Janet Donavan

The Journey to an Inclusvie Political Science Curriculum

Avery Lord — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:30:44 +0000

The Journey to an Inclusvie Political Science Curriculum Avery Lord Tue, 06/16/2026 - 13:30

The Journey to an Inclusvie Political Science Curriculum

By: Janet L Donavan

Abstract:

In order to meet the challenges of the 21st century, political science needs to come to terms with its exclusive past and make the changes needed for an inclusive future. This paper focuses on the challenges involved in transforming an existing, traditional political science curriculum into a curriculum that addresses the diverse perspectives, issues and problems the world faces and confronts the systemic biases in both the discipline and the world. In this paper, I use examples from my own departments process, as well as examples I have gathered from other departments and from the literature to make suggestions for concrete steps any department can take to develop an inclusive curriculum. These steps are broken down into individual and collective changes and also into the categories of pedagogical change, content change, and faculty reward-structure change.

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Uses and Limits of Data and Student Feedback in Pedagogical Response to COVID-19: A Case Study

Avery Lord — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:27:56 +0000

Uses and Limits of Data and Student Feedback in Pedagogical Response to COVID-19: A Case Study Avery Lord Tue, 06/16/2026 - 13:27

Uses and Limits of Data and Student Feedback in Pedagogical Response to COVID-19: A Case Study

By: Janet L Donavan

Abstract:

This article examines how one political science department used data and student feedback to make pedagogical choices about course modalities and pedagogical approaches during the COVID-19 pandemic. This case demonstrates that gathering data from students through surveys and other means and then utilizing that data in decision making is a valuable practice. However, there are constraints on collecting quality data in a crisis. With a need to react quickly and to gather and analyze data in a timely fashion, data-informed and student-empathetic decision making is a more accurate characterization of the outcomes in this case and a more achievable goal for the future than data-driven and student-centered decision making in a crisis. This study concludes that data-informed and student-empathetic decision making may be preferable in circumstances in which the data are inconclusive or support multiple conclusions as well as when there are conflicting needs and preferences among both faculty members and students.

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Implementing Anti-Racism Activities in US Political Science Courses

Avery Lord — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:26:30 +0000

Implementing Anti-Racism Activities in US Political Science Courses Avery Lord Tue, 06/16/2026 - 13:26

Implementing Anti-Racism Activities in US Political Science Courses

By: Janet L Donavan

Abstract:

This paper makes the case for why anti-racism pedagogy should be included and identified as anti-racism in political science courses and provides and evaluates an example of anti-racism pedagogy in an American Political Thought course. In addition, I address critics of anti-racism and ways of addressing those critics in the classroom. In evaluating anti-racism pedagogy, work from higher education research is integrated with political-science specific teaching and learning work. I detail multiple ways anti-racism has been included in the example course, student evaluation of an active learning anti-racism activity and evaluate the learning outcomes for students who completed the original and enhanced active learning versions of anti-racism in the course. I find that although students are able to partially meet the learning goals, additional anti-racism content is necessary to fully achieve the learning goals of identifying and countering racist ideas, actions, or outcomes.

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Plagiarism and AI Detectors

Avery Lord — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:24:06 +0000

Plagiarism and AI Detectors Avery Lord Tue, 06/16/2026 - 13:24

Plagiarism and AI Detectors

By: Janet L Donavan

Abstract:

I confess to adopting plagiarism detection without much thought. Our LMS has an integrated plagiarism detector and I “checked the box” for plagiarism detection for years. My thought would help students to see their “plagiarism score” in advance of submitting the paper and make adjustments. I design assignments using best practices to make them difficult to plagiarize (WPA 2017) and I have only identified a few cases of plagiarism in my classes using this software across thousands of students. In most cases, these were cases of sloppy attribution, or an overly aggressive algorithm citing common phrases as plagiarism. The main value is to encourage students to catch plagiarism before submitting work. This year, an instructor reached out for advice after being contacted by the plagiarism detection software provider asking for a student assignment to be sent to an instructor at another institution for review. Because the student saved the assignment with their name as the file name (which students are often instructed to do, for example 101_Donavan_Midterm1), the student’s name had been retained in the plagiarism system and revealed to this other instructor. I became aware of how student papers as well as instructor feedback are being saved in these systems and fed through plagiarism algorithms in ways that are sloppy at best at providing student privacy, with student or faculty names being shared by the system when they are in the file name.

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Teaching US Politics to Support Multiracial Democracy

Avery Lord — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:22:46 +0000

Teaching US Politics to Support Multiracial Democracy Avery Lord Tue, 06/16/2026 - 13:22

Teaching US Politics to Support Multiracial Democracy

By: Janet L Donavan

Abstract:

Students in political science classes seek knowledge to understand and navigate the political world. Teaching U.S. politics to support and participate in multiracial democracy requires acknowledging and making explicit our commitment to inclusive democracy. In addition, we must interrogate the normative framework in which empirical research is done and confront the exclusionary biases in much research in the subfield. Without connecting empirical findings to normative assumptions and biases, we cannot equip students to be citizens. Here, I provide three curricular interventions to situate empirical evidence in the normative values of inclusive democracy and to critique the exclusivity of the discipline.

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When Politics Appears Bleak: Revisiting Civic Hope During Democratic Backsliding

Avery Lord — Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:20:25 +0000

When Politics Appears Bleak: Revisiting Civic Hope During Democratic Backsliding Avery Lord Tue, 06/16/2026 - 13:20

When Politics Appears Bleak: Revisiting Civic Hope During Democratic Backsliding

By: Michael McDevitt, Janet Donavan, Leah Sprain

Abstract:

Civic hope among ordinary citizens has yet to attract much attention in political science despite its relevance to democratic resilience. Civic hope requires work; the belief/action component must overcome detachment, polarization, distrust, and bystanding. Framing the discussion this way anticipates boundaries of the concept during democratic backsliding. The present paper explores whether civic hope as evident in letters to the editor is productive in reimagining politics and peoplehood in crisis times. We investigate how civic hope manifests in letters in a western Colorado community from 2012-2024. A qualitative analysis focuses on two components of public argument: “national touchstones” and “oppositional literacy. ” Our interpretation is that these features potentially undermine civic hope through exclusion of minoritized groups and belittling of opponents. We conclude with a discussion of the practices of argument that might contribute to the slowing of backsliding, if not democratic renewal.

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Getting out the vote and hashing out the issues

Anonymous — Fri, 13 Sep 2024 20:18:34 +0000

Getting out the vote and hashing out the issues Anonymous (not verified) Fri, 09/13/2024 - 14:18

Janet Donavan

Dr. Janet Donavan, Director of Undergraduate Studies and Teaching Professor in the Political Science departement, was recently interviewed by the Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine. She discusses civic participation habits in light of the new election, as well as emphasizes the importance of voting.

Read the full article here: Getting out the vote and hashing out the issues | Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine

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Congratulations Janet Donavan!

Anonymous — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 16:34:02 +0000

Congratulations Janet Donavan! Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 04/26/2023 - 10:34

Congratulations to Janet Donavan, Director of Undergraduate Studies and Teaching Associate Professor! She recently earned a 2023 Excellence in Leadership & Service award from the Boulder Faculty Assembly (BFA). This award recognizes the importance of leadership and service as indispensable features of faculty responsibilities. The BFA awards ceremony was hosted by BFA chair Tiffany Beechy, and awards were presented by Provost Russ Moore. She was honored with other BFA award recipients in a ceremony on April 19th.

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Meet Janet Donavan

Anonymous — Wed, 27 Jun 2018 17:33:49 +0000

Meet Janet Donavan Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 06/27/2018 - 11:33

Jeffrey Nonnemacher

Senior Instructor

Since she was a little girl, politics has always fascinated Dr. Janet Donavan. “In Kindergarten, I was really interested in the 1980 presidential election”, she explained, “and when I was in 3^rd grade, I got a subscription to NewsWeek for my birthday.”

“I don’t know why. My parents weren’t interested in politics,” she joked. “I did learn to read from reading the newspaper, so the first thing I read was politics.”

“My first thing that I wanted to be was an astronaut, but I had bad eyes, so I couldn’t be an astronaut. Then I wanted to be a senator, and don’t know why I changed my mind. Then I wanted to be a travel agent, and I guess it is a good thing I changed my mind because there aren’t really travel agents anymore,” she recalled, “Then I wanted to be a journalist for a long time and I was always really interested in political news.”

“When I was in school, and still today, there’s this huge change going on with journalism and information, newspapers, and how we get our information,” she explained. “I really wanted to study that and study how people get their political information instead of being the one who writes it.”

As a result, one of her favorite classes to teach in PSCI 4341: Media & Politics and her research focuses on political communication. “I am really interested in the role of journalism and the dissemination of information in the political process, so how people get their information about politics, how people make decisions, the quality of that information.”

She also is interested in studying pre-Revolutionary War American political thought. From teaching it, she "realized that nobody focused on this era in American political thought and political development.”

She was interested in addressing the gap in literature on the era because “it shaped the state governments which already existed when we started the revolution.” She argues that the ideas that formed the National government and US Constitution came from the colonial governments and experiences at the colonial level.

However, most her job here at CU is teaching, so some of her research is focused on “teaching and learning” in Political Science, and the ways to better the curriculum for students.

When she isn’t working, she can be found hiking, camping, and travelling around Colorado. “I am from Ohio, I went to grad school in Wisconsin, had a job in Washington and had a job in Minnesota and now here,” she listed. “I just love the weather and outdoor lifestyle” of Colorado.

In 2018, Dr. Donavan was awarded the 2018 Mentor of the Year Award, a new honor from the Department of Political Science meant to recognize professors that go above and beyond the role of classroom instructor.

“I was excited, I think it is a great idea that we have it, and I was really honored by it. I try really hard to mentor students because I think it is an important aspect of what we do.”

"I am really lucky”, she said. “It is hard, but it is something that I enjoy and can get up and do every day.”

“Find something you are care about,” she advised, “study it, understand it, and work for it. It is just a good way to enjoy your life.

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