Castro named McClure Professor of Teaching Excellence
A. Peter Castro, professor of anthropology,
has been named a Robert D. McClure Professor of Teaching Excellence.
The McClure Professorship is awarded to members
of the Maxwell faculty in recognition of their dedication to teaching
lower-division, interdisciplinary courses for undergraduates. Castro will hold
the McClure Professorship for the next three years, during which time he will
oversee the suite of signature MAX Courses. There are three MAX Courses team-taught by instructors from across the Maxwell School—MAX 123:
Critical Issues in the U.S., MAX 132: Global Community, and MAX 201:
Quantitative Analysis for the Social Sciences. Together, the MAX Courses
provide undergraduate students a broad, interdisciplinary introduction to
public and international affairs, citizenship, and qualitative and quantitative
approaches to social and policy analysis. Castro has long participated in the
MAX Courses, with both his research and teaching foci emphasizing the
international dimensions of citizenship.
The McClure Professorship supports both
teaching excellence and research. It is funded by a gift from John L. and
Stephanie G. Palmer, with additional support from members of the Maxwell School
Advisory Board, other alumni, and friends of the School. The award is named in
recognition of Robert McClure’s long-standing commitment to undergraduate
education, including his leadership in creating the MAX Courses themselves
while serving as Maxwell’s senior associate dean.
McClure, professor emeritus of political
science and public affairs, taught in Maxwell for 45 years. Over the course of
his career, he served for 13 years as senior associate dean in Maxwell and for three
years as director of the Syracuse University Honors Program. He retired in
2014. In the classroom, McClure focused on helping students develop deep
critical thinking skills. McClure’s book, The
Unseeing Eye: The Myth of Television Power in National Elections,
coauthored with Thomas E. Patterson, has been recognized by the American
Association for Public Opinion Research as one of the most influential books in
the field.
Castro is an applied cultural anthropologist
whose research focuses on the environment and development planning, especially
in East Africa. He has written or edited five books, and is the author of numerous
articles appearing in such journals as the Journal
of International and Global Studies, the Journal of Development Studies, and World Development. In addition to his research and teaching, Castro
frequently consults with external organizations, including the New East
Foundation, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the United Nations
Food and Agricultural Organization, and the United States Agency for
International Development.
05/15/20