University of Washington Department of Political Science records, 1928-2008

The Department of Political Science at the University of Washington is rooted in the story of Professor J. Allen Smith. Smith joined the faculty at UW in 1897 as a Professor of Political Economy. Years later, in 1911, there were three other faculty with him to compose the Department of Political and Social Sciences. The department faced controversy after Smith published The Spirt of American Government which alleged that the founding fathers drafted the American Constitution according to their self-driven interest. After calls for Smith to be fired rang out, then UW President Henry Suzzallo decided on a different tactic. He divided the Department of Political and Social Sciences into the departments of Commerce, Sociology, and Political Science. This created the Department of Political Science in which Smith was the only faculty member.

By 1934, students in the Department of Political Science could choose a specialization in American Government and Public Law, Politics and Administration, Comparative and International Government, International Law and Politics, and Political Theory. Like other programs in social sciences, the Political Science Department focused on problem-oriented study and research during the inter-war years and through the end of the Second World War. The Department also weathered the turbulent years for social sciences after the war until the conflict in Vietnam began and controversies flared in the tense time. Surviving these times, the Department of Political Science stabilized in 1976 when Professor Don Matthews as chair developed a governing structure and standardized practices in the department.

The department now offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees. In addition to its teaching programs, the Department of Political Science values research in the field. This can be seen in their ten affiliated research centers, focusing on different aspects of law, economics, and political relations. Through the efforts of the faculty and staff, the Department of Political Science became the second largest major for the social sciences and the fifth largest major in the College of Arts and Sciences at UW.