Join the Eagleton Institute of Politics on Thursday, April 18th at 6:00PM on Zoom as it explores the changing roles of political parties and the implications for democracy in the context of William Fernekes’ book, Clifford Case and the Challenge of Liberal Republicanism.

Read the Book in advance of the event.

About the Author

William R. Fernekes (B. A., M. A., Ed. D., Rutgers University) taught social studies and Spanish from 1974-1987 at Hunterdon Central Regional HS in Flemington NJ and served as supervisor of social studies at Hunterdon Central from 1987 to his retirement in December 2010. He received his doctorate in social studies education and curriculum in 1985 under the tutelage of Jack L. Nelson, a leading scholar in social studies and issues-centered education. He has published widely in the fields of Holocaust and genocide studies, human rights education, and issues-centered social studies education. He co-authored Children’s Rights: A Reference Handbook with Beverly C. Edmonds in 1996 for ABC-Clio Press, and his 2002 publication for Greenwood Press, The Oryx Holocaust Sourcebook, was recognized as an outstanding reference book by Choice magazine. In 2022, he co-edited with Gloria T. Alter The Human Rights Imperative in Teacher Education: Developing Compassion, Understanding and Advocacy (Rowman and Littlefield, 2022). After 20 years of research and writing, his biography of US Senator from NJ Clifford Case, Clifford Case and the Challenge of Liberal Republicanism was published by Lexington Books in August 2023. He currently teaches courses in global education and human rights and education at the Rutgers Graduate School of Education.

About the Moderator

Elizabeth C. Matto is a Research Professor and teacher-scholar-practitioner of democratic education. On September 1, 2023, she was appointed Director of the Eagleton Institute of Politics. A member of the faculty of the Eagleton Institute of Politics for fifteen years, she has served as the Director of Eagleton’s Center for Youth Political Participation (CYPP), leading research as well as educational and public service efforts designed to encourage and support the political learning of high school and college students and civic action among young adults, including those holding and running for office. These projects include: RU Ready, a civic engagement initiative designed to provide high school students with the tools and encouragement to be civically and politically engaged in their communities; RU Voting, a project focused upon engaging Rutgers students and college students around the country in local, state, and national elections; and the Young Elected Leaders Project, research regarding young people serving in public office nationwide at all levels of government.