Kenneth M. Cosgrove, an associate professor in the University’s Department of Government, has been granted a Fulbright Award at Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, where he is spending the fall semester studying the impact that political and party systems have on political marketing in the United States and Canada.

As the Fulbright Research Chair in North American Integration Studies at Carleton, Cosgrove is teaching a graduate class on political marketing while conducting research on “Political Marketing in North America.” This project aims to assess the extent to which the governmental, party and media systems in both countries influence the kinds of activities through which political marketing is conducted.

“My interest in Canada is deep and enduring, and I am excited to be spending the fall in Ottawa learning about the ways in which Canadian political parties brand and market themselves," said Cosgrove. "I am greatly honored to be awarded a Fulbright fellowship.”

Cosgrove is working on a book, to be published by Cambria Press in May 2013, that will look at the branding and marketing of the three major parties in English Canada (Liberal, Conservative, New Democrats) versus that of the two major U.S. parties, as well as the ways in which both governments brand and market policies to their citizens.

Fulbright Canada seeks to enhance mutual understanding between the people of Canada and the United States by engaging the nations’ brightest minds in academic exchanges that examine a wide range of subjects critical to the relationship between the two countries.

“It is with a great deal of pleasure that I welcome Dr. Kenneth Cosgrove to the distinguished group of Canada-U.S. Fulbright Scholars,” said Michael Hawes, executive director of Fulbright Canada. “His research will offer unique and critical insights into the study of political marketing that will have implications that stretch across our shared border.”

Cosgrove holds a B.A. in Government and Public Policy from Suffolk University and a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Oklahoma. His work has been widely published in academic and peer-reviewed journals, and he has presented his research at numerous conferences across the United States. He is an active and engaged member of the Suffolk University community and has led student field programs all over the world in Canada, Mexico, The Gambia and the United Kingdom.

The Fulbright program, which operates in more than 150 countries worldwide, has long been regarded as the world’s premiere academic exchange. With the support of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada and the United States Department of State, Fulbright Canada is the gold standard for academic exchanges and intellectual opportunity.