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by Elise Rolandson
Robert Wood loves those “light bulb moments,” when something just clicks and the students know that political science is right for them.
Why do students enjoy Wood’s classes? A former student says it is because “he engages the students with real life stories and examples. He keeps the students on their toes.” Wood, an assistant professor in political science, believes it is because he truly enjoys what he does and does his best to incorporate the newest technologies into his classes, such as podcasts and clickers. Wood says that he has a great department, every professor is very committed to their students and that the students are “open and eager to learn.”
Originally from the Salt Lake City area, Wood attended Weber State University in Utah where he received an undergraduate degree in political science. He went to work as a labor market economist for the State of Utah, where he says he experienced bureaucracy first-hand. Following his work experience, Wood went back to school and received his graduate degree from the University of Washington, Seattle and joined the UND staff in 2003.
Wood is a Director of the Bureau of Governmental Affairs at UND and an associate fellow at the Center for American Politics and Public Policy at the University of Washington. Wood has also received the Mortar Board Outstanding Professor award at UND. He has been published in several scholarly journals and presented at over a dozen conferences, including the annual meetings of the American Political Science Association, Midwest Political Science Association, and the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management.
In his spare time, Wood enjoys playing the guitar, mountain climbing, and running. He has climbed both Mt. Rainer and Mt. Adams twice, along with competing in two marathons and several half marathons. Wood also likes remodeling homes. He and his wife Valarie have two young children, who visit and entertain Wood’s classes every semester. Wood describes his children as “go-getters, already studying to be future UND students.”
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