Political science professor brings global experience to Texas students

BY BROOKLYN MCKINNEY

Multimedia Journalist

Few professors can turn an early morning Texas government class into a session students look forward to, but Professor Cogley does it with energy, warmth and genuine enthusiasm. When he recognizes students on campus or in the library, whether they are his students or not, he exudes the same warmth and friendliness.

As someone who has been from California to West Africa and now Texas, Cogley enjoys interacting with people from all different walks of life.

“I enjoy teaching government classes a lot because I know every student, regardless of their major or career path, will be able to use what they’ve learned there,” Cogley said.

Before coming to Tarleton to teach government, Cogley grew up in California and graduated from San Francisco State University with a bachelor’s degree in international relations. While going to class during the day, he also worked as a nighttime taxi driver to pay for his education.

“When I was young, in my early 20s, I became very interested in politics and politics around the world, so it was something I was self-motivated to really learn about,” Cogley said.

He would then go on to graduate from Yale University in 2013 with a doctorate in political science. As a part of his dissertation research on executive tenure in Africa, he interviewed ten current and former African presidents to ask what motivates them and why some have stepped down when they didn’t have to.

Before making the move to Texas in 2016, Cogley taught political science for two years in Ivory Coast. During his time in Africa, he met his wife, who is from Kenya, and they now have four children together.

“When I came out here for the job interview, it was my first time in Texas. I was used to the Ivory Coast in West Africa, so Texas was new and exotic to me,” Cogley said.

About seven years into teaching the U.S. government course at Tarleton State University, he was asked to start teaching the Texas section as well.

“When they first tried to get me to teach Texas government, I resisted a little bit, saying, ‘I’m not a Texan. We have professors who are real Texans; they should teach it,’” Cogley said.

Since then, he has warmed to life in the Lone Star State and to his role teaching students about the structure of its government.

“At this point, being in Texas for nine years, I have an 8-year-old daughter. She was born here, so I’m very much a Texan now, and I’ve got kids who are Texan. And I didn’t come here with a chip on my shoulder. I came here to enjoy it and appreciate it,” Cogley said. “The longer that I’ve been here, the more I identify with being a Texan and raising a Texas family.”

There is a lot he has learned about Texas with his students along the way. For example, Texas has the second longest constitution in the United States and has been amended nearly 530 times.

Cogley has also enjoyed living in Stephenville with his family.

“I love the cultural aspect of a small town with a vibrant university environment, and it’s proven to be a great place to raise kids,” he said.

In addition to Texas and U.S. government, Cogley is also excited to be teaching an international politics class this semester for the first time in five years. To make the class more engaging, he has simulated national relations using state craft software for his students to earn extra credit.

“I make sure that the students know that nothing that happens in the simulated world can affect their real-world relationships. Sometimes countries can make a peace deal and then violate that peace treaty, and it’s all on the table here in the simulated world,” Cogley said.

While international politics is currently his favorite section to teach, it doesn’t come without its challenges.

“[Political science students] are oftentimes interested in the headline news and following the big drama of politics, which has been very interesting in recent years,” Cogley said. “Part of our challenge is to teach them the scientific method, which might not have been their interest coming in.”

Cogley finds purpose in making a positive impact on the lives of his students and their journey at Tarleton and beyond. As someone who went from attending a state university in California to one of the most prestigious universities in the world, he wants them to know that they have what it takes to succeed.

“Those experiences helped me try to teach effectively here and try to motivate some of our students here. I have worked with some students on their graduate school applications and written letters for medical school and law school and all sorts of things. And some of them have gone on to be very successful in their next studies,” Cogley said.

Last month, for example, his former student Tiffany Lee, an honors student enrolled in the nursing program at Tarleton, had reached out to Cogley over email to thank him for inspiring her to change her major and pursue medical school.

While Cogley has been inspiring students all the way from West Africa to Texas to succeed in their studies for the past decade, he has also found fulfillment outside of the world of academia.

He served as senior adviser to the Office of the Deputy Secretary of Commerce from April to July of 2020, and deputy director for policy at the U.S. Census Bureau from July of 2020 to January of 2021.

For his knowledge and expertise as a Yale graduate, political science professor and former politician, Cogley has been sought out for interviews over the years by several major news outlets like FOX and ABC News.

As a driven scholar, father and politician, Cogley loves getting to connect with motivated students at Tarleton State University and helping them tap into their true potential.

“I know when I’m teaching classes and I’m teaching honors classes, some of these students are really capable of things they might not be aware that they’re capable of,” Cogley said. “As a young person, sometimes you limit yourself by what you see around you and what you’re familiar with when, in fact, we have some students just as smart as any in the world that could go off and do all sorts of things if they understood that was possible.”