. 7 (2024), May 11 (2023), Nov. 19 (2022), Oct. 24, Mar. 7 (2021), Oct. 17, April 4 (2020).
Event Organizer & Moderator:
Adelphi University Talk Series.
• Date: March 5, 2024.
• Speaker: Vincent Wang.
• Organizer: Dong Wook Lee (Moderator)
• Title: “The Taiwan (ROC) and Mainland China (PRC) Relationship: Its Past, Present, and Future.”
• Sponsored by POLIR.
Panelist:
Adelphi University Talk Series.
• Date: March 13, 2024.
• Co-panelists: Dong Wook Lee and Robert Saunders.
• Title: “The Second Anniversary of the Russian Invasion of Ukraine.”
• Co-sponsored by LGS and POLIR.
Adelphi University Talk Series.
• Date: November 18, 2019.
• Co-panelists: Dong Wook Lee, Hanna Kim, Jonathan Cristol, Rajib Sanyal, and Vincent Wang.
• Title: “International Relations: Spotlight on Asia.”
• Sponsored by LGS.
Links provided to external websites, including personal faculty sites, do not imply an endorsement by Adelphi University of those sites, their content, or associated products and services.
