School of Humanities and Social Sciences

Gibbs Knotts, Dean, School of Humanities and Social Sciences Dean Gibbs Knotts joined the College of Charleston Department of Political Science as chair in 2012 and has headed HSS since 2019. “I’ve always wanted to be a teacher,” says Dean Knotts. As a senior in high school, he helped teach a geometry class to 9th […]
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November 7, 2018 was the best day of Allie Watters’s life. A year earlier, the 2017 College of Charleston graduate had been appointed finance director for Joe Cunningham’s campaign to serve as U.S. Representative for South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District. Now, at 2 a.m. on a momentous Wednesday morning, the Associated Press called the tight race. After months of intense work, and little to no sleep in the final days, Watters heard the AP confirm Cunningham’s stunning upset victory. He had flipped a seat that had not been held by a Democrat for almost 40 years. As champagne corks popped, the elated and adrenaline-fueled staff celebrated the historic win. No one was more exhilarated that early morning than the young finance director, who had raised $2.3 million, the most ever for a 1st Congressional District race. In her inaugural outing on a major campaign, in a critical role she had not anticipated, her efforts helped cement a come-from-behind victory for Representative Cunningham. Watters said she saw the momentum shift in the hours before the election and called home. “Mom,” she said, “we’re going to win!”
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Just days before the nation shut down due to the COVID 19 pandemic in March 2020, the HSS LEAP program launched at the College of Charleston. While this might seem an inauspicious beginning, the program’s passionate and innovative leaders were grateful that the extraordinary timing led to even stronger personal connections with students as together they adapted to unprecedented changes in the world. Jennifer Wilhelm, Associate Professor of Psychology and Director of Experiential Learning, inspired the HSS LEAP program and serves as its Director. She works in close collaboration with Faculty Fellows Hollis France, Associate Professor of Political Science and Department Chair, and Lisa Ross, Professor of Psychology. This faculty focuses on building community and introducing students to experiential learning opportunities, including internships, virtual study abroad, and research. According to France, “LEAP created a space in which I was able to bring my whole self with all of my identities as a mother, a political scientist, an activist, a professor, and more, and be in genuine community with others. We were able to build a sense of connection where our authentic selves could show up and be celebrated.”
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