This track will emphasize the contributions of a political science degree for future employment and how the knowledge and the skills that we are teaching in the classroom align with careers in the public, political, private, education and non-profit sectors.  We must be proative in publicizing and informing students about the possibilities and opportunities that a degree in political science can offer.  Employers are looking for graduates who can think critically, solve problems, do research, work in groups, and analyze data and facts.  Submissions for this track would explore how political science classes advance these skills and prepare students to be successful for either graduate school or entering the workforce.

This track considers the foundations of civic engagement and democratic values. What counts as civic engagement? What can political scientists do in the classroom to address issues such as civic trust, tolerance, and voting? How to teach and prepare students to engage in politics to meet the challenges our society and world are facing? Topics discussed in this track may include critically examining the relationship between civic knowledge and civic engagement, the origins and status of democratic values, assessing civic learning outcomes, encouraging civic engagement in courses, designing courses to incorporate civic engagement, assessing the long-term impacts of civic engagement education, and comparing methods of civic engagement in the classroom.

This track focuses on antiracist pedagogy and practices to increase diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and accessibility in the political science classroom. Topics may include, but are not limited to: antiracist pedagogy in course design throughout the subfields, rethinking assessments and grading for equity, building institutional support for antiracist curricula in the context of attacks on, and misperceptions about, Critical Race Theory. This track especially welcomes papers that include sample syllabi, class activities, assessments, and assignments, as well as papers that decenter traditional hierarchies of power/knowledge.

This track seeks to explore how high impact practices can prepare students to be participatory democratic citizens.  These practices could include the value of capstone courses, e-portfolios, undergraduate research programs, experiential learning, internships, service-learning, problem-based learning, independent research or study abroad experiences.  This track would welcome submissions on how educators are using any of the practices and the successes/challenges of implementation.

This track explores efforts to internationalize and decolonize the curriculum in political science. Topics may include efforts to define internalization in the context of political science, how to foster internationalization and decolonization of our pedagogy, and the importance and structure of international and study abroad programs.

This track examines simulations, games, and other forms of active learning that immerse students in an environment that enables them to experience the decision-making processes of real-world political actors. The Simulations, Games, and Active Learning track will examine topics such as creating constitutions and treaties, developing empathy and soft skills, simulations for international relations and American politics, game design, and a variety of other active learning strategies used in political science.