Bailey Fairbanks is a PhD candidate in Georgia State University’s department of political science. Her research focuses on state supreme courts, judicial decision-making, and the opinion writing process. Bailey’s dissertation, “How Do Judges Save Time? Managing the Work of State Supreme Courts” examines the time saving strategies judges use when writing opinions. Her work examines how citation rates, opinion length, citation patterns, and plagiarism scores to determine to what extent time management tactics, professional qualities, and access to technology have on the content and quality of opinions. Her work has been published in PS: Political Science and Politics. In addition to her research, Bailey is also a very accomplished instructor. She has taught a variety of courses including Civil Liberties and Rights, Constitutional Law, Introduction to American Government, and Judicial Process. In Spring of 2019, she was awarded Georgia State’s Graduate Teaching Assistant Pedagogy Award, which is given annually to the best graduate teaching assistant in the university. She has also received state level recognition including completing the Georgia Board of Regent’s Certificate for Excellence in College Teaching. From 2016-2018, Bailey also served on APSA’Bailey is very thankful for the support of the First Generation Scholar Travel Grant that allowed her to attend the 2019 APSA Annual Meeting, present her job market paper, and network actively with fellow scholars.
About the APSA First Generation Scholar in the Profession Travel Reimbursement Grant
In 2015, the APSA Executive Council approved a new standing Committee on First Generation Higher Education Scholars in the Profession, parallel to the existing APSA status committees. The goal is to bring focused attention to the ways in which class, economic inequality, and mobility can affect political scientists’ ability to thrive educationally and professionally, perhaps throughout their careers. The APSA Committee on the Status of First Generation Scholars matched contributions that were made to the APSA Annual Fund during one week in September 2019 to support the professional development support of first gen scholars in the profession. Learn more.