Galloway, N.J. — You could say politics and public policy runs in Tina Zappile’s blood because it
literally does.
The new director of the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University is the great-granddaughter of Malcolm Nichols, who was the mayor of Boston from 1926
to 1930.
“So, I kind of came to this job naturally in some ways,” she said with a laugh.
Zappile, who’s also an Associate Political Science Professor at Stockton, was named the center’s new director on July 1, after longtime
leader John Froonjian retired earlier this year.
“It’s really coming back to my roots in studying public policy,” Zappile said. “All
along it had always been part of what I studied, what I taught. I study international
organizations and rules for the world. Public policy is the most important thing that
impacts people’s lives.”
The Hughes Center was dedicated at Stockton in 2008 and named after William J. Hughes,
of Ocean City, whose political career included 20 years as New Jersey’s 2nd District
representative in Congress and three years as the United States Ambassador to Panama.
He also was a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Stockton.
The center serves as a catalyst for research on public policy and economic issues
facing southern New Jersey and has also provided a forum for public discussion to
engage citizens and policy makers.
“I see the Hughes Center as leading the way in terms of research on public policy
issues that people in the region really care about, whether it’s immigration, energy
policy or the cannabis industry, for example,” Zappile said.
Zappile wasn’t always interested in political science. She attended the University
of Nevada, Las Vegas as an undergraduate because she was interested in hotel business
management.
“But then I took a political theory class with a great professor, and I thought, ‘Oh,
this is how the world works, who sets the rules for the world, who implements them,
who benefits, who doesn’t, who has power,’” she said. “They were just all interesting
things that drew me away from pursuing business (as a major).”
She graduated from UNLV with a bachelor’s degree in 2001 and a master’s in 2004 in
Political Science. She went on to get her master’s in International Economics from
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2007 and a Ph.D. in Political Science/International
Relations at Nebraska in 2011.
continuing the center’s role as a host for local government debates and a source for
media to discuss politics.
She took a teaching position at Stockton in 2012 because she loved how the university
encouraged faculty to be innovative and interdisciplinary. Since then, she has become
the co-facilitator for the Stockton Critical Thinking Institute, the faculty advisor
for Model United Nations and the coordinator for the Diplomacy Lab, a U.S. Department of State program that gives students, faculty and staff opportunities
to solve real-world problems and inform policymakers.
All of which fits very well with the Hughes Center’s locally focused mission, Zappile
said.
“I’ve always thought that local issues are connected to state and international concerns,”
she said. “I don’t see a difference between the different levels. It’s just a matter
of how we are implementing some of the policies that other people around the world
are also concerned about.”
In addition to continuing the center’s roles as hosting local government debates and
being a source for media to discuss politics, Zappile would like to strengthen the
bonds between the center and Stockton’s faculty beyond just political science.
“How do we meet the center’s mission? We get there by increasing the research component
and include more faculty from different disciplines,” Zappile said. “We are going
to be putting out calls for more research beyond just political science.”
Other initiatives that Zappile wants the center to take on include bringing back a
speaker series to the Galloway and Atlantic City campuses, restarting the legislator-in-residence
program where politicians would come to classes, providing a home and reenergizing
the Diplomacy Lab, and strengthening students’ civic engagement.
The center, under the leadership of Research Associate Alyssa Maurice, will also continue
to publish polls about issues affecting New Jersey. This year, the center released
studies on legalizing medicinal mushrooms and oversight of artificial intelligence.
“In our mission to educate and engage stakeholders about important policy issues,
we want to make sure New Jerseyans have a seat at the table. Our polling allows us
to amplify the voices of residents in these discussions,” Maurice said. “Tina brings
her unique perspective and background to the center, and we’re excited to continue
our work as a forum for research and civil discourse under her leadership.”
— Story by Mark Melhorn
— Photos by Susan Allen
Leadership Program Empowers Stockton Students
July 9, 2024
in a three-day residential women in leadership program at Rutgers University this
June. Stockton students Rachel Dunlap (Newark) and Detty-Maidanove Exantus (Pleasantville)
were sponsored by the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy to attend the program.
Galloway, N.J. – Did you know that New Jersey has never sent a woman to the U.S. Senate? Or that New
Jersey ranks 23rd among the 50 states in the proportion of women serving in its legislature?
To address women’s underrepresentation in politics, the Center for American Women
and Politics (CAWP), housed at Rutgers University’s New Brunswick campus, hosts the Susan N. Wilson NEW Leadership residential program, which introduces college women to the world of politics and successful
women leaders in the field to encourage them to consider how the political process
plays a role in their daily lives.
Two Stockton University students, Rachel Dunlap, from Newark, and Detty-Maidanove
Exantus, from Pleasantville, were sponsored by the William J. Hughes Center for Public
Policy to attend the program this June.
“The William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton is pleased to support students who want to attend this unique leadership
program designed to increase the representation of women in politics,” said Tina Zappile,
director of the center. “In this powerful training, our students learn how to be more
involved in the political process, whether through a career in public service, work
in the private sector, or community involvement. The voices of Detty and Rachel, along
with other Stockton NEWL alumni, are critical for a thriving democracy.”
– Story by Loukaia Taylor
