Ph.D. - Political Science
Ohio State University - 2009

J.D.
The University of Texas School of Law - 2004

B.A.
Hendrix College - 2001

Experts Judging Experts: Agency Review on a Specialized Court. Law and Social Inquiry (forthcoming) (with Brett Curry). 2013 - Publication

Explaining the Divergence in Asylum Grant Rates Among Immigration Judges: An Attitudinal and Cognitive Approach, Law and Policy (forthcoming) (with Linda Camp Keith and Jennifer Holmes). 2013 - Publication

Describing the State Solicitors General. Judicature 93: 238-246. 2010 - Publication

“Describing the State Solicitors General.” Judicature 93: 238-246. 2010 - Publication

The Federalist Society's Impact on the Federal Judiciary. Political Research Quarterly 62: 366-378 (with Nancy Scherer). 2009 - Publication

Expertise, Experience and Ideology on a Specialized Court: The Case of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. Law & Society Review 43: 839-864 (with Brett Curry). 2009 - Publication

Looking for Law in All the Wrong Places? Foreign Law and Support for the U.S. Supreme Court. Politics and Policy 36: 1094-1124 (with Brett Curry). 2008 - Publication

Assistant Professor
University of Texas at Dallas [2009–Present]

Experts Judging Experts: The Role of Expertise in Reviewing Agency Decision Making

2010–2010 with Brett Curry. Presented at the 2010 Southern Political Science Association Conference.

State Success in State Supreme Courts.

2008–2008 Presented at the 2008 State Politics Conference.

The Supreme Court, Foreign Law, and its Consequences for Public Support

2007–2007 with Brett Curry. Presented at the 2007 Midwest Political Science Association Conference.

Reassessing the Voting Behavior of Minority and Female Judges on the Federal Bench

2008–2008 with Nancy Scherer and Brett Curry. Presented at the 2008 Midwest Political Science Association Conference.

Understanding Subject Matter Expertise on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, with Brett Curry

2010–2010 Presented at the 2010 Midwest Political Science Association Conference.

GRANTS, AWARDS AND HONORS

• Regents Outstanding Teaching Award, EPPS Nominee, Tenure-track, 2012
• APSA Travel Grant, American Political Science Association, 2008.
• Prestage-Cook Travel Grant, Southern Political Science Association, 2008.
• Dissertation Improvement Grant, Alumni Grants for Graduate Research and Scholarship, Ohio State University, 2008 (University-wide competition).
• Graduate Fellow, American Academy of Political and Social Science, 2007-2008.
• University Fellowship, The Ohio State University, 2004-2005.
• Member, Texas Law Review, 2002-2003.
• Dean's Achievement Award, University of Texas School of Law, Social Science and the Law, 2004.

PROFESSIONAL, UNIVERSITY, & DEPARTMENTAL SERVICE

• Program Committee, Political Science Program, UT Dallas 2009-2011
• Committee on Effective Teaching, EPPS, UT Dallas 2010-2012
• Moot Court Judging, UT Dallas, 2009-2011
• Reviewer, Oxford University Press, Routledge Press, American Politics 
• Research, State Politics and Policy Quarterly

PROFESSIONAL AND DEPARTMENTAL SERVICE

• Program Committee, Political Science Program, UT Dallas 2009-2011

Refugees Burdened by Inexperienced Lawyers, Lack of Documentation

Immigrants seeking asylum are better off without a lawyer than with a poor quality one, according to a new study by three political science researchers at UT Dallas.

Having an attorney is one of the strongest predictors of whether an applicant will win political asylum, previous research has shown. But the UT Dallas researchers found that simply having a lawyer is no guarantee. The attorney’s capability is a primary factor in whether an applicant will win asylum or be deported.
The research by Dr. Banks Miller, assistant professor, Dr. Linda Camp Keith, associate professor, and Dr. Jennifer Holmes, associate professor and head of the political science program, was published  in the March edition of Law & Society Review. The three professors, all in the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences, also are authors of the 2015 book, Immigration Judges and U.S. Asylum Policy.

Refugees Burdened by Inexperienced Lawyers, Lack of Documentation

Immigrants seeking asylum are better off without a lawyer than with a poor quality one, according to a new study by three political science researchers at UT Dallas.

Having an attorney is one of the strongest predictors of whether an applicant will win political asylum, previous research has shown. But the UT Dallas researchers found that simply having a lawyer is no guarantee. The attorney’s capability is a primary factor in whether an applicant will win asylum or be deported.
The research by Dr. Banks Miller, assistant professor, Dr. Linda Camp Keith, associate professor, and Dr. Jennifer Holmes, associate professor and head of the political science program, was published  in the March edition of Law & Society Review. The three professors, all in the School of Economic, Political and Policy Sciences, also are authors of the 2015 book, Immigration Judges and U.S. Asylum Policy.

Professor’s Study Questions Narrative in 2006 U.S. Attorney Dismissals

The dismissals of nine U.S. attorneys in 2006 generated headlines, congressional hearings and accusations that the decisions were politically motivated.
Although a federal investigation called the decision-making process in the firings unsystematic and arbitrary, new UT Dallas research argues that it was not as haphazard as many thought.
The study, published in the Journal of Law and Courts, found evidence that four of the attorneys were dismissed because they were in the path of the least political resistance.

Professor’s Study Questions Narrative in 2006 U.S. Attorney Dismissals

The dismissals of nine U.S. attorneys in 2006 generated headlines, congressional hearings and accusations that the decisions were politically motivated.
Although a federal investigation called the decision-making process in the firings unsystematic and arbitrary, new UT Dallas research argues that it was not as haphazard as many thought.
The study, published in the Journal of Law and Courts, found evidence that four of the attorneys were dismissed because they were in the path of the least political resistance.