The University of South Florida offers a variety of faculty experts to discuss key issues relevant to the 2024 primary and general elections.
Listed below are some of USF’s experts by topic, along with their focus area. Members of the media interested in an interview are asked to contact Kevin Watler (kevinwatler@usf.edu), who will work to accommodate interview requests within the experts’ schedules.
In addition, if there is interest in a topic not listed, USF’s Experts Guide is another resource to quickly locate faculty members by keywords, expertise or college.
GENERAL POLITICS
Edwin Benton
Professor of political science and public administration
- State and local government politics
- Government finances and fiscal behavior
- Welfare and housing policy
Rob Mellen Jr.
Assistant professor of political science
- Presidency
- Interaction among government branches
- Congressional politics
- Presidential primaries and caucuses
Janna Merrick
Professor of political science
- Public policy
- American national government
Jianing Li
Assistant professor of mass communication
- Mis/disinformation
- Contentious politics
- Social inequality
Susan MacManus
Professor emeritus of political science
- Florida politics
- Political issues
- Women in politics
- Voter demographics
Darryl Paulson
Professor emeritus of government
- Florida politics
- American government
- Political campaigns
- Voting rights
POLITICAL COMMUNICATION/ARTIFICAL INTELLIGENCE
Josh Scacco
Associate professor of communication studies
- Political campaigns
- Misinformation and disinformation
- Social and digital media
- Public opinion
Lawrence Hall
Distinguished university professor of computer science
- AI regulation
- AI in image processing
- AI and its effects on jobs and the workplace
John Licato
Assistant professor of computer science
- How large language models such as ChatGPT can be used in political messaging
- AI in spam communications
- AI’s impact on cognitive biases in political communications
Stephen Neely
Associate professor of public administration
- Media and politics
- Public policy
- Survey research on policy and election topics
Monica Ancu
Associate professor of mass communication
- Social media and politics
- Political campaigns
COVID-19/PUBLIC HEALTH/MENTAL HEALTH
Jason Salemi
Associate professor of epidemiology
- Infectious disease
- Public health surveillance
- Maternal and child health, birth defects
Jay Wolfson
Distinguished professor of public health, medicine and pharmacy
- Differences in candidates’ approach to health care and policy
- Health care finance
- Health policy and practice
Ryan Wagoner
Division chief, Morsani College of Medicine Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences
- Social anxiety related to news consumption
- Social anxiety related to interactions on social media
- The philosophy of individuals not assuming the worst in others
Michael Teng
Assistant professor of internal medicine
- Infectious disease
- Allergies and immunology
- Biomedical engineering
Jill Roberts
Associate professor of public health
- COVID-19
- Public health guidelines and implementation
- Broad perspective on infectious diseases
Katherine Drabiak
Associate professor of public health law
- Health policy
- Health law
- Bioethics/clinical ethics
CLIMATE CHANGE/ENVIRONMENT
Chris Meindl
Associate professor of geography
- Regional geography
- Water management
- Environmental policy
Christian Wells
Professor of anthropology
- Environmental justice and underserved communities
- Soil/water/air contamination; brownfields
- Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and White House Justice40 Initiative
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Feng Hao
Associate professor of sociology
- Human causes of climate change
- National and international climate policy
- Renewable energy deployment
- Public opinion on environmental issues
Gary Mitchum
Professor of physical oceanography
- Global sea-level rise
- Broader connections between climate change and hurricanes
- Impacts of sea-level rise, storm surge and hurricanes
CRIMINAL JUSTICE REFORM
Edelyn Verona
Professor of psychology
- Psychology and crime
- Violence prevention
- Pathways to incarceration and reentry
- Mental health and criminal justice
Jessica Grosholz
Associate professor of criminology
- Recidivism
- Prisoner education
- Prisoner reentry
CYBERSECURITY
George W. Burruss
Professor of criminology
- Policing
- Homeland security
- Victimization in cyberspace
Giti Javidi
Professor of cybersecurity
- Cybersecurity governance and policies
- Cyber threat intelligence and risk management
- Security in smart infrastructures (smart cities, smart power/utility grids, smart vehicles)
Thomas Hyslip
Assistant professor of criminology
- Computer hacking
- Cybercrime
- Digital forensics
Stephen Gary
Associate professor of information and intelligence studies
- Cyber threats to the 2024 elections
- Cyber threat actors and reasonings
- Cyber threats to public and private sectors
ECONOMY
Michael Snipes
Associate professor of economics
- General economics and policy
- Inflation
- Housing and cost of living
Brad Kamp
Associate professor of economics
- Microeconomics
- Information economics
- Trade
Richard Smith
Associate professor of economics
- Health care economics
FOREIGN POLICY
Golfo Alexopoulos
Professor of Russian and Soviet history
- Russian politics and history
- US-Russian relations
- Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
- Authoritarianism and political violence in Europe
Tatsiana Kulekevich
Instructor of political science
- Eastern Europe, Belarus
- International political economics, migration and protest politics
- Democratization, international security and ethnic politics
Steven Roach
Professor of international relations
- Global governance
- Critical international theory
- International criminal court
- Global ethics and warfare
Thomas Smith
Professor of foreign affairs
- International humanitarian law
- Middle East
- Laws of war
Adib Farhadi
Assistant professor of economics
- Great Power competition
- Violent extremism
- Religion, conflict and peacebuilding
IMMIGRATION
Elizabeth Aranda
Professor of sociology
- Undocumented young adults in Florida
- Immigration policies
- Latinos/as and racial profiling; Latinos/as and voting behavior
- Puerto Rican migration; Puerto Ricans in Florida
Heidi Castañeda
Professor of anthropology
- Borders
- Migration/immigration
- Migrant health
Jody McBrien
Professor of educational studies
- International migration and refugee resettlement
- Families affected by war
- Global refugee population growth (from 9.2 million in 2004 to 35.3 million in 2022)
NATIONAL SECURITY/DEFENSE
Jim Cardoso
Senior director, Global and National Security Institute; U.S. Air Force (ret.)
- National security
- Military and defense industry
- Aviation
- Special operations
David Oakley
Academic director, Global and National Security Institute; former U. S. Army field artillery officer
- Intelligence, including CIA/Department of Defense relations
- U.S. foreign policy
- Civilian-military and civilian-intelligence relations
- Irregular warfare
Tad Schnaufer II
Research and strategy manager, Global and National Security Institute
- NATO
- Military studies
- Foreign policy
- Hybrid warfare
Zacharias P. Pieri
Associate professor of political science
- Extremism -- both domestic and international, including jihadist movements
- Far right activity in the U.S.
- Antisemitism