I am the Robert B. and Helen S. Meyner Professor of Government and Public Service and Director of the Meyner Center for the Study of State and Local Government. My career has not been all academic. It’s been a mix of academic teaching and research at several universities and colleges as well as real-world work in community organizing, anti-war advocacy, and high-level service with the federal government. At Lafayette College, I have one foot on campus and the other off campus.

My teaching and research focus mostly on federalism and state and local government, and emphasize practical matters and problem-solving. Modern federalism was invented by the founders of the United States. Today, about 43 percent of the world’s people live in countries with federal systems. Ultimately, achieving world peace will require federal arrangements that accommodate and respect the tremendous diversity of human communities. Closer to home, state and local governments provide all the essential services of life from clean water and public sanitation to police and fire protection, building codes, roads and streets, parks and recreation, public transportation, emergency services, pot-hole repair, and so on. State and local governments are the most accessible arenas for democratic participation and citizenship.