Elspeth M WilsonAssistant Professor of Government

Professor Wilson teaches courses on American Politics and Constitutional Law.  Her scholarship focuses on U.S. citizenship, civil rights, constitutional interpretation, and American political development.  She is particularly interested in the problem of civic inequality in the United States and its connection to immigration policy and reproductive law.  Her current book project, based on her dissertation (“The Reproduction of Citizenship”), examines how laws and judicial decisions targeting the intimate lives of Americans have shaped hierarchies in U.S. citizenship—particularly involving gender, race, class, religion, and sexuality—throughout the twentieth century.  Additionally, she has published work on the ethics and public policy of space exploration and participated in legal workshops on Planetary Protection. 

Dr. Wilson received her Bachelor’s degree with honors in Political Science from Columbia University, her Master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin—Madison, and her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Pennsylvania.