PSPS Summer 2026: What You Missed
While campus may have been a little quieter over the summer, the Department of Political Science and Public Service certainly wasn’t! From national honors and new books to media appearances, civic education programs, and a return to our permanent home, our faculty and students had a busy summer. Here’s a look at some of what happened while you were away.
We’re Back Home!
After a summer of boxes, construction, and moving, PSPS is officially back in its permanent home on the fourth floor of McCallie Hall!
Following the renovation and temporary relocation, the Department of Political Science and Public Service has returned to its permanent location. Our faculty and staff offices are now located on the fourth floor, and we’re excited to welcome students into our new and improved space for the fall semester.
If you’re on the fourth floor this semester, stop by and say hello- we’re happy to see you!
Celebrating 10 Years at UTC!
This summer, we celebrated a decade at UTC for Jeremy and Michelle Evans!
Please join us in congratulating Jeremy and Michelle on 10 years at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Over the past decade, they have each contributed to the UTC community in countless ways, and we’re grateful to have them as part of the Mocs family.
Dr. Jeremy Strickler
Associate Professor
Dr. Michelle Evans
Associate Professor
Camden Braidech Named NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete
Braidech was named the 2026 NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete for men’s golf at the NCAA Championships in Carlsbad, California. The award is presented to the student-athlete with the highest cumulative GPA among competitors at the finals site of each NCAA championship- and Camden earned the honor with a perfect 4.0 GPA.
A rising senior and member of the Chattanooga Mocs men’s golf team, Braidech helped lead the team to the NCAA Championships after the Mocs captured their seventh Southern Conference Championship in April. He finished the 2025–26 season with a 72.70 scoring average and earned All-SoCon honors.
The award is a fitting recognition of Camden’s accomplishments both on the course and in the classroom. We’re proud to see a PSPS student representing UTC at the national level!
Faculty Publications
Parliamentary Committees in Post-Soviet Countries (1991–2024):
Estonia, Georgia, Russia, and Ukraine
Dr. Irina Khmelko
Dictators and the Higher Education Dilemma:
State Power and the University in Modern Iran
Dr. Saeid Golkar
Constitutional Law in Contemporary America:
Institutions, Politics, and Processes, Volume 1
Dr. Michelle Deardorff
Supreme Court in My Hometown Returns to UTC
This summer, Dr. Michelle Deardorff once again helped bring the federal courts to life for Chattanooga-area high school students.
For two weeks in June, 25 local high school students came to UTC as part of The Supreme Court in My Hometown, a national civics education program sponsored by the Supreme Court Historical Society, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, and Dr. Deardorff, UTC’s Adolph S. Ochs Professor of Government.
Students heard from judges, attorneys, and professors, worked alongside UTC student mentors, and visited the local courthouse as they explored how the federal court system works. The Chattanooga program focuses on U.S. v. Shipp, a landmark Supreme Court case connected to the 1906 lynching of Ed Johnson on the Walnut Street Bridge.
The program concluded with students creating a public driving tour exploring the Ed Johnson case and its connection to Chattanooga history. For Deardorff, the goal is not simply to teach students about the courts, but to help them feel more comfortable understanding the judicial branch, interpreting the news, and engaging with the world around them.
PSPS in the News
Dr. Sarah Heise Provides Election Analysis
Dr. Sarah Heise brought her expertise in American politics and elections to the local community this summer.
Following the latest Hamilton County election results, Heise spoke with Local 3 News about what the results could mean for the upcoming midterm elections and the political landscape in the region.
As a faculty member in PSPS, Heise brings her research and expertise in American politics into conversations happening beyond the classroom. Her media appearances provide an opportunity to help members of the Chattanooga community better understand local and national political developments.
Dr. Christopher Horne Receives Best Article Award
Congratulations to Dr. Christopher Horne, whose article “A Grounded Theory of Christian Public Administrators’ Integration of Faith and Work” received the 2024 Best Article Award from the Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs!
The article explores how Christian public administrators understand and integrate their faith with their professional work in public service. Using grounded theory, Horne examines the experiences and perspectives of Christian public administrators as they navigate the relationship between their personal faith and their responsibilities as public servants.
The award recognizes the article as an outstanding contribution to scholarship published in the Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs and highlights Dr. Horne’s continued contributions to research in public administration, ethics, and public service.
Congratulations to Dr. Horne on this well-deserved recognition of his scholarship!
Dr. Saeid Golkar in the Media
If you followed the news this summer, you may have seen Dr. Saeid Golkar’s name more than once.
As conflict and political developments in the Middle East continued to make headlines, Golkar was frequently called upon to provide political and historical context about Iran and the region. His media appearances brought his expertise beyond the classroom and into conversations with journalists, policymakers, and the broader public.
UTC recently highlighted Golkar’s public scholarship in a story examining how he and historian Dr. Annie Tracy Samuel have been helping audiences understand the complex and rapidly changing situation in the Middle East. Golkar has spoken with a wide range of media outlets as well as government and policy organizations, emphasizing the importance of providing informed context when discussing complicated international events.
For Golkar, public scholarship is an important part of his work as a political scientist. As he explained to UTC, his goal is to help inform public audiences while also contributing to the work of policymakers who are shaping U.S. policy toward the region.
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