Sheila Y. Oliver Center for Politics and Race in America

Then and now! Over the past year, our 2025 CPRA Capitol Hill Fellows took their passion for public service beyond the classroom and into the halls of Congress, gaining first hand experience. Now, we are proud to celebrate Alexis, Jacinay, Esron, Moujan, Edwin, and Karen as they graduate! We are so proud of everything this cohort has accomplished, and can’t wait to see where their passion for public service takes them next. CPRA is proud to support the next generation of public service leaders by creating opportunities for students to grow, lead, and make an impact.

Congratulations to our graduates! 🎓🎉

Celebrating the end of the year at our Public Service Leaders BBQ 🌭✨

Together with CPRA staff, faculty, students, and members of the RU-N community, we celebrated the close of the academic year, honored our graduating students 🎓, and recognized the incredible work our fellows accomplished through their public service internships.

Thank you to everyone who joined us as we continue building community and inspiring the next generation of public service leaders!

Grateful to all who joined us for “Seeing Wellness as Political Refusal”- a reflective evening of conversation with New York Times Bestselling Author, Cole Arthur Riley, and an exhibit opening curated by Dr. Laura Krystal Porterfield at Express Newark.

Together, we were reminded of the power of community—and of care and wellness as radical, transformative practices rooted in justice.l

Earlier this month, CPRA Director James Jones organized a one-day symposium, Peopling Politics: Bringing the People Back In, held on Thursday, March 5, 2026, at the Bloomberg Washington Center in the nation’s capital.

The symposium brought together leading scholars and practitioners to examine the state of U.S. democracy, highlight new research in American politics, and think collectively about how to resist authoritarianism and strengthen democratic institutions. The program featured voices like Rep. Greg Casar, Ambassador Katherine Tai, and Kristen Clarke, former Assistant Attorney General—grounding the conversation in both scholarship and practice and reminding us that democracy is something we actively build, protect, and reimagine.

Peopling Politics is part of a broader initiative led by CPRA to bring people back into the study of politics—centering questions of race, class, and culture while fostering collaboration across institutions. This work reflects a growing partnership between
Rutgers University—Newark, the HEARD Initiative at Swarthmore College, the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University, and Boston University—building a network of scholars committed to studying and strengthening democracy together.

CPRA takes on Washington, D.C.! Earlier this month, CPRA co-sponsored the inaugural Peopling Politics Symposium: Bringing the People Back In, co-organized by our own Director, Dr. James Jones, and Postdoctoral Fellow, Dr. Kanika Khanna. The one-day event brought together scholars, students, and political practitioners to explore how U.S. democratic institutions can be strengthened through an intersectional lens of race, class, and research.

As part of the trip, CPRA brought six students to the nation’s capital, giving them firsthand exposure to the intersection of research, policy, and practice. From engaging with impactful speakers to exploring D.C. and connecting with peers from across the country, students gained valuable insight into the power of people-centered approaches to democracy.

A truly inspiring experience that brought learning beyond the classroom and into action.

Join us for the Guarini Lecture Series at Saint Peter's University featuring our very own Professor Hyacinth Miller!

In "Civic Engagement, Politics, and Research in the 21st Century", Professor Miller will share insights from her research project, "Garden State’s Black Politics". Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with research that highlights leadership, representation, and the evolving political landscape in our state.

📆 Monday, March 30, 2026
🕚 11:00 AM
📍 McIntyre C, Dinneen Hall, St. Peter’s University

Join CPRA and the RU-N Department of Urban Education for "Seeing Wellness as Political Refusal", an exhibit opening in conversation with New York Times Bestselling Author Cole Arthur Riley!

📆 Monday, March 23, 2026
🕚️ 6PM
📍 Express Newark

Dinner will be served! To register for this event, visit go.rutgers.edu/ColeArthurRiley