Academic Degrees:

• A.B., University of Chicago, 1980
• M.A., Harvard University, 1983
• Ph.D., Harvard University, 1988

Professor of Political Science with the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John’s University since 1988. A.B., University of Chicago, 1980; M.A., Harvard University, 1983; Ph.D, 1988. He was the Joseph P. Farry Professor of Public Policy at CSB/SJU, and has been Visiting Professor of Political Science at University of California-Davis. Dr. Read is the author of Majority Rule versus Consensus: The Political Thought of John C. Calhoun (University Press of Kansas, 2009), Power versus Liberty: Madison, Hamilton, Wilson, and Jefferson (University of Virginia Press, 2000) and Doorstep Democracy: Face to Face Politics in the Heartland (University of Minnesota Press, 2008).

Spring 2022 Courses:

• POLS 180 – Politics and Political Life (x2)
• POLS 221 – Intro to Political Theory

Fall 2022 Courses:

• POLS 180 – Politics and Political Life
• POLS 221 – Intro to Political Theory

Awards and Fellowships:

• 2010 Wilson Cary McWilliams award from the American Political Science Association for best paper in the Literature, Politics, and Film section presented at 2009 APSA national meeting. Paper title: "The Limits of Self-Reliance: Emerson, Slavery, and Abolition ."
• Joseph P. Farry Professorship in Public Policy and Civic Engagement for 2009-2012, College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University.

Highlights of Recent Publications by Dr. James Read

Books:

• Majority Rule versus Consensus: The Political Thought of John C. Calhoun. University Press of Kansas, 2009.
• Doorstep Democracy: Face to Face Politics in the Heartland. University of Minnesota Press, 2008. 
• Power versus Liberty: Madison, Hamilton, Wilson and Jefferson. University of Virginia Press, 2000.
• Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles:
• "Transforming Power Relations: Leadership, Risk, and Hope." With Ian Shapiro. Accepted for publication in the  American Political Science Review.  Publication date forthcoming.
• " Living, Dead, and Undead: Nullification Past and Present." With Neal Allen. American Political Thought, Vol. 1, No. 2 (Fall 2012), 263-297.
• "Is Power Zero-Sum or Variable-Sum? Old Arguments and New Beginnings."Journal of Political Power, Vol. 5 No. 1 (March 2012), 5-31. 
• "Leadership and Power in Nelson Mandela's Long Walk to Freedom."   Journal of Power, Volume 3, No. 3 (December 2010). 

Book Chapters:

• "Bridging the Communal Abyss: Risk-Assuming Leadership and Democratic Settlements." With Ian Shapiro. Forthcoming in volume on democratic leadership edited by John Kane and Haig Patapan, to be published by Oxford University Press.
• "Bridging the Communal Abyss: Risk-Assuming Leadership and Democratic Settlements." With Ian Shapiro. To be translated into Norwegian, forthcoming in a volume on Democracy, Regimes, and Power, edited by Knut Heidar and Dag Harald, to be published by Universitetsforlaget, a leading academic press in Norway.
• "James Madison's Retirement, 1817-1836: Engaging the Republican Past, Present, and Future." In Stuart Leibiger, ed., A Companion to James Madison and James Monroe (Wiley-Blackwell, 2012) 224-240.  More information.

Book Reviews:

• Review of George Anastaplo, Reflections on Slavery and the Constitution. Forthcoming in Review of Politics, Vol. 75, No. 3 (2013).
• Review of Michael P. Federici, The Political Philosophy of Alexander Hamilton. Forthcoming in Political Science Quarterly.
• Review of Kevin R.C. Gutzman, James Madison and the Making of America. Liberty Law Blog, April 30, 2012. 

Conference Presentations and Invited Talks (2012-2013):

• "Transforming Power Relations: Leadership, Risk, and Hope." With Ian Shapiro. Presented to the Symposium on Good Democratic Leadership, Yale University, February 15-17, 2013.
• "The Only True Sovereign of a Free People? Lincoln and Majority Rule." Presented to Lecture Series, "The Past, the Present, and the Future of the American Founding," Utah State University, April 15, 2013.
• "Lincoln and Majority Rule." Presented to the Constitution Day Celebration, James Madison College, Michigan State University, September 27, 2012.
• "Same-Sex Marriage as a Constitutional Issue." Presentation for Constitution Day, College of St. Benedict and St. John's University; Part I of the panel series "Examining the Proposed Minnesota Marriage Amendment." September 18, 2012.
• "Transforming Power Relations: Leadership, Risk, and Hope." With Ian Shapiro. To be presented to the 2013 American Political Science Association, Chicago, Aug. 29-Sept. 1.
• "Democracy, Conflict, and Collective Empowerment." Presented to the International Political Science Association, Madrid, Spain, July 8-12, 2012.
• "The Only True Sovereign of a Free People? Lincoln and Majority Rule." To be presented to the 2013 American Political Science Association, Chicago, Aug. 29-Sept. 1.