Dr. Cynthia Opheim

Dr. Cynthia Opheim joined the faculty of Texas State University in 1987. She was promoted to associate professor in 1990 and to full professor in 1996. She received her B.A. in government from Angelo State University and her M.A. in political science from Texas Tech. She earned her Ph.D. in government from The University of Texas at Austin. Prior to joining the faculty at Texas State, Dr. Opheim had taught at Angelo State, The University of Texas at Austin, and the San Angelo School District. Here at Texas State, she has taught a variety of undergraduate and graduate classes. Her primary teaching and research interests are the legislative process, political parties, and American state politics.

In the course of her career, she was recognized for her teaching on a number of occasions including  receiving awards from  Alpha Delta Pi in 2006, the Golden Key National Honor Society in 1996 and the San Angelo Student Association in 1984 and 1985. Her book State and Local Politics: The Individual and the State was published by HarperCollins and her articles have appeared in a variety of journals including PS: Political Science & Politics, Western Political Quarterly, and Legislative Studies Quarterly. From 2002-2003, she served  as president of the Southwestern Political Science Association.

During her time at Texas State,  Dr. Opheim served the department, college and university in numerous administrative roles. She served as Chair of Political Science from 1996-2003, as Acting Chair of Geography from 2004-2005, and as Associate Provost from 2012-2016.