(Crossposted from https://www.reed.edu/reed-magazine/articles/2020/gronkewinscarnegie.html)
Reed College Professor of Political Science Paul Gronke was selected as part of the 2020 class of Andrew Carnegie Fellows. The prestigious award supports high-caliber scholarship in the social sciences and humanities, making it possible for recipients to continue their research on pressing issues and cultural transitions affecting U.S. citizens at home and abroad. Professor Gronke was recognized for his scholarship on election security and accessibility.
“We are at a critical moment in American democracy. Democratic institutions are at risk when politicians are increasingly willing to subvert these institutions for political gain,” said Professor Gronke. “I am honored and humbled to be selected for such a prestigious fellowship, which will allow me to pursue important research regarding the integrity of these institutions at a vital moment of rapid political and social change.”
In 2004, Gronke established the Early Voting Information Center (EVIC), a nonpartisan policy research center dedicated to identifying common sense solutions and best practices for non-precinct place voting. EVIC conducts research that is needed to secure elections and provide better access to the polls. In connection with the enduring value of the teacher/scholar model at Reed College, EVIC regularly supports post-baccalaureate researchers, many of whom have gone on to earn PhDs or to work in the nonprofit and technology sectors.
Professor Gronke’s current EVIC project is focused on the “stewards of democracy”: more than 10,000 local election officials, whose activities at the local level guarantee free and fair elections. “The project’s goal is to counter the false narratives of a broken election system and rebuild public confidence in the resilience of our electoral and political institutions,” said Gronke. His Carnegie funded project is “Stewards of Democracy: How Street Level Administrators Can Restore Faith in American Democracy.”
Professor Gronke is the fourth Carnegie Fellow recipient among the Reed faculty: Professor of Political Science Darius Rejali was a 2003 fellow; Professor of Religion Kambiz GhaneaBassiri was a 2005 fellow; and Professor of Anthropology Paul Silverstein was selected as a fellow in 2008.
This year, the Carnegie Corporation selected 27 Andrew Carnegie Fellows. Each will receive $200,000 in philanthropic support for scholarly research in the humanities and social sciences that addresses important and enduring issues confronting our society. The program is a major investment in scholarly research that spans such subjects as U.S. democracy, the environment, technological and cultural evolution, and international relations.
