As I draft this letter, I am wrapping up one of my favorite classes: Introduction to Political Theory, a course in which more than 100 WashU undergraduates spend the semester reading, thinking, and debating about some of the most important concepts in the study and practice of politics: democracy, power, freedom, and justice. Meanwhile, my colleagues are concluding courses in everything from international conflict to the American Supreme Court. Several of our PhD students are defending their dissertations and preparing to assume faculty positions at other universities, while our seniors are celebrating graduation with their families and friends. 

These end-of-year activities offer a reminder of the work we do in the department: teaching, learning, conducting research, and writing about political institutions, democratic practice, war and peace, representation, equality and inequality, and political power. We ask how power works, what justice demands, and what democracy means under conditions of deep disagreement. We take ideas seriously, a commitment that is especially important at a moment when both higher education and democratic politics face serious pressures.

To our graduating seniors and PhD students: congratulations on all you have accomplished. To our alumni and returning students, faculty, and staff: I look forward to the conversations and collaborations that will continue next year. In this difficult moment, I am grateful for the seriousness and care with which our department approaches its work.