Political Science · Education Politics · Public Policy
I study how schools shape democracy, and how democracy shapes schools.
I am an Assistant Professor of Political Science at North Central College, where I teach American politics, political behavior, public policy, and education politics. I am also a research affiliate at Brown University’s Annenberg Institute and the Realizing Rights Lab.
I study the politics of K–12 education because public schools are among the last places where Americans of different backgrounds can still govern something together. My work explores when that works, when it doesn’t, and what it means for democracy.
Chicago, Illinois · carnzen@noctrl.edu
“Democracy has to be born anew every generation, and education is its midwife.”
John Dewey
Research areas
Partisanship & school boards
How national partisanship reaches local school board elections, from exit polls in school board races to a national measure of district partisanship.
Administrative ease & democratic access
How the design of public institutions makes participation easier or harder, from the costs of voting in elections to accessing special education information via school districts.
Education federalism
How authority over schooling is divided across levels of government, including state spending priorities and the dissolution of the U.S. Department of Education.
Recent publications
- Forthcoming. Neighborhood Democracy: The Politicization of School Boards and Implications for Democratic Education. With Rebecca Jacobsen. AERA Open.
- 2026. An Education in Devolution: The Political Consequences of the Elimination of the U.S. Department of Education. Publius: The Journal of Federalism.
- 2026. Education and the Unequal Costs of Voting: Administrative Burden and Democratic Participation. Policy Studies Journal.
- 2026. Education and the Gender Gap in Presidential Elections. With Sarah Cohodes. Electoral Studies.