In an era of No Kings, thinly veiled references to World War events and injustices faced by Americans perpetrated by American institutions, Smith College Visiting Assistant Professor of Government James Kirk maintains that vigilance is key. He views political hurdles as turning points, his life’s work revolving around the very concepts which impair today’s political climate, aiming to provide insight into means of bettering and questioning those concepts.
Kirk has witnessed the severity of today’s government while simultaneously teaching the subject.
“I want to try to teach that in a way that’s still informative and empowering to students,” he said. “I think what’s really difficult is trying to strike a balance as a teacher between wanting to convey the seriousness of the moment that we’re in, whether that’s polarization, or challenges to democracy, or strain that our democratic institutions are under.”
Since the 2024 presidential election, the U.S. has grappled with uncertainty about the state of democracy. When asked whether his teaching remains objective during this moment of political contention, Kirk recognized the challenges and expressed a need for turnaround.
“I think in a way the current era is very scary, but I think it’s been a wake-up call to people,” he said. “Democracy is something that if we value it, it’s something we have to work hard to protect.”
Kirk holds a PhD in political science from the University of Notre Dame, where he focused on American and comparative politics. Prior to obtaining his doctorate, Kirk studied political science at Frostburg State University in rural Maryland where he grew up. Kirk’s time in Maryland contributed to his relationship with politics.
“Growing up in a rural area that had experienced a lot of economic decline really informed, for example, a lot of my own research. I’ve written about basically the extent to which rural Americans distrust government,” he said.
Kirk took advantage of his proximity to D.C., and seized two opportunities to expand his political passion. “I interned in D.C. twice, I interned with the American Society of Civil Engineers, in their government affairs office … and I interned in the office of U.S. Senator Ben Cardin,” he recalled. Maryland-proud and civically curious, Kirk’s attention for the political landscape grew.
As an intern working with politicians and seeing their endeavors up close, Kirk understood firsthand the intricacy of government from a position which confronted his prior assumptions about the inner workings of political systems.
“For example, the demeanor and the conversation between staff and elected officials from both parties is so much less polarized behind closed doors,” he said.
After working on a campaign where the candidate lost, Kirk faced the decision to continue his direct political work or transition to academia. Kirk, backed by a family of teachers and a draw toward guiding students, chose the latter.
While many political science majors choose to pursue law school after graduating, Kirk knew it wasn’t what he wanted. Reflecting on how much he enjoyed college, Kirk explained why he felt so drawn to academia. “I really like doing research and asking big questions, I really like interacting with students … I think my interest, plus the kind of family culture of education came together … that’s kind of how I ended up going this route,” he said.
Before coming to Smith, Kirk taught classes at Notre Dame after getting his doctorate. Contrasting the two institutions, he detailed ideological differences between students at Notre Dame.
“Notre Dame has the main student newspaper, which tends to be a little left-leaning, but then they have a counter conservative student newspaper on campus. So you kind of have these competing ideological viewpoints on campus, more so than traditionally we think of Smith College as a left-leaning place,” he said.
In his year as a visiting assistant professor at Smith, Kirk teaches an array of American and comparative government classes. Serving as a professor for a specific year-long term, his stay at Smith is short and sweet. He became particularly fond of the institution after a conversation with two government majors. “It made me really excited to teach at Smith, because I could tell that the students were very mindful about their own academic community, but they were also pushing me (by saying) ‘We want to be exposed to different viewpoints,’” he said.
Kirk’s mindset regarding today’s political moment extends through his teaching and is a demonstration of his passion and optimism toward government. “If I believed that democracy is doomed, and there’s no hope for the future, I wouldn’t be doing this. I believe that democracy has always been a work in progress, since the founding,” he said.
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