Biography
C. Damien Arthur is the former Distinguished Scholar and Director of the Center for Consumer Law & Education (CCLE), a partnership with the WVU College of Law. He serves as Chair of the Department of Political Science and as Director of the Master of Public Administration program. At Marshall, he has led major academic initiatives, including substantial growth of the MPA, the creation of new undergraduate degree programs, and significant program and curriculum reform. At the CCLE, he oversaw an endowed account of more than $3 million and initiatives focused on financial literacy and public policy impact. He has built partnerships with schools, libraries, nonprofit organizations, and local government, including projects that have supported community planning in Huntington. His external service includes appointment to the Cabell County Planning Commission and service on a nonprofit board. Arthur earned his Ph.D., M.A., and M.P.A. from West Virginia University, as well as an M.T.S. from Boston University and a B.A. from Gordon College. He is the author of two books and other scholarship on presidential leadership, rhetoric, and the legacy of Senator Robert C. Byrd, and his work as a teacher and university leader has been recognized through multiple awards and elected service roles.
Courses Taught
Graduate teaching in the MPA:
Digital Governance & Policy; Grant Writing & Fundraising; Public Financial Management; Ethics and Public Corruption; Seminar in Policy Analysis; Strategic Resource Development; Nonprofit Management; Administrative Law; Public Sector Project Planning.
Undergraduate teaching:
The American Presidency; Civil Liberties & Rights; Research in Political Science; Data-Driven Decision-Making; Campaigns & Elections; Public Administration & Policy Development; Law & Society; The U.S. Congress.
Research Interests
Dr. Arthur is currently writing the definitive political biography of Senator Robert C. Byrd, contracted with Oxford University Press. The writing of this book has been, appreciatively, funded and supported by multiple organizations. For instance, the author received a Promoting Excellence in Education through Research (PEER) Grant from a former university, a John Marshall Scholar Research Award, a Congressional Research Grant from the Dirksen Congressional Research Center, a Fellowship from the West Virginia Humanities Council—a division of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), a research grant from the Association of Centers for the Study of Congress, and multiple travel and research grants from various departments.
Selected Publications
— Books
Woods, J. & Arthur, C.D. (2017) “Debating Immigration in the Age of Terrorism, Polarization, & Trump” Lexington Books. Lanham, MD – an Imprint of Rowman and Littlefield.
Arthur, C.D. (2014) “Economic Actors, Economic Behaviors, and Presidential Leadership: The Constrained Effects of Rhetoric.” Lexington Studies in Political Communication. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books – an Imprint of Rowman and Littlefield.
— Refereed Journal Articles
“President Bush and Immigration Policy Rhetoric: The Effects Negativity on the Political Landscape at the State Level” White House Studies, Volume 14, Issue 1 – With Joshua Woods
Woods, J. and Arthur, C.D. (2014). “The Threat of Terrorism and the Changing Public Discourse in Immigration after September 11.” Sociological Spectrum Volume 34, Issue 5, pp. 421 – 441 (September/October).
Arthur, C.D. and Woods, J. (2013). “The Contextual Presidency: The Negative Shift in Presidential Immigration Rhetoric.” Presidential Studies Quarterly 43(3) (September).
— Refereed Journal Articles
Arthur, C. D. (2021). Introduction. West Virginia History: A Journal of Regional Studies, 15(1), ix–xlvii. https://doi.org/10.1353/wvh.2021.0004
Arthur, C. D. (2021). The architect of West Virginia: Senator Robert C. Byrd’s chairmanship of the Appropriations Committee, 1989–1994. West Virginia History: A Journal of Regional Studies, 15(1), 19–36. https://doi.org/10.1353/wvh.2021.0009