Dr. Utz McKnight is chair of the Department of Gender and Race Studies and Professor of Political Science. His research in contemporary racial politics and political theory addresses problems of everyday racism. His recent book publications include Frances Harper: A Call to Conscience (Polity 2020) and Race and the Politics of the Exception: Equality, Sovereignty, and American Democracy (Routledge 2013). He teaches graduate seminars on literature and political theory, gender, race and popular culture, and contemporary political theory. He teaches undergraduate courses in the Department ranging from the introduction to Women's Studies to African American Rhetoric. He is also Associate Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the College of Arts and Sciences.