Hello! Welcome. My name is Missy Maceyko. I’m working on some research about life in my hometown of Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania and the state of politics in the United States.
If you are interested in the state of politics today, please consider participating.
And if someone you know has lived in, spent time in, or visited western Pennsylvania and/or Mount Pleasant during the past 50 years, I’d love to hear your story.
Continue Scrolling for More Information
Who exactly are you? Will my participation be anonymous? How will my information be used?
Suspicious Squirrel
Me
Or maybe you, like this fine squirrel, you are not sure you can totally trust me. Which is fair.
You may be thinking about participating, but you may have questions or want more information.
As part of this research, I am very interested in the topic of politics (past, present, and future), so I want to make sure that you feel comfortable.
Who are you?
What are you studying?
Politics? Now? Why?
I grew up in Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania and graduated from Mount Pleasant Area High School (MPAHS) in 2000. I then went to Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania. I graduated from Allegheny in 2004. Most of my family still lives and works in Pennsylvania, largely in the Mount Pleasant area. I am now a professor (Political Science, Anthropology) in California.
I am currently doing research about where and why we tend to agree and disagree with each other, about politics and other topics, and how we feel about political parties and politicians in the United States. I am really interested the way people think and talk about politics, including how that has changed, and not changed, over time. A big part of my focus is on western Pennsylvania, and Mount Pleasant, given the history of the town. Taking a closer look these topics, and Mount Pleasant, can hopefully, help us all think about politics in a different way.
I got involved in this book project because I haven’t been happy with most of the popular books I encounter about contemporary politics, especially those written by academic researchers. Why? They tend to overlook the ways that we live, work, and exist together in spite of our political differences. They also portray communities like Mount Pleasant in ways that feel very one-sided and very condescending.
I am trying to do something that is different—and hopefully a bit more representative. I look at politics through the stories and histories of the people and places that have shaped my life. I talk about political similarities alongside differences in the current political climate, emphasizing the things that people tend to agree on, even when they don’t realize it, and the ways people continue to support each other, even in moments when they seem very divided.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
-
If you respond to the survey online, it will take 5-10 minutes.
If you sit down for a talk with me, in-person or online, it will take a minimum of 45 minutes.
-
Yes. Unless you say otherwise, everything is anonymous. And everything I write will eliminate any identifying information.
I will not share your information, either. I will protect against data leaks by storing any information collected in this study in a secure location. And you can reach out to me at any time if you have second thoughts and want to remove your responses from this study.
-
I will use your information only for research purposes. It will help me to write articles and to complete a book on the topic. See the previous sections for more information about the project.
-
You can fill out the contact form below or email me at Melissa.Maceyko@csulb.edu.