A decade and a half ago, Christopher Hull (ICPES 91) was a student in the TFAS Institute on Comparative Political and Economic Systems.  Now he’s a professor at the Institute, having joined the faculty this summer to teach the Public Affairs Internship Seminar, Government 241.   The course provides context for the practical internship experience and helps students understand the complex nature and challenges of political and public affairs careers.

“As an ICPES alum myself, I looked at each student and saw a younger me.”  Hull says his aim was to “shine a light on how Washington really works, as well as the good in public service.”  He added, “This class was filled with smart, energetic, poised young men and women that all of us would be proud to have enter public service.”

At the end of the course, student Xiu Chen summed up the sentiments of many students writing to Hull, “I can tell very clearly that you were really enjoying the class and it’s your passion that impressed me most.  If I should be a professor some day, I would want to be just like you — sharing the knowledge, the experience and ideal with the students, while also being fun, considerate and inspiring.”

During the academic year Hull teaches politics courses at both Georgetown and George Washington University, while also running a public affairs firm where he deals with the very issues he teaches in the classroom.

Hull graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University in 1992 with a degree in Government and received a doctoral degree with distinction in American government from Georgetown University in 2005.  His first book, Grassroots Rules: How Iowa Helps Elect American Presidents, is due out this October from Stanford University Press.

Although new to the TFAS faculty, Hull has been an active alumnus for many years and is a member of the ICPES board of visitors.  In reference to his students this summer, Hull remarked, “The Fund for American Studies program helped sharpen both their desire and their ability to pursue a career in politics or policy – just as it did for me.”