The research culture of AU was proudly on display across multiple schools at the “Tri-School PhD Conference” on April 10, 2026. Several of our PhD students were featured, as well as faculty respondents. PhD programs from the School of International Service (SIS), School of Communication (SOC), and School of Public Affairs (SPA) jointly organize the event each year.
The experience provides a safe test-run for what it’s like to present at a professional conference. Just as importantly, students network and get input across disciplines. Below is the agenda, which featured work spanning from democratic institutions under stress to structural power and political economy.
- Panel 1: Democratic Institution under Stress
- Bryan Bayne, Department of Government
- “Does Democracy Die in Darkness? Electricity Outages and Voting Behavior in Sao Paulo
- Rachel Williams, Department of Justice, Law, and Criminology
- “Presidential Pardons: US as a state governed by transitional justice principles”
- Riley Van Steenburg, Department of Government
- “The Effects of Continuing Resolutions on Federal Contracting”
- Bryan Bayne, Department of Government
- Panel 2: Information, Messaging, and Political Expression
- Diana Wallens, Department of Justice, Law, and Criminology
- “True, False, and Does It Even Matter? Right-Wing Extremists’ Exploitation of AL Technology for Political and Narrative Ends”
- Qingya Xu, Department of Government
- “The Effects of Content Moderation Decisions on Political Expression Online”
- Kenzie Larson, School of Communication
- “The Gendered Strategy of the Far Right: Female Political Influencers on X”
- Kristen Munnelly, Department of Government
- “Do Philanthropic Foundations Support Pluralism in US Civil Society?
- Diana Wallens, Department of Justice, Law, and Criminology
- Panel 3: Conflict, Violence, and State Response
- Jennifer Eburuoh, School of International Service
- “Understanding Narratives in the Farmer-Herder Conflicts of Northern Nigeria”
- Breanna Roberts, Department of Justice, Law, and Criminology
- “Silent Survivors: An Analysis of Unreported Sexual Violence Disclosures on Asocial Media”
- Joey Stabile, Department of Justice, Law, and Criminology
- “Evolving Threats, Dynamic Strategies: Toward a New Framework for Countering Right-Wing Extremism”
- Jennifer Eburuoh, School of International Service
- Panel 4: Structural Power and Political Economy
- Ali Amini, Department of Government
- “The Nature and Origins of Trade Realignment”
- Kanika Varma, School of International Service
- “Caste-Indebtedness as World Order: Reading the Indian Farmers’ Protest from Below”
- Alasana Camara, School of Communication
- “The Role of Research & Development in AI Competitiveness: Does Democracy Amplify Its Impact?”
- Ali Amini, Department of Government
