Everyone has a story about that one class that changed their life. Maybe it was the way the instructor taught the class – giving good constructive feedback, for example, or inspiring you to go beyond what you thought you were capable of. Maybe the course content inspired you to change something about yourself or challenged you in another way. This is my story about the class that changed my life.

It should be no surprise that the class that changed me was in my major, political science. That class was Dr. Cox’s POL 235. The course title, “How Wars End: Civil Wars and International Responses,” sounds like it would immediately strike boredom in the hearts of any non-political science or international relations major, but this class was far from boring.

POL 235 is seminar-based, which means that while there are lectures (that you are expected to attend), most of your work will come from your own research. This isn’t to say you’re on your own; others in the course will do all they can to support you. Dr. Cox presents most of the theory behind your study. You’re then expected to take the concepts presented in class and apply them to a case study. This gives you a sense of “getting it.” You’re showing the class that you have learned from the theory and can recognize its applications in your respective case.

Furthermore, when essays are returned to you, they’re covered with carefully crafted and commending comments. Throughout the course, I felt empowered to adapt my work and use the words of encouragement Dr. Cox provided me to continue to improve. I struggle with academic confidence (which is a bold thing for an Oxbridge kid to say), but there’s nothing quite like knowing you’ve got it right. Iteration is the key to perfection, after all.

Dr. Cox is also a phenomenal instructor with hands-on experience in peace and conflict research. Before his time at Jewell, he worked with the humanitarian organization Samaritan’s Purse to aid and support those affected by the end of Sudan’s second civil war in 2006. He is not merely presenting theory – he’s had boots on the ground and knows how rough war can be.

Before taking this course, I was considering the “standard” political science graduate program. I wanted to go to law school to become a corporate lawyer, argue a case, make money and repeat steps two through four. After taking this course, I’ve realized that money isn’t everything. I’ve been inspired to take the course content and make it my own. I want to use what I learned in this class to lift the downtrodden. I want to challenge the status quo of war, helping to bring it to an end. 

In all aspects of the course, one message stood out: war is devastating. It devastates all the militant actors. It destroys civilian well-being. Quite frankly, war destroys my hope in humanity.

But Dr. Cox’s other message – that war is not the default, and there is a way out – stood out more.

The course inspired me to change my career path. Even more, it poured into me as a person, enabling me to build confidence in my own work, to research complicated cases and to analyze complex situations. How Wars End is not easy. As any political science major will tell you, no course taught by Dr. Cox is. But the work is well worth the undertaking.

William Jewell College had the privilege to host Ambassador Thomas Pickering Wednesday, March 27. The ambassador, in town to give an address on Iran to the International Relations Council that evening, visited Jewell’s campus and held a forum with Jewell students in the early afternoon.

Ambassador Pickering’s forum was held during a meeting of Dr. Armstrong’s Politics 250: Intro to World Politics class that was opened to other faculty and students, many of which attended.

The event began with brief opening remarks by the ambassador , which quickly gave way to him answering questions posed by the assembled students.

Students asked Ambassador Pickering a series of wide-ranging questions dealing with everything ranging from Russian aggression in Eastern Europe, to the internal politics of Jordan, to Israel and the Palestinians.

Pickering was well prepared to answer the questions, given his experience. He had a long and distinguished career in the United States Foreign Service. Over the course of at varying years, he held the position of U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Israel, India and the United Nations among other placements, served under every administration from President Nixon to President Clinton and served as as Under Secretary for Political Affairs – the third highest ranking position in the State Department. Pickering retired from the Foreign Service in 2001 with the high rank of career ambassador.

A number of Jewell students and faculty members also attended the ambassador’s talk in the evening to the International Relations Council on Iran. The event, “Iran and the Larger Middle East,” focused in on a close examination of Iran and the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (or the Iran Deal from which the Trump Administration unilaterally withdrew the United States in May 2018 as well as an examination of other related hotspots in the region like Syria.

Rev. Dr. Aidsand F. Wright-Riggins III, who has more than 40 years of community and congregational service, came to William Jewell College to discuss religious freedom at his event, “Right-sizing Religious Liberty and Why It Matters.” This lecture was part of the Baptist Joint Committee’s 2019 Shurden Series of lectures.

Wright-Riggins is the former CEO of the American Baptist Home Mission Societies, he served 20 years as a pastor at Macedonia Baptist Church in South Central Los Angeles and he served on the board of the Baptist Joint Committee for 20 years. He is currently the first African-American mayor of Collegeville, Pennsylvania.

During his lecture, Wright-Riggins criticized how the “political and religious right” have hijacked religious freedom to suppress other kinds of freedom, and noted that although America has religious liberty, some religions receive more benefits than others. As an example, he provided an anecdote of a Muslim friend of his who had received threats and had his store vandalized because of his religion. He also proposed some solutions to this problem.

“In the fight for religious liberty, may I suggest we get woke,” Wright-Riggins argued.

After the lecture, there was a reception where Wright-Riggins talked with students and answered some of their questions. Overall, his lecture was well-received, despite some minor disagreements about smaller details, and the discussion held afterward was a valuable experience for all in attendance.