FW: MSU’s Parker lectures about American politics at University of Nottingham while on Fulbright

MSU’s Parker lectures about American politics at University of Nottingham while on Fulbright

 

Carol Schmidt, MSU News Service

 

4/29/22                Contact:  David Parker, 406-994-4141, dparker@montana.edu

 

Summary: The head of the political science department forges connections between the two universities while lecturing as a Fulbright specialist.

 

This story and a photo to accompany it may be found at: https://www.montana.edu/news/22072/

 

BOZEMAN – The British are fascinated with contemporary American politics and also curious about Montana as it’s portrayed in the television show “Yellowstone,” said Montana State University political science professor David Parker, who lectured in the United Kingdom recently as the recipient of a Fulbright Specialist Award.

 

Parker, who chairs MSU’s Department of Political Science in the College of Letters and Science, lectured on the future of the American Republican Party in the post-Trump presidency at the University of Nottingham.

 

Parker also conducted research on British politics, one of his research specialties, while he was based for three weeks at Nottingham’s American and Canadian Studies Department. The university of about 35,000 students is located in England’s East Midlands, adjoining Sherwood Forest. Both are locations prominent in the Robin Hood legend.

 

Parker said that the British follow American politics great interest. Likewise, he said, audience members at his lecture were curious about the western myth of Montana, an interest formed from watching the TV series “Yellowstone.” Parker noted that, in that way, both Montana and Nottingham are famous for legends rooted in each of their histories.

 

Parker said that people in both the United Kingdom and Montana are similarly linked to their landscapes, which affects their attitudes and loyalty. He calls that link “the politics of place.”

 

“The people who live in the area also display a loyalty to their area of the country that is a predictor of political behavior,” Parker said. “In particular, people who are place-connected are more likely to support particular policies and political parties in both the United Kingdom and Montana.”

 

He said that resentment toward political establishments and social systems is endemic to the politics of place in both the U.K. and the U.S. “and an important predictor in elections.”

 

In addition to studying the politics of place, Parker also worked to build connections between MSU and the University of Nottingham in innovative exchanges of students, faculty, curriculum and research between the two institutions.

 

“In a post-Brexit world, the British will be looking for opportunities to establish connections beyond Europe,” Parker said. “My hope is that we can continue to develop an innovative cultural exchange between MSU and the University of Nottingham.”

 

He said his visit and cultivating links between the two institutions is important to MSU and the people of Montana as the world becomes more interlinked.

 

“In an interconnected world, the more we can teach our students about the relationships of the world, the more hope we have to learn from each other and collaborate in meaningful ways,” Parker said. “To build on scholarly connections between the two universities going forward is a win for both of our institutions.”

 

A program of the U.S. Department of State, the Fulbright Specialist Program provides an opportunity for U.S. academics and professionals for project-based exchanges at host institutions across the globe for two to six weeks. To learn more, see: https://fulbrightspecialist.worldlearning.org/

 

-cs-

 

 

 

Carol Schmidt, assistant director

MSU News

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