Stephen Skowronek
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Stephen Skowronek (born 1951) is an American
political scientist Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
, noted for his research on American national institutions and the U.S. presidency, and for helping to stimulate the study of American political development.


Early life and education

Skowronek grew up in
Bridgewater, New Jersey Bridgewater Township is a township in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. The township is both a regional commercial hub for Central New Jersey (home to Bridgewater Commons and different corporate headquarters) and is a bedroom suburb ...
, where he graduated from
high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
in 1969. He attended Oberlin College, completing a
B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
in 1973. He earned a
Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
in
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
from
Cornell University Cornell University is a private statutory land-grant research university based in Ithaca, New York. It is a member of the Ivy League. Founded in 1865 by Ezra Cornell and Andrew Dickson White, Cornell was founded with the intention to tea ...
in 1979. His doctoral dissertation was revised and published as his first book, ''Building a New American State'' (1982).


Career

Skowronek taught at Cornell and
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
before becoming a
fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...
at the
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars (or Wilson Center) is a quasi-government entity and think tank which conducts research to inform public policy. Located in the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center in Wash ...
in 1985. He joined the
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
faculty of
Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...
in 1986, and has been Pelatiah Perit Professor of Political and Social Science at Yale since 1999. He has also been a
visiting professor In academia, a visiting scholar, visiting researcher, visiting fellow, visiting lecturer, or visiting professor is a scholar from an institution who visits a host university to teach, lecture, or perform research on a topic for which the visitor ...
at several American and European universities, including as Chair in American Civilization at the
École des Hautes Études en Sciences Sociales The School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences (french: École des hautes études en sciences sociales; EHESS) is a graduate ''grande école'' and '' grand établissement'' in Paris focused on academic research in the social sciences. The ...
in
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
in 1996-1997. He was the Wynant Visiting Professor at the
Rothermere American Institute The Rothermere American Institute is a department of the University of Oxford dedicated to the interdisciplinary and comparative study of the United States of America and its place in the world. Named after the Harmsworth family, Viscounts Roth ...
, Balliol College, Oxford in 2018-2019. Skowronek has collaborated with Karen Orren on several projects, including founding the
academic journal An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as permanent and transparent forums for the presentation, scrutiny, and ...
'' Studies in American Political Development'' in 1986, and writing the book ''The Search for American Political Development'' (2004). Through their work, Skowronek and Orren have promoted the growth of American political development (or APD) as a distinct subfield within the discipline of
political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...
. The first edition of Skowronek's book ''The Politics Presidents Make'' (1993) won two awards from the American Political Science Association (APSA): the J. David Greenstone Prize for best book in politics and history and the Richard E. Neustadt Prize for best book on the
American presidency The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
. Past Winners - APSA Presidency Research Awards
/ref> In 2017 this book was the third on the presidency awarded the APSA Legacy Prize for its lasting influence. Skowronek served as President of the Politics and History Section of APSA for 1994-1995.


Publications

*''Building a New American State: The Expansion of National Administrative Capacities, 1877-1920''
Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pre ...
(1982) *''The Politics Presidents Make: Leadership from John Adams to Bill Clinton'', Belknap Press (1997) ** "Franklin Roosevelt and the modern presidency." ''Studies in American Political Development'' 6.2 (1992): 322-358. * "Regimes and regime building in American government: A review of literature on the 1940s." ''Political Science Quarterly'' 113.4 (1998): 689-702.
online
(with Karen Orren) *''The Search for American Political Development'', Cambridge University Press (2004) (with Karen Orren) *''Formative Acts: American Politics in the Making'',
University of Pennsylvania Press The University of Pennsylvania Press (or Penn Press) is a university press affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The press was originally incorporated with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on 26 M ...
(2007) (co-edited by Matthew Glassman) *''Rethinking Political Institutions: The Art of the State'',
New York University Press New York University Press (or NYU Press) is a university press that is part of New York University. History NYU Press was founded in 1916 by the then chancellor of NYU, Elmer Ellsworth Brown. Directors * Arthur Huntington Nason, 1916–1 ...
(2007) (co-edited with Ian Shapiro and Daniel Galvin) *''Presidential Leadership in Political Time: Reprise and Reappraisal'',
University Press of Kansas The University Press of Kansas is a publisher located in Lawrence, Kansas. Operated by The University of Kansas, it represents the six state universities in the US state of Kansas: Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University, Kansas Sta ...
(2008) * "The conservative insurgency and presidential power: A developmental perspective on the unitary executive." ''Harvard Law Review'' 122.8 (2009): 2070-2103
download
*''The Policy State: An American Predicament,''
Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...
, (2017) (With Karen Orren) * "Beyond the iconography of order: notes for a 'new institutionalism'." in ''The dynamics of American politics'' (Routledge, 2018) 311-330; (With Karen Orren)


Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Skowronek, Stephen Cornell University alumni Living people 1951 births Oberlin College alumni American political scientists Yale University faculty