This three-part civic education series provides participants with a deeper understanding of American government, constitutional principles, and the responsibilities of citizenship. Through lectures presented by experienced scholars and public officials and a robust Q & A and discussion to follow, attendees will explore how government is structured, how power is distributed, and how citizens can effectively participate in a democratic society.

The third topic in our series, Citizenship & Civic Responsibility, will be taught by Paul Dauphinais

Paul earned his Ph.D. in history from the University of Maine in 1991 and retired from the U.S. Navy in 1999 after 21 years of service. His dissertation examined immigration and the social structures created by immigrants in New England during the 19th century. Most people find it terminally boring. Paul does too sometimes.  

He first came to Alaska in 2002, taking a position with the University of Alaska Anchorage as the Director of the Mat-Su Campus in Palmer. At Mat-Su he worked to bring the nursing program to the campus, expanded course offerings and curriculum, and created more classroom and computer classroom space.  The campus grew to then record enrollments during his tenure.  His final academic position was as president of Garrett College in Maryland from 2006 to 2009.  Maryland was nice, but not Alaska.

He returned to Alaska in 2009 as the Executive Director of the Homer Chamber of Commerce in the hopes of enjoying a less stressful work life. In 2011 he was appointed as the Executive Director of the Alaska Public Offices Commission, the state agency charged with overseeing campaign finance, lobbyists, and public official financial disclosure, also known as APOC.  His stress-free existence ended abruptly. 

During his time at APOC there were several substantial issues that were taking place including the introduction of electronic report filing, the Pebble Mine controversy, the state’s significant fiscal issues, and numerous alleged campaign finance violations.  After six years of state service, he retired completely in 2016.

In his retirement Paul enjoys mowing the lawn, walking the dog, pursuing his own research agenda, puttering about the house and looks forward to seeing more of Alaska and doing considerably more fishing.  He married his wife Debra in 2009 and they live very happily in Homer with their dog Boomer when not running after one of their three granddaughters.

July 1st – Jeff Meyers, Professor of History – Federal vs. State Power: What the national government controls vs. what states control

July 8th – Forrest Nabors, Professor of Political Science – The U.S. Constitution Explained: Why it was written, how it’s organized, and what it actually does

July 15 – Paul Dauphinais, Former Executive Director of the Alaska Public Offices Commission – Citizenship & Civic Responsibility: Rights, duties, laws and how citizens can participate beyond voting