Graduate Student Roster
Shereen Ainsworth (#03)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2023
Research Interests: Public Policy, Public Opinion, Social Issues, Public Administration
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email:
Shereen Ainsworth is a doctoral student at Idaho State University. She earned her Master’s Degree in Public Administration from Idaho State University in May 2020. During her master’s degree she concentrated on policy issues, grant writing, and theory. Shereen spent six years working for a member of Congress. She also has experience working for a biotech start-up company and running her own small business.
Shereen likes to focus her research on social issues. Her many interests in social issues include drug addiction, animal rights and animal welfare, human trafficking, and the criminal justice system. Shereen likes to focus on questions that ask the “why.” She believes that if we are able to answer the “why” we can then make breakthroughs in policy formation and implementation. Another area of focus that she likes to include in her research is the role that media plays in influencing public opinion. She has most recently presented a paper on the influence of social construction of and social contact on policies toward drug addicts at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association Conference held in April 2021.
Shereen has extensive experience in the private and public sectors and uses this knowledge to further her career in education. She has worked as a graduate teaching assistant for multiple classes including Introduction to Politics, Grant Writing, Voting and Public Opinion, and the Legislative Process. She is a member of Pi Sigma Alpha and was on the executive committee for the Political Science Club. In her spare time, she volunteers for community events and serves on the City of Pocatello Mayor’s Advisory Board for Community Development Block Grants.
Abeer R. Alqurashi (#07)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Fall 2022
Research Interests: Health Policy, American Politics, Public Opinion, Media and Politics
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email:
Abeer is presently pursuing a doctorate in political science at Idaho State University. In 2013, she earned a Master's in Health Education from ISU. She is currently working as a research tutorial assistant at the ISU Library.
Abeer has worked as an assistant lecturer in the Global Studies and Languages department at ISU. In this role, she taught and designed curriculum for two classes including an Arabic language course and a health and policy in the Middle East course.
Abeer has had numerous opportunities to share her research across the US. In 2019, she presented her research at the Annual Meeting of the Midwest Political Science Association in Chicago, Illinois. This project focused on the impact of support for religious freedom on public opinion toward female genital mutilation/cutting. She also presented this project in 2018 at the United Nations “Circles Empowering Rural Women and Girls for a Sustainable Future” Conference. Abeer also served as a panelist for the “Middle Eastern Women in the USA” conference hosted at ISU. In 2016, she also got an opportunity to present at the Human Rights Abuse Conference at the University of Washington in Seattle.
Abeer served the graduate students at ISU as the president for the Graduate Student Association. This position allowed her to survey and collect data about graduate students’ needs and work to devise solutions for these needs. Abeer also has served on a committee for international education week, giving her the opportunity to help ISU students in different areas of educational opportunities on and off-campus.
Abeer plans to pursue a career in higher education and teach in a political science program. She hopes to offer courses in American politics, health and policy, and international relations.
Jonathan W. L. Blakeman (#77)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2023
Research Interests: American Politics, Political Socialization, Political Polarization, Public Policy
Adviser: Dr. James W. Stoutenborough
Email: jonathanblakeman@isu.edu
Jonathan Blakeman is a husband to a very patient wife and a father of four magnificent children. He enjoys reading, mountain biking, freediving, and arial photography. He has been in the military for roughly 15 years, spent time in Iraq, and is currently at the rank of Captain.
His research interests include pedagogy, the family unit and its role as an institution, political socialization, and political polarization. American politics, international relations/comparative politics, and public administration are his three primary sub-fields of focus within political science. He has a diverse education that includes studies in criminology/law enforcement, sociology, security and safety leadership, and political science.
He co-developed a simulation for teaching the presidential veto process to students called “To Veto or Not to Veto: A Simulation of Presidential Decision Making,” which is a chapter in a forthcoming book called Games Without Frontiers: Games and Simulations in the Political Science Classroom. Additionally, he also has two articles that he is preparing for a publication review submission that focus on familial political socialization.
Jonathan desires a position at a teaching-focused university in order to further develop his teaching prowess and to help students though their academic journey. He wants to be the teacher that helps students to love academia and the learning process. He seeks the opportunity to be a caring and effective mentor just as he has had in the past.
Laticia J. Herkshan (#31)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2022
Research Interests: Tribal Governance and Politics, Federal Indian Law, Public Opinion, Women and Politics
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email:
Laticia Herkshan is an enrolled citizen of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes of Fort Hall, ID. She is also a descendant of the Modoc and Tohono O’odham Nations.
Laticia is currently working on her Doctoral degree in the Department of Political Science at ISU. A Bengal through and through, she graduated from ISU with her Bachelor’s in Political Science and Anthropology in 2016, a Masters in Political Science in 2018, and a Masters of Public Administration in 2021. Her research interests vary, and include environmental and education policy, especially as they pertain to Tribes, federal Indian law, Tribal governance and policy, and Indigenous women in Politics, among other things.
Laticia currently works as a research assistant in the ISU Department of Sociology on the GEM3 NSF EPSCoR research grant. She also serves on President Satterlee’s Strategic Plan Committee and ISU’s Tribal University Advisory Board. She is passionate about advocating for Native Students’ access to higher education and increasing their visibility on campus and in the surrounding communities. In the past, Laticia worked as a teaching assistant for the TRIO McNair Scholars Program, the Department of Political Science, and for the American Indian Services Pre-Freshman Engineering Program. She also worked as a research intern in the Department of Political Science for the NSF EPSCoR MILES research program. In the future, Laticia hopes to continue to do work that empowers and elevates Indigenous peoples and the issues important to their communities.
Jill Kirkham (#)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Fall 2021
Research Interests:
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email:
Bio coming soon!
Krystoff K. Kissoon (#)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2022
Research Interests:
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email:
Bio coming soon!
Sonia Martinez (#)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date:
Research Interests:
Adviser: Dr. James W. Stoutenborough
Email:
Bio coming soon!
Sarah Menish-Geryk (#04)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2024
Research Interests: Spread of Radical Ideologies via Social Media, Terrorism, Conspiracy Theories and Cults, Religion and Politics
Adviser: Dr. James W. Stoutenborough
Email:
Sarah Menish-Geryk is a student in the Doctor of Arts program in Political Science at Idaho State University. Before coming to the Political Science Department, Sarah earned a B.A. in History and an M.A. in Historical Resources Management. Her research interests include the spread of radical ideologies online and through social media, terrorism, conspiracy theories, cults, and religion and politics. Her previous work explored how ISIS and al-Qaeda utilized social media to indoctrinate and incite. Currently, Sarah is focusing on the spread of conspiracy theories online as well as research on indicators for conspiratorial beliefs. Her future plans include working as a professor and also working in counter terrorism or a research field. Some of her hobbies include playing video games, gardening, scuba diving, and hanging out with her cat, Waffles.
Tanner Morton (#06)
Class Standing: Masters Student and Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2023 (M.A.) and Spring 2027 (D.A.)
Research Interests: American Politics, Political Behavior, Voting and Public Opinion
Adviser: Dr. James W. Stoutenborough
Email:
Tanner Morton is currently working on both his Masters of Art and Doctor of Art degrees in the Department of Political Science at Idaho State University. His current research interests focus on Political Behavior and Public Opinion in the American context. Tanner was born and raised in Pocatello, Idaho and is a proud Theatre Department Alumnus of Idaho State University.
James F. Pascali (#15)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2023
Research Interests: Single Mothers as Socializing Agents, d/Deaf Identity & Political Action, Politics of Disability
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email:
James’s research mainly consists of looking at how groups of people come to develop their beliefs and what drives them to turn those beliefs into action. For his Master thesis, he looked at the impact that strong female role models have, primarily single mothers, have on one’s socialization toward support for women’s rights. James is also interested in the politics of disability and how Deaf identity development can lead to political activation within the discourse surrounding disability.
Beyond his research interest, James is passionately pursuing his aspirations of becoming a teacher. His favorite aspect of teaching is being able to share the things he finds interesting with others in hopes that it sparks an interest in them as well.
Outside of academic interests, James is an avid fan of comic books and video games.
Erika Richards (#26)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date: Spring 2024
Research Interests: Sex Offender Policy, Female Sex Offenders, Risk Perceptions of Sex Offenders
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email: erikastookey@isu.edu
Currently, Erika is working as an adjunct instructor at the College of Western Idaho out of Nampa, Idaho. Erika is working towards her Doctorate of Arts in political science and plans to pursue employment in a university setting.
Erika is currently living in Twin Falls, Idaho with her husband and two cats. When she is not studying, writing, or researching, she enjoys watching The Pioneer Woman on Food Network, reading thriller books, playing with her two cats (Tesla and Szigeti) and teaching indoor cycling classes.
Ashley Siler (#)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date:
Research Interests:
Adviser: Dr. James W. Stoutenborough
Email:
Bio coming soon!
Bea Valencia (#)
Class Standing: Doctoral Student
Expected Graduation Date:
Research Interests:
Adviser: Dr. Kellee J. Kirkpatrick
Email:
Bio coming soon!