Hello Class,

I’m sorry for my late start, my name is Seth Burch. I am currently a senior at University, looking forward to graduating soon, and very grateful for the opportunity to take a closer look at the presidency. My majors are Justice, Agribusiness management, and Accounting with minors in Political Science and Communication. When I grow up, I hope to serve my community in some capacity within the criminal justice system while starting a farm.

My burning question for this course is “why?”. More specifically, why do we no longer see presidents who strive to be good stewards for our country but instead seek to fulfill the changes they see fit. Is there an imperative within the office that presidents must “move forward” with their agenda? Is there a requirement from the electorate that presidents not be elected to simply have a quiet four years? I understand and cede that the American system is an experiment in democracy, but should that necessarily mean it becomes unstable and divisive?

I look forward to studying with you all and hope you enjoy the remainder of the term!

Hello everyone! My name is Brent, I am a Senior at UAF with a major in Political Science and a minor in Japanese. I am 28 years old so a bit older than most people are I believe, what is called a non-traditional student! Born in Louisiana and grew up in Florida and Arkansas mostly but I did move up here a year ago to finish my degree! Presidency is interesting to me just because of the diversity of characters we’ve had over the centuries. It’s rather fascinating how each of them deals with the crisis for better or worse and how people, at the time as well as today, view their actions.

The questions that I have for this course is how, by the actions of the past, might the actions of the present and future be handled? The choices made my Presidents in the past had many variables they focused on due to their party, history, and the mindset of the American people. Is there a way to link that to the current day and be able to better predict how the ruling party might try and advance? These are what I am hoping to help pick at with this class.

Hi everyone! My name is Izzie and I am a third year student this year at UAF. I am 20 years old and was born and raised in Fairbanks. My major is in Political Science with a minor in Foreign Languages (Spanish). After getting my BA, I plan to go on to law school to become a lawyer. I am a paralegal in the Army and love the study of military law.

I have always had an interest in politics. My interest mostly focuses on the study of government and it functions. Not only in the US, but around the world. Studying the presidency in the US, is not only fascinating, but also deeply important. It is an entire branch of our government and as the leader of the nation, they can have much influence. A president can do great good and promote a healthy democracy, or they can damage it. The main question I want answered about the influence of the presidency. We have seen in recent years how borderline sycophantic followers of one president can boil over into a take over of the Capitol building. What else could happen?

Well I am excited to take this class with you all and cannot wait to interact more throughout the semester!

My name is Emily Flechas and I am working towards a Political Science degree with a minor in Leadership. I am currently a Junior but have a couple of years ahead of me still because I have a very demanding job and had to back down on the number of classes I am taking each semester. I am a Transportation Security Inspector (TSI) specializing in aviation and I do inspections and investigations for DHS/TSA. I ensure the airports/aircraft operators and carriers/flights schools/etc. are following the security standards outlined in the Code of Federal Regulations. I also conduct the investigation if someone tries to disrupt or circumnavigate airport security; attempts to bring an IED or other weapon into an airport or airplane or acts out on an aircraft in flight.

I have always been interested in politics and honestly became I bit of a political junkie during the last administration. What I hope to gain from this class is a better understanding of what the powers and limitations of the President are and we can do to make sure the role cannot be abused.

Hello everyone. My name is Collin Olmstead and I am in my senior year of pursuing my bachelor’s in political science with a minor in emergency management. I was born and raised in Santa Maria Ca, Santa Maria is a small town by California standards with a pop of about 110,000, the town itself is a mixture of a big city mixed with ag where we have fields surrounding the whole city. The reason why I would my liking for poly sci is not being able to decide on a major while first starting school which led me to switch several times my major then I took a poly sci class and fell in love with the subject. After school, I plan on jumping into the workforce and hopefully finding a career in public safety. The reason why I chose this class was from yes it is technically required to take I had other options, the executive office has always interested me from the fact that it seems whoever holds the position of the president you’ll hear a defiant outcry of people not liking them and complaining about how they are running the country but they still win a second term, minus for President Trump. My question that I hope to be answered by the end of the semester is why it seems that presidents try to make it seem that executive orders are all powerful and the end all by all then get shut down by the next president that takes office.

Hey everyone my name is Wyatt and I’m excited about interacting with you all over the semester. I grew up here in Alaska specifically Kenai so I like to think I know a little about the state. This is my third year at a university, but only my first here at UAF I transferred from Western Colorado University. I took the class because the presidency has been interesting to me because of the discussion it brings about. It isn’t always productive but it is fascinating seeing how invested people can be for whomever they believe can win. I want to learn more about how media control can shape a presidency regardless of the actual policies that may be in place. I guess my burning question is how does a president create positive media in a free-speech social media era?

Hi, my name is Tim Fewless and I am a senior history & political science major. I hope to attend the University of Oregon’s MA program in environmental history in the fall. It has been a long road for me as I started my journey in the early 1990s. However, I was sidetracked when I became a father and had no support structure which would allow me to remain in college. I left to take care of my daughter and did not consider going back until she was nearing college graduation. I came to the realization that I needed to follow my dreams and pursue the interests that I have had since I was a child. So here I am! Nearly ready to graduate and waiting on the University of Oregon to judge my value to their program! The question that I am interested in related to the American Presidency is the current state of leadership in both major parties. It appears that any candidate which appears reasonable and moderate never can gain any traction within the major parties. The candidates that rise in power increasingly play to the extremes (either right or left) within the party and fail to unify a fractured electorate. This creates a President who appeals to a tiny group within his party but lacks appeal to the wider population. To word the question properly: “What has led to the rise of candidates who govern from the extreme ends of the political spectrum and why are moderates generally blocked from access to the presidency?”