Political Science Faculty

Dr. Booker T. Ingram
Charles A. Dana Professor of Political Science
B.A., Winston Salem State University.
M.A., Ph.D., The Ohio State University
Harrington Peachtree 305
(864) 833-8447
btingram@presby.edu

• Joined PC in 1987
• Professional interests: democratic theories, institutions and practices, political ideologies, American political development, theories of development, political movements, and American politics.
• Courses taught: American Politics, African Americans and the Political System, Classical Political Thought, Modern Political Thought, Contemporary Political Thought, the American Presidency, and Politics and the Media.
• Hobbies: reading non-fiction; following the San Francisco Giants (a lifetime fan of the Giants and the great Willie Mays); listening to jazz and blues music (some favorites include: Les McCann, Houston Person, Coleman Hawkins, Etta James, B.B. King, Keb Mo, Taj Mahal); and traveling (visited Guyana, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, Bahamas, Portugal, Spain, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Ukraine, Russia, Estonia, and England).
• A favorite quote: “An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity,” by Martin Luther King, Jr. 

 

Dr. Zihua Liu
Assistant professor of political science
B.A. in English and International Economics, Foreign Affairs College, Beijing, China
Ph. D., Political Science at SUNY at Buffalo
Harrington-Peachtree 303
(864)833-8633

• The newest member of the Political Science Department, Dr. Zihua will teach courses in comparative politics and international relations.
• Current teaching and research interests include East Asian politics, China in particular, international political economy, and the study of corruption.
• Previously taught at Niagara University and Western Carolina University.

Dr. Donald R. Raber II
Associate professor of political science and department chair
B.A., Furman University, 1995
M.A., 1999, Ph.D., 2001, Harvard University
Harrington-Peachtree 301
(864) 833-8352
draber@presby.edu

• Courses taught: American politics, Southern politics, political analysis, political parties, public administration, public policy, Congress, and classical political thought.
• His dissertation examined the impact of reinventing government on presidential oversight of the bureaucracy.
• He is a past president of the South Carolina Political Science Association and currently managing editor of its Journal of Political Science.

Dr. Jonathan Smith
Associate professor of political science and pre-law advisor
B.S., Francis Marion College 
M.A., Ph.D., University of South Carolina
Harrington-Peachtree 303
(864)833-8451
jonsmith@presby.edu

• Courses taught: American Politics, Foreign Policy, Consitutional Law, and Russian Politics.
• Also serves as the faculty pre-law advisor to students interested in pursuing law school after graduation.

Dr. Tom Weaver
Professor of political science, teaches International Politics, Middle East Politics,
B.S., M.A., University of Toledo 
Ph.D., University of Cincinnati
Harrington-Peachtree 306
(864) 833-8347
tpweaver@presby.edu 

• Courses taught: Comparative Politics, European Politics.
• Primary area of research and teaching is Middle East politics, with a special focus and interest in the Palestinian Question. He has lived and conducted extensive research in Palestine and traveled most of the world.
• Hobbies include rescuing horses. Tom and his daughter have four at the moment. He also enjoys remodeling houses.

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