I am the associate director of the Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center and professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Oklahoma. My research and teaching interests span the fields of American politics and research methodology, with a particular focus on the development and organization of American political institutions (primarily the U.S. Congress) and congressional elections. My ongoing work centers on the transformation of the U.S. House and congressional leadership during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
My published work appears in outlets including the American Journal of Political Science, The Journal of Politics, Political Research Quarterly, Legislative Studies Quarterly, Political Science Research and Methods, and Political Behavior. I am the recipient of the Pi Sigma Alpha Award for the best paper presented at the annual meeting of the Southern Political Science Association and the CQ Press Award for the best paper on legislative politics presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association.
I earned my Ph.D. from Michigan State University, where I was a Fellow in the Political Institutions and Public Choice Program. Prior to my current appointment at OU, I held faculty appointments at the University of South Carolina and the University at Buffalo (SUNY).
