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Lisa Hager

Lisa Hager Headshot

Title

Associate Professor of Political Science

Office Building

Lincoln Hall

Office

325

Mailing Address

Lincoln Hall 325
School of American and Global Studies-Box 2212
University Station
Brookings, SD 57007

Biography

I am an associate professor of political science in the School of American and Global Studies at South Dakota State University. I also serve as the political science internship coordinator, lobbying and government advocacy certificate coordinator, legal studies coordinator and Pre-Law Society advisor.

I received my Ph.D. in political science from Kent State University in August 2016 and served as a 2015-2016 American Political Science Association Congressional Fellow. My fellowship placement was as a legislative assistant for Representative Daniel Lipinski (D-IL-3). I covered education, agriculture, government operations, campaign finance reform, voting rights and Native American policy. I also worked with the Science, Space and Technology Committee and the STEM Education Caucus.

Education

  • B.A. in political science | Wartburg College | 2009
  • M.A. in political science | Kent State University | 2013
  • Ph.D. in political science | Kent State University | 2016

Academic Interests

  • American political institutions (Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidency)
  • Constitutional law (Civil rights and liberties and governmental powers)
  • Political behavior (Political parties, interest groups and campaigns and elections)
  • Public policy
  • Women and politics
  • Quantitative political methods 

Academic Responsibilities

Courses Taught

  • Introductory Courses
    • Introduction to Moot Court (Spring 2019; Spring 2020: Hybrid due to COVID-19; Spring 2022; Spring 2023; Fall 2023)
    • American Government (Fall 2016; Spring 2017; Fall 2017; Fall 2020 [Online] | Spring 2021; Fall 2022)
    • State and Local Government (Spring 2020: Hybrid due to COVID-19; Fall 2021)
  • Upper-Division Courses
    • Constitutional Law: Civil Rights and Liberties (Fall 2016; Fall 2018; Fall 2020: Hybrid due to COVID-19; Fall 2021; Fall 2022; Fall 2023; Fall 2024)
    • Constitutional Law: Governmental Powers (Fall 2017; Spring 2019; Fall 2019; Spring 2021; Spring 2022; Spring 2023; Fall 2023; Fall 2024)
    • The American Presidency (Fall 2018; Fall 2020: Hybrid due to COVID-19; Fall 2024)
    • Internship (Fall 2019; Spring 2020; Fall 2020; Spring 2021; Summer 2021; Spring 2022; Summer 2022; Spring 2023; Summer 2023)
    • U.S. Congress (Spring 2019; Spring 2021; Spring 2023)
    • Politics of Inequality (Spring 2018; Fall 2019; Fall 2022)
    • Interest Groups and Lobbying (Fall 2019; Spring 2022)
    • Courts and Judicial Politics (Spring 2018; Fall 2021)
    • The President and the Congress (Spring 2017)
  • Independent Studies
    • Partisan and Gender-Based Campaign Strategies of Female Senate Candidates (Spring 2021)
    • Running for Congress as a Moderate (Spring 2020)
    • States' Rights Arguments in Supreme Court Litigation (Spring 2020)
    • Individualism in the U.S. Senate [Honors] (Fall 2017)
    • Women Executives Around the World (Spring 2017) [with Evren Celik Wiltse]

Advising

  • Lobbying and government advocacy certificate (Fall 2022-present)
  • Graduate faculty representative
    • Amanda Noonan, DNP (Fall 2023- present)
    • Jessica Speiser, M.A., Wildlife and Fisheries Science (Spring 2022-present)
    • Devan Schaefer, M.S., Economics (Spring 2023)
  • Political science internship coordinator (Fall 2019-present)
  • Legal studies minor (Spring 2017-present)
  • Pre-Law Society (Spring 2017-present)
  • LeadState (Fall 2018-May 2022)
    • Coach (Fall 2018; Spring 2019; Fall 2019; Spring 2020)
    • Facilitation team (Fall 2020; Spring 2021)
  • Honors College independent study mentor (Fall 2017-Spring 2018)
    • Viraj Patel "Individualism in the U.S. Senate: A Case Study of Senator John McCain," Undergraduate Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity Day (URSCAD) (April 3, 2018; Brookings, South Dakota). [Poster Presentation; Fishback Honors College Poster Award].

Committees and Professional Memberships

Committees

  • University and College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences
    • Ethics Lab Advisory Committee (Spring 2018-present)
    • Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies Advisory Committee (Fall 2016-present)
      • Social Media and Website Subcommittee (Fall 2019-present)
      • April Brooks Women of Distinction Awards Subcommittee (Spring 2018)
    • College of Arts and Sciences Faculty Council (Fall 2017-Spring 2022)
      • Chair (Fall 2019-Spring 2020)
      • College Awards Subcommittee (Fall 2018)
    • College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity (RSCA) Challenge Fund Review Committee (Spring 2022)
    • Undergraduate Research Grant Review Committee (Spring 2020; Spring 2021; Spring 2022)
    • College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Continuity of Operations Committee (Spring 2020)
    • International Conference on Global Human Rights Planning Committee (Spring 2018-Fall 2018)
  • School of American and Global Studies
    • Political Science Assistant Professor Search Committee (Summer 2024-present)
    • Visibility and Awards Committee (August 2021-present)
    • J.P. Hendrickson Scholarship Selection Committee (September 2016; September 2017; September 2018; September 2019; October 2020; September 2021; September 2022; October 2023)
    • American Indian and Indigenous Studies Assistant Professor Search Committee: Cultural Theory Line (Fall 2022-Spring 2023)
    • American Indian and Indigenous Studies Assistant Professor Search Committee: Wizipan Leadership and Sustainability Certificate Line (Fall 2022)
      • Chair
    • American Indian and Indigenous Studies Assistant Professor Search Committee: Public Policy or Public Administration Line (Fall 2022)
      • Chair

Professional Memberships

  • American Political Science Association
    • Law and courts
    • Legislative studies
    • Women and politics research
  • Midwest Political Science Association
  • Southern Political Science Association
    • SPSA Women
  • Western Association of Prelaw Advisors

Awards and Honors

Professional Associations

  • 1st place in the Ohio Association of Economists and Political Scientists 2012 Graduate Political Science Paper Competition, “Committee Requests, Assignments and the Female Representative: Evidence from the 80th-103rd Congresses.”

South Dakota Board of Regents

  • Board of Regents Student Organization Academic Excellence Award: Pre-Law Society (Spring 2021)

South Dakota State University

  • Teaching
    • Edward Patrick Hogan Award for Excellence in Teaching (2021)
    • Van D. and Barbara B. Fishback Honors College Honorable Mention: Woyaksape From a Wise Owl (September 24, 2019)
    • Greek Faculty of the Month Nominee (April 2019)
    • Instructional Design Services Online Teaching Success Story: D2L Online Quizzing (April 20, 2017)
    • Thank-A-Professor Program Thank You: Civil Rights and Liberties (Fall 2016)
  • Research
    • College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Award for Outstanding Research in the Social Sciences (with Evren Celik Wiltse) (2021)
  • Advising & Service
    • Van D. and Barbara B. Fishback Honors College Medallion Ceremony Faculty Recognition (2022, 2023)
    • Timothy J. Nichols Outstanding Undergraduate Academic Advising (2023)
    • Students' Association Faculty Advisor of the Year (2022)
    • Office of International Affairs Global Achievement Award for an Academic Unit (with the School of American and Global Studies) (2022)
    • Professional Staff Council Attitude of Gratitude: LeadState (Fall 2018; Fall 2019; Fall 2020)

Grants

Professional Associations

  • Dissemination
    • Southern Political Science Association's Artinian Travel Award (2018)
    • American Political Science Association’s Annual Meeting Travel Grant (2015)

South Dakota State University

  • Research
    • College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Grant-Readiness Workshop Series (2019)
  • Dissemination
    • Scholarly Excellence Dissemination Grant
      • Annual Conference of the Midwest Political Science Association (2020; Not accepted due to COVID-19 conference cancellation)
      • Annual Conference of the Midwest Political Science Association (2019)
      • Annual Conference of the Southern Political Science Association (2018)
      • Annual Meeting of the American Political Science Association (2016)

Grant Applications

  • National Science Foundation Law and Science Program (2025-2027)
    • Collaborative Research: The Impact of Court-Curbing Bills on Supreme Court Judicial Review (with Alicia Uribe-McGuire) ($202,341)

Work Experience

Fellowships

  • American Political Science Association’s Congressional Fellowship Program (2015-2016) | legislative assistant for Representative Daniel Lipinski (D-IL-3)
    • Policy areas: education, agriculture, government operations, campaign finance reform, voting rights and Native Americans
    • Science, Space and Technology Committee
    • STEM Education Caucus

Recent Professional Development

  • South Dakota State University Registered Student Organization Advisor Training (August 16, 2024)

Professional Service

  • American Political Science Association
    • Congressional Fellowship Program Review Panel for 2022-2023 Fellowships (Spring 2022; Spring 2023)
  • Academic Journal Manuscript Reviewer
    • American Politics Research
    • Journal of Latinos and Education
    • Journal of Political Science Education
    • Law and Society Review
    • Publius: The Journal of Federalism
  • Undergraduate Journal Manuscript Reviewer
    • Alethia--The Alpha Chi Journal of Undergraduate Scholarship
  • Textbook Reviewer
    • McGraw Hill
    • Oxford University Press
    • Pearson
    • SAGE Publishing
    • Rowman and Littlefield
    • W.W. Norton and Company

Recent Media Appearances

  • “Historical and Political Precedents for a Wild News Week” South Dakota Public Broadcasting In the Moment (with David L. Wiltse) (July 24, 2024) 
  • “How the Supreme Court is Shaping the Future of Presidential Immunity” South Dakota Public Broadcasting In the Moment (July 3, 2024)
  • “Noem Looks to Bounch Back onto Trump’s VP Shortlist” The Hill (June 9, 2024)
  • “Paths to Power and Paths to the Polls” South Dakota Public BroadcastingIn the Moment (with David L. Wiltse) (May 30, 2024)
  • “Republican Runs Afoul of Anti-Abortion Groups After Labeling Their Phone Calls a ‘Scam’” South Dakota Searchlight (May 23, 2024)

Areas of Research

  • Judicial, congressional and executive politics and behavior
  • Federalism
  • Women and politics
  • Election law

Publications

Books

  1. Celik Wiltse, Evren and Lisa Hager. 2021. "Women's Paths to Power: Female Presidents and Prime Ministers, 1960-2020." Boulder, CO: Lynne Rienner Publishers.

Journal Articles

  1. Hager, Lisa and Alicia Uribe-McGuire. 2024. "Judicial Guardians: Court-Curbing Bills, the Supreme Court, and Judicial Review" Journal of Law and Courts DOI: 10.1017/jlc.2023.22 (Published Online)
  2. Aranda III, Florencio Urías and Lisa Hager. 2024. "Educational Attainment through Community Cultural Wealth: Narratives of Latino U.S. Congressmen." Journal of Latinos and Education 23(1): 29-45.
  3. Hager, Lisa, Oindrila Roy, Landon E. Hancock, and Michael J. Ensley. 2019. "Selling Iran: Prospect Theory and the Campaign to Frame the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action." Congress and the Presidency 46(3): 417-445.
  4. Hager, Lisa. 2018. "Are Members of Congress Simply 'Single-Minded Seekers of Reelection'?: An Examination of Legislative Behavior in the 114th Congress" P.S. Political Science and Politics 51(1): 115-118.

Book Chapters

  1. Hager, Lisa. 2015. “The Predisposing, Motivating and Constraining Factors of Early Voting: Assessing the Impact of Campaign Strategies and Voting Laws.” In Culture, Rhetoric and Voting: The Presidential Election of 2012, eds. Douglas M. Brattebo, Tom Lansford, Jack Covarrubias and Robert J. Pauly. Akron: University of Akron Press.

Reference Book Entries

  1. Hager, Lisa. 2018. “Common Cause.” In Money in American Politics: An Encyclopedia, ed. David A. Schultz. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
  2. Hager, Lisa. 2018. “Majors v. Abell.” In Money in American Politics: An Encyclopedia, ed. David A. Schultz. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
  3. Hager, Lisa. 2017. “Constitutional Interpretation.” In The State and Federal Courts: A Complete Guide to History, Powers and Controversy, ed. Christopher P. Banks. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
  4. Hager, Lisa. 2017. “Court-Curbing.” In The State and Federal Courts: A Complete Guide to History, Powers and Controversy, ed. Christopher P. Banks. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
  5. Hager, Lisa. 2017. “Presidential Appointments and Court Packing.” In The State and Federal Courts: A Complete Guide to History, Powers and Controversy, ed. Christopher P. Banks. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.

Book Reviews

  1. Hager, Lisa. 2020. "Restoring the Global Judiciary: Why the Supreme Court Should Rule in U.S. Foreign Affairs by Martin S. Flaherty." Political Science Quarterly 135(4): 767-769.

Book Contracts

  1. Access to Justice Denied: Civil Gideon and the Right to Counsel for Indigents (with Christopher P. Banks) Lexington Books (Manuscript Due March 2024)

Manuscripts Under Review

  1. “Legislating Community Cultural Wealth: The Education Policy Advocacy of Latino U.S. Congressmen” (with Florencio Urías Aranda III) 
  2. “To Affirm or Reverse? A Study of the Role of Certiorari Determinants on Supreme Court Outcomes” (with Alicia Uribe-McGuire) 

Working Papers

  1. "Explaining Gender Differences in Legislative Effectiveness: An Examination of Committee Request Success and Bill Sponsorship in the U.S. House"
  2. “Avoiding Overrides: Judicial Review Following Congressional Court-Curbing”
  3. “The Motivating and Constraining Factors of Congressional Court-Curbing Bill Sponsorship”
  4. "Responses to Congressional Court-Curbing by the Justices of the Supreme Court"
  5. “The Influence of Court-Curbing Bills on the Supreme Court: The Impact of the Bill’s Target and Legislative Success” (with Alicia Uribe-McGuire)
  6. “Single-Mindedly Seeking Reelection with Court-Curbing Bills: An Examination of Members of Congress in the 2006 and 2018 Midterm Elections” (with Alicia Uribe-McGuire)
  7. “Civil Legal Aid as a Basic Human Right” (with Christopher P. Banks)
  8. “The Strategic Use of Clear Statement Rules by the U.S. Supreme Court in Federalism Cases” (with Christopher P. Banks)
  9. “Process Federalism in Statutory Construction Cases: The Political Representation of the States by the Rehnquist and Roberts Courts” (with Christopher P. Banks)
  10. "The Cost of Indigence Under Legal Recovery and Public Defender Systems" (with Christopher P. Banks)
  11. "New Federalism and the Culture Wars: Guns and LGBTQ Rights" (with Christopher P. Banks and John C. Blakeman)
  12. "Advancing a States' Rights Reading of the Establishment Clause: Assessing the Impact of Justice Clarence Thomas on Merit and Amicus Briefs" (with Christopher P. Banks and John C. Blakeman)
  13. "Who Run the U.S. States? Girls!: Examining the Partisan and Gender-Based Campaign Strategies of Successful Female Candidates for Governor in 2016"

Recent Conference Presentations

  1. “Explaining Gender Differences in Legislative Effectiveness: An Examination of Committee Interest and Bill Sponsorship in the U.S. House” Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association (April 4-7, 2024; Chicago, Illinois). 
  2. “Single-Mindedly Seeking Reelection with Court-Curbing Bills: An Examination of Members of Congress in the 2006 and 2018 Midterm Elections” (with Alicia Uribe-McGuire) Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association (April 4-7, 2024; Chicago, Illinois). 
  3. “Education Policy Advocacy through Community Cultural Wealth: Narratives of Latino U.S. Congressmen” (with Florencio Urías Aranda III) 2024 American Political Science Association Virtual Research Meeting (February 8-9, 2024)

Recent Professional Conference Participation

  1. “Gendered Political Leadership and Responsiveness in Crisis” (Chair and Discussant) Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association (April 4-7, 2024; Chicago, Illinois). 

Department(s)

Related Links

Personal Website