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The Centennial Center for Political Science and Public Affairs is an invaluable resource to political and social scientists. Since its opening in September 2003, the center has housed more than 100 scholars. The center, located in the APSA headquarters near Dupont Circle, provides a great base of operations for scholars researching in the D.C. metro area. The center offers visiting scholars furnished work space, telephone, fax, computers, Internet access, conference space, a reference library, and access to George Washington University's Gelman Library. Visiting-scholar stays range from a few days to 12 months. Space is limited to APSA members and is available for faculty members, post-doctoral fellows, and advanced graduate students from the U.S. and abroad. Scholars are expected to cover their own expenses and a modest facilities fee. Prospective visiting scholars may apply at any time. Positions are awarded on a space-available basis. Full details on the center and the Visiting Scholars Program is online at http://www.apsanet.org/centennialcenter. You may also contact Allison Desrosiers: 202-483-2512; [email protected].

Profile: Katrina Gamble

Katrina Gamble is an assistant professor at Brown University and is a 2009–10 APSA Congressional Fellow. Gamble is an American politics scholar with a focus on congressional politics, race politics, and political representation. More specifically, she is interested in understanding how well American political institutions provide equitable and effective political representation for marginalized constituencies.

Figure 1

Gamble has used her time at the Centennial Center to continue research on a project that examines political representation of marginalized groups over time. The project analyzes both legislative behavior and issue salience and framing. Gamble argues that despite growing scholarship on both Black and Latino political representation, we know very little about how changing institutional context may influence the behavior of minority representatives. Democrats are in control of both chambers, we just elected the first Black president of the United States, and Black and Latino representatives are both committee and party leaders in the United States Congress. Gamble's work asks: how do, if at all, these changes in leadership affect the legislative behavior of minority representatives and/or the salience and framing of issues relevant to marginalized groups? The analysis focuses on bill introductions, committee meetings, and member interviews. Some preliminary findings for the project “Shifting Minority Leadership: Changing Institutional Context and Minority Representation” were presented at the 2009 APSA Annual Meeting in Toronto.

Other work conducted by Gamble on political representation and political leadership include a book chapter titled “Young, Gifted, Black and Female: Why Aren't There More Yvette Clarkes in Congress” in Whose Black Politics? Cases in Post-Racial Black Leadership, edited by Andra Gillespie and to be published by Routledge in January 2010. She has also authored “Black Political Representation: An Examination of Legislative Activity Within US House Committees” in Legislative Studies Quarterly. In addition, Gamble has completed a book-length manuscript, “A Seat at the Table: Race, Representation and Deliberation in the United States Congress.” The manuscript examines how racial diversity influences political deliberation and the policy process within the U.S. Congress.

Gamble has presented her work at various institutes including the Woodrow Wilson Center and the Center for the Study of African American Politics and Society at Columbia University. She believes her time as an APSA Congressional Fellow will give her new insights into the legislative process and expand her research agenda on political representation and political leadership.

Research Funding Available

APSA sponsors a number of funds to help finance research. Many of these funds can support your stay at the Centennial Center or elsewhere.

Additional Funding Opportunities

To see all available funding opportunities offered by APSA, please visit http://www.apsanet.org/centennialcenter.