Brooke Ackerly (Ph.D. Stanford University) is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Vanderbilt University. Her research interests include human rights, social and environmental justice, democratic theory, and feminist methodology for social science research. She integrates into her theoretical work empirical research on activism. Her publications include Political Theory and Feminist Social Criticism (Cambridge University Press, 2000), Universal Human Rights in a World of Difference (Cambridge University Press, 2008), and Doing Feminist Research with Jacqui True (Palgrave 2010). Her current project follows an approach that she developed in Political Theory and Feminist Social Criticism and Universal Human Rights in a World of Difference, that is, to study an important question in political theory from the perspective of those in struggle. In a work in progress, tentatively entitled, Everyday Injustice: Human Rights, Responsibility and Action, she explores the human rights violations hidden in the complexity of everyday life in a globalized world. This work highlights human rights violations related to economic, environmental, and gender injustice.
She teaches courses on feminist theory, feminist methods, human rights, contemporary political thought, and gender and the history of political thought. She is the winner of the Graduate Teaching Award and the Margaret Cuninggim Mentoring Prize.
She advises academics and donors on evaluation, methodology and the ethics of research. She is the founder of the Global Feminisms Collaborative, a group of scholars and activists developing ways to collaborate on applied research for social justice. She serves the profession through committees in her professional associations including the American Political Science Association (APSA), International Studies Association (ISA), and the Association for Women’s Rights and Development. She is a member of the editorial board for Politics and Gender (the journal of the APSA, Women and Politics Section).
Professor Ackerly has returned from 2009-2010 leave and in 2010-2011, she is teaching:
PSCI 253 Ethics and Public Policy
PSCI 271 Feminist Theory and Method
PSCI 207W Liberalism and Its Critics (the W indicates a writing-seminar)
PSCI 308 Human Rights and Religion – a graduate seminar co-taught with Melissa Snarr, Vanderbilt Divinity School
In the academic year 2008-2009 she taught:
Fall PSCI103: Introduction to Political Thought
Fall PSCI209: Global Feminisms
Spring PSCI207: Liberalism and its Critics
Spring PSCI301: Human Rights
In the academic year 2007-2008 she taught:
Fall PSCI207: Liberalism and its Critics
Fall PSCI305: Feminist Social and Political Thought
Spring PSCI201: Contemporary Political Theory
Spring PSCI271: Feminist Theory and Method
In the academic year 2006-2007 she taught:
Fall PS103: Introduction to Political Thought
Fall PS209: Global Feminisms
Spring PS201: Contemporary Political Theory
Spring PS308-1: Human Rights in Cross-cultural and Trans-disciplinary Perspective
Spring PS308-2: Global Feminisms
Contact Information:
Brooke Ackerly
Associate Professor
Political Science
Vanderbilt University
Box 1817 Station B
Nashville, TN 37235
Tel: 615-322-6231 CST
Fax: 615-343-6003
brooke.ackerly@vanderbilt.edu