Benjamin J. Kassow

Fall 2014: POLS 115 (American Government I), POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers)

Spring 2015: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties), POLS 393 (Problems in Political Science: Law & Society)

Fall 2015: POLS 115 (American Government I), POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers)

Spring 2016: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Fall 2016: POLS 115 (American Government I), POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers)

Spring 2017: POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties), POLS 393 (Problems in Political Science: Judicial Processes)

Fall 2017: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers)

Spring 2018: POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Fall 2018: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers)

Spring 2019: POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties), POLS 539 (Administrative Law)

Fall 2019: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers)

Spring 2020: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Fall 2020: POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers), POLS 432 (Public Policymaking Process)

Spring 2021: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Fall 2021: POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers), POLS 432 (Public Policymaking Process), POLS 500 (Research Methods)

Spring 2022: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Fall 2022: POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers), POLS 432 (Public Policymaking Process), POLS 500 (Research Methods)

Spring 2023: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Fall 2023: POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers), POLS 432 (Public Policymaking Process), POLS 500 (Research Methods)

Spring 2024: POLS 115 (American Government 1), POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Fall 2024: POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers), POLS 432 (Public Policymaking Process), POLS 500 (Research Methods), POLS 532 (Public Policy; Graduate level course)

Spring 2025: Not teaching (on Developmental Leave)

Fall 2025: POLS 305 (American Constitution: Government Powers), POLS 432 (Public Policymaking Process), POLS 532 (Public Policy; Graduate level course)

Spring 2026: POLS 306 (American Constitution: Civil Rights and Liberties)

Public Law/Judicial Politics: The Influence of Legal Factors in Judicial Processes, Judicial Implementation and Impact, State High Court Decision-Making, U.S. Courts of Appeals Decision-Making, Judicial Legitimacy.

American Politics: American Political Institutions (Separation of Powers), Congressional Elections, State Politics.

Peer-Reviewed Book:

Fix, Michael P., and Benjamin J. Kassow.  U.S. Supreme Court Doctrine in the State High Courts. 2020.  Cambridge University Press.

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles:

Boston, Josh, Benjamin J. Kassow, Ali S. Masood, and David R. Miller (ordered alphabetically). 2023. "Your Honor’s Misdeeds: The Consequences of Judicial Scandal on Specific and Diffuse Support." PS: Political Science & Politics 56(2): 195-200.

Masood, Ali, and Benjamin J. Kassow. 2023. "What’s in a Name: How U.S. Supreme Court Justices Shape Law and Policy in the Lower Courts."  Law & Social Inquiry. 48(2): 463-488.

Kassow, Benjamin J., and Michael P. Fix. 2022. "Federal Appeals Court Responses to Supreme Court Precedent." Justice System Journal 43(3): 339-352.

Goelzhauser, Greg, Benjamin J. Kassow, and Doug Rice. 2022. "Measuring Supreme Court Case Complexity". Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization 38(1): 92-118.

Masood, Ali S., and Benjamin J. Kassow. 2020. ``The Sum of its Parts: How Individual Supreme Court Justices Disparately Shape Policy." Social Science Quarterly 101(2): 842-860.

Masood, Ali S., Benjamin J. Kassow, and Donald R. Songer. 2019. "The Aggregate Dynamics of Lower Court Responses to the U.S. Supreme Court." Journal of Law and Courts. 7(2): 159-186.

Schorpp, Susanne, David Hoffman, and Benjamin J. Kassow. 2017. " `Tilted Scales:' The Impact of Federal Courts on American Income Inequality." Justice System Journal. 38(3): 213-240.

Masood, Ali S., Benjamin J. Kassow, and Donald R. Songer. 2017. "Precedent in a Judicial Hierarchy." American Politics Research. 45(3): 403-434.

Kassow, Benjamin J., Donald R. Songer, and Michael P. Fix. 2012. "The Influence of Precedent on State Supreme Courts." Political Research Quarterly 65(2): 372-384.

Kassow, Benjamin J., and Charles J. Finocchiaro. 2011. "Responsiveness and Electoral Accountability in the U.S. Senate." American Politics Research 39(6): 1019-1044.

Other Publications:

Kassow, Benjamin J. 2024. "Hierchical Influences on Judicial-Making in the United States." in Elgar Research Handbook on Judicial Politics, edited by Michael P. Fix (Professor of Political Science as Georgia State University) and Matthew Montgomery (Assistant Professor of Political Science at Texas Christian University). Peer-reviewed.

Masood, Ali, Joshua Boston, Benjamin Kassow, and David Miller. 2023, "Judging the Judges: Scandals Have the Potential to Affect the Legitimacy of Judges-and Possibly the Federal Judiciary, Too.", in The Conversation. Published on June 2, 2023.

Kassow, Benjamin. 2023. "Why Do Wyoming and California Have the Same Number of Senators?" in The U.S. Constitution in Five Minutes, edited by Joseph Smith (Department Chair and Professor of Political Science at the University of Alabama) and David Klein (Department Head and Professor of Political Science at Eastern Michigan University). 

Kassow, Benjamin. 2022. Book review of It's Not Personal: Politics and Policy in Lower Court Confirmation hearings by Logan Dancey, Kjersten Nelson, and Eve Ringsmuth. Published in Political Science Quarterly. 

Kassow, Benjamin. 2020. Book review of Conservative Innovators: How State Are Challenging Federal Power by Ben Merriman. Published in Law & Politics Book Review. 

Kassow, Benjamin. 2019. "State High Courts & Precedent: Questions of Usage and Spread of Precedents" in Elgar Research Handbook on Law and Courts, edited by Lee D. Walker (Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of North Texas) and Susan Sterett (Professor & Director of Public Policy at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County), Edward Elgar Publishing. pp. pp. 280-289. Peer-reviewed.

Kassow, Benjamin. 2017. "Electoral College Alternatives: Tradeoffs"  in Picking the President, edited by Eric Burin (Professor of History at the University of North Dakota), Digital Press at University of North Dakota.  pp. 55-57.

Kassow, Benjamin. 2016. "Administrative Law Judges and Politics" in Global Encyclopedia of Public Administration, Public Policy, and Governance, edited by Ali Farazmand (Professor of Public Administration at Florida Atlantic University), Springer Publishing.

Manuscripts Under Review (Article Length):

REDACTED TO PRESERVE THE ANONYMITY OF DOUBLE BLIND PEER REVIEW.

Manuscripts in Preparation:

REDACTED TO PRESERVE THE ANONYMITY OF DOUBLE BLIND PEER REVIEW.

Nistler College Bernhoft Faculty Fellow, University of North Dakota, Fall 2025-

Nistler College Summer Research Grant, University of North Dakota, Summer 2024

Beta Gamma Sigma membership. 2022.

Nistler College Meritorious Faculty Award, University of North Dakota, 2022-2023 Academic Year. Awarded Spring 2024.

Nistler College Research Award, University of North Dakota, 2019-2020 Academic Year. Awarded Fall 2020.

National Science Foundation Funding for Political Methodology Annual Meeting at University of Georgia (Athens, GA). July 24-26, 2014.

Prestage-Cook Travel Award, Southern Political Science Association Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL. January 3-5, 2013.

Graduate Research Assistantship, University of South Carolina, Department of Political Science. Fall 2007-Spring 2008, Spring 2010.

Graduate Teaching/Instructional Assistantship, University of South Carolina, Department of Political Science. Fall 2008-Spring 2011.

Golden Key Honor Society membership. 2007.

Pi Sigma Alpha Political Science Honor Society membership. 2007.

PhD (Political Science; major in Public Law, minor in Research Methodology)-University of South Carolina, Summer 2013
BA (major in Political Science; minor in History)-Temple University, Spring 2007

Academic Positions:

2025-: Nistler College Bernhoft Faculty Fellow, University of North Dakota (Grand Forks, ND)

2021-: Associate Professor of Political Science, University of North Dakota (Grand Forks, ND)

2015-: Associate Member of Graduate Faculty, University of North Dakota (Grand Forks, ND)

2015-2021: Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of North Dakota (Grand Forks, ND)

2014-2015: Lecturer, University of North Dakota (Grand Forks, ND)

2013-2014: Visiting Lecturer, Georgia State University (Atlanta, GA)

Additional Training:

Causal Inference Workshop, Northwestern University Law School, Chicago, IL. August 1-5, 2016: Causal Inference course.

Interconsortium for Political and Social Research (ICPSR) Summer Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI. Summer 2009: Maximum Likelihood Estimation, Scaling and Dimensional Analysis.

Public Law/American Politics:

Constitutional Law (Governmental Powers and/or Civil Liberties/Rights)

Judicial Process

Judicial Politics (graduate/undergraduate)

Comparative Judiciaries in Developed Countries (graduate/undergraduate)

U.S. Supreme Court

American Political Development

Introduction to American Government

Administrative Law (graduate)

American Political Institutions

Legislative Process

Research Methods/Statistical Methodologies (graduate level unless specified:

Introduction to Statistical Analysis (graduate/undergraduate)

Introduction to Research Design (graduate/undergraduate)

Linear Regression

Maximum Likelihood Estimation

Panel/Cross-Sectional Time-Series Data

Time Series Data

Data Manipulation, Project Management, and Advanced Graphical Techniques

Introduction to Causal Inference

University Level Service:

Nistler College Senator for UND Senate, (Fall 2025-)

Co-Presenter for Constitution Day Panel, University of North Dakota (Sep. 17, 2025)

At-Large Senator for UND Senate, (Fall 2019-Spring 2021).

Advisor for UND's Pre-Law Society, (Fall 2018-Fall 2024, Fall 2025-).

Advisor for UND's Mock Trial team, (Fall 2018-Spring 2021).

Moot Court Judge for the University of North Dakota Law School's Moot Court competition (Fall 2016, Fall 2019)

Associate Member of the University of North Dakota's Graduate Study Faculty, (Fall 2015-).

Co-Discussant for Constitution Day, University of North Dakota Law School, (Sep. 17, 2015; Sep. 16, 2016).

College-Level Service:

Chair of the Nistler College of Business and Public Administration Curriculum Committee, (Fall 2019-Spring 2022, Fall 2023-Spring 2024.).

Member of the Nistler College of Business and Public Administration Curriculum Committee, (Fall 2018-Fall 2024, Fall 2025-).

Member of the Nistler College of Business and Public Administration Journal Quality List Committee (now renamed Academic Publication Outlet Committee), (Fall 2021-Spring 2023, Fall 2025-).

Member of the Nistler College of Business and Public Administration Tech Committee, (Fall 2017-Spring 2019).

Member of Evaluation Committee for AACSB Accreditation for MBA Program (Fall 2016).

Nistler College of Business and Public Administration Ambassador, (Fall 2015-Spring 2022)

Department Level Service:

Member of Subcommittee for Strategic Planning-Masters of Public Administration (Spring 2024).

Member of Search Committee for Clinical Assistant Professor line in Public Administration/American Politics, (Spring 2024).

Member of ad hoc Assessment Committee (Fall 2020-Spring 2021).

Chair of MPA Steering Committee (Fall 2018-Spring 2021).

Member of Department of Political Science and Public Administration Scholarship and Awards Committee (Spring 2017-Spring 2019).

Independent Study Committee Chair for MPA Program: Richelle Ballenger (Fall 2018-Spring 2019).

Member of Independent Study Committee for MPA program: Dani Thompson (Fall 2016), Nick Mostardo (Spring 2016).

Member of Search Committee for Visiting Assistant Professor line in Diversity & Politics, (Spring 2016).

Chair of APSA Law and Courts Section Best Journal Article Award Committee: 2023

Member of APSA Law and Courts Section Best Journal Article Award Committee: 2023, 2020

Reviewer for Political Science Peer-Reviewed Journals: American Political Science Review (2016, 2015), American Journal of Political Science(2016, 2015, 2014), British Journal of Political Science (2024), Perspectives on Politics (2023), Political Research Quarterly (2025, 2024, 2023, 2018, 2016, 2015), American Politics Research (2024, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2015), Justice System Journal (2021, 2020, 2019, 2018, 2017), Journal of Law and Courts (2021, 2020, 2019), State Politics and Policy Quarterly (2025, 2023, 2019).

Reviewer for Non-Political Science Peer-Reviewed Journals: European Journal of Law and Economics (2024), Discourse Studies (2024)

Reviewer for Book-Length Manuscripts/Book Proposals: Oxford University Press (2016), University of California Press (2019, 2018, 2016), Palgrave MacMillan (2024), Routledge Press (2015), Rowman & Littlefield (2016).

Panel Chair and Discussant (SPSA 2016); Panel Chair (SPSA 2016; MPSA 2020, 2015); Panel Discussant (APSA 2025, 2024; SPSA 2019, 2018, 2016; MPSA 2021, 2019, 2017, 2014)

American Political Science Association (Law & Courts, Political Methodology, and Legislative Studies sections)

Midwest Political Science Association

Southern Political Science association

Society for Empirical Legal Studies