Alison Dawn Dagnes (born July 6, 1969) is a professor, author, and commentator on American politics. Her work focuses on politics and the media, politics and humor, and political scandal. She is a Professor of Political Science at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania. Education Alison Dagnes earned a Ph.D. in political science from the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2003. Her dissertation focused on the use of media by right-wing extremist groups. She earned her BA in government from St. Lawrence University in 1991 and graduated from the Maret School in Washington, DC in 1987. Career and commentary From 1991 to 1996, Alison Dagnes was first a Production Assistant, then an Associate Producer, then a producer at C-SPAN in Washington, DC. She left Capitol Hill to attend graduate school when politics seemed tame. She was a lecturer at St. Lawrence University for two years and then joined the Political Science Department at Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania in 2003. Dagnes is currently a Professor of Political Science and teaches courses on political behavior. Despite being a Democrat, Ali Dagnes served as the faculty adviser for the College Republicans at Shippensburg for over a decade because bipartisanship is her jam. The Rev. Dr. Dagnes is also an ordained minister and has officiated the marriages of six of her former students. She is also an expert in animal calls and Muppet voices. She collects elephant figurines. Dr. Dagnes also learned how to play the cello, horribly, at the age of 45. Dagnes commentates in print, radio, and television for both American and international audiences. She offers analysis and commentary on US media and politics, political sex scandals, and politics and humor. Always up for new and challenging classroom projects, Dagnes had her upper-level Elections seminar create and launch Super PACs in 2014 in the aftermath of the Citizens United decision. While recovering from breast cancer surgery, she realized that federal law required the closure of these Super PACs after being notified by both bureaucratic threat and media inquiry. It was funny. Later. Dr. Alison Dagnes has been featured in a variety of publications and outlets including, among others: The New York Times, Vanity Fair USA Today, National Geographic “Startalk” with Niel DeGrasse Tyson, The Atlantic Monthly, CNN, Netroots Nation, Wired, L.A. Times, New York Post, Washington Times, NPR, Smithsonian, C-SPAN, MSNBC “The Cycle”, Huffington Post, Real Clear Politics, Canadian Broadcast Corporation, Psychology Today, The