Compass is an online journal that provides a space for the work of talented undergraduates who have original and well-articulated insights on important ideas and issues relating to American democracy understood in the broad contexts of political philosophy, history, literature, economics, and culture. Compass is hosted by a co-editorial team at Jacksonville State University and Northern Illinois University.
Published essays will usually be 1500-2000 words in length. The editorial team works closely with authors to prepare their essays for eventual publication
Please submit your essays through visiting Digital Commons. To learn how to how to submit your work through Digital Commons, please see the video on our Call for Papers page.
Our Leadership
Benjamin Gross
Editor
Professor Benjamin Gross (Ph.D., University of North Texas) is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Jacksonville State University. He specializes in the history of political thought with a focus on modern thought, happiness, and science. In addition, he utilizes quantitative methods to study mass political behavior in American government.
He served as the lead editorial assistant for the American Political Science Review while it was hosted at the University of North Texas. Currently, he is the director of the Tocqueville Lecture Series. He is also associated with the Honors Program at Jacksonville State University.
His recent works focus on Jean-Jacques Rousseau, including a chapter in Making Sense of Diseases and Disasters: Reflections of Political Theory from Antiquity to the Age of COVID (Routledge Press). At the moment, he is working on ideas of happiness, education, and modern science in the thought of Rousseau, Francis Bacon, and John Locke.
Nathan McCormick
Editor
Mr. Nathan McCormick (MA, Northern Illinois University) is a Ph.D. candidate at Northern Illinois University where he is writing a dissertation that examines the role that public opinion plays in Alexis de Tocqueville’s political science. His broader research interests include modern political philosophy and American political thought.
At Northern Illinois University, he has taught courses on the history of political philosophy and American government and has received commendation for his teaching by the Department of Political Science.
Nathan McCormick began his work on Compass as a junior editor in 2017 and became co-editor of the journal in 2021.
Compass is an online journal that provides a space for the work of talented undergraduates who have original and well-articulated insights on important ideas and issues relating to American democracy understood in the broad contexts of political philosophy, history, literature, economics, and culture.