The University of New Hampshire at Manchester announced that Dr. Stephen Pimpare will join its faculty in the summer of 2015 and begin teaching in the fall as a lecturer in American Politics & Public Policy. The addition of Pimpare as an expert in public policy allows the Politics & Society program to expand its course offerings in American politics.
Pimpare previously served as a senior-level administrator of not-for-profit direct service and advocacy organizations addressing issues of poverty, hunger and homelessness throughout the five boroughs of New York City. Among the programs he helped create is One City Café, New York’s first nonprofit restaurant for which he received the Victory Against Hunger Award from the Congressional Hunger Center.
Pimpare is also the author of two books, including "A People's History of Poverty in America," which received the Michael Harrington Award from the American Political Science Association, as well as more than sixty articles, essays and reviews on poverty, welfare and inequality.
In addition to his published work, he's also made numerous radio and television appearances as a guest on NPR, CNN, "Up with Chris Hayes," CBC News, "Democracy Now!", GritTV, Progressive Radio and "The Leonard Lopate Show"; delivered lectures at the Urban Institute, Center for American Progress, Yale Divinity School, and the University of Chicago, among others; and taught courses on American politics, public policy and the history of social work and social welfare at New York University, Columbia University and the City University of New York.
Outside of the traditional classroom, Pimpare also designed and taught online courses and seminars on poverty in the U.S. for the AmeriCorps VISTA program and for the Silver School of Social Work at NYU.
"We are absolutely thrilled to have him," Melinda Negron-Gonzales, assistant professor and coordinator for the Politics and Society Program at UNH Manchester, said. "Pimpare is a dynamic teacher and an accomplished scholar who brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise on public policy, especially income inequality and social welfare policy.
"Many are comparing today’s America with the America of the Gilded Age, so this is a critical moment to examine why inequality has increased in the past several decades, and what the implications are for our democracy," Negron-Gonzales said. "This will certainly be a topic of discussion in a new course on public policy being taught by Pimpare next semester."
Pimpare will also be teaching a new and exciting course on the role of media during elections, which he said he will begin shaping this summer.
"I don't want to create the classes in a vacuum," Pimpare said. "I want to get there [this summer] and get a sense of the students and the community to see what they want and what will be the most beneficial."
He said he knows an integral part of his classes will include getting students into the community to see public policy in action and start thinking about how they can effect change in their own cities.
"This is a particularly exciting time at the university," Pimpare said. "There seems to be a sense of real and renewed commitment on the part of UNH Manchester to find ways for the institution to connect with the community and bring the students out of the classroom and into the world…It's exciting and a big piece of what brought me here."
Negron-Gonzales says that it’s also perfect timing politically to offer Pimpare's Media and Elections course.
"Being in Manchester affords us the unique opportunity to witness the media circus surrounding early primaries," she said. "Pimpare will invite media professionals and campaign communications strategists to the class, and students will be expected to critically examine how media have the power to shape public opinion and set the policy agenda."
Written by Melanie Plenda
