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Dr. Micah J Watson

Professor;Director, PPE Program;Executive Director, Henry Institute

Biography

Recent Activities

Professor Watson’s research agenda includes ongoing projects on John Locke, a co-authored book on the political thought of C.S. Lewis, and a collaborative effort with his political theory counterparts at Wheaton and Westmont to consider the possibility of an evangelical tradition of political thought.

Hobbies

Professor Watson’s hobbies include basketball, long road trips, rooting for the PAC-12, pretending to be a film critic, and sled run design. He and his wife Julie have four daughters and a son: Abigail, Anastasia, Annika, Alexandra, and John. Accompanied by their decidedly non-pacifist cats, the Watsons make their home in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

 

 

Education

Professor Watson is a native of the great golden state of California where he completed his undergraduate degree at U.C. Davis. He earned his M.A. degree in Church-State Studies at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, and holds M.A. and doctorate degrees in Politics from Princeton University.   Professor Watson joined the faculty at Calvin College in the fall of 2015.  He was also selected to serve as the William Spoelhof Teacher-Scholar Chair for the 2015-16 year, and became the Program Director for Calvin's new Politics, Philosophy and Economics (PPE) Program in 2020.   Also in 2020, he became the Executive Director of the Henry Institute for the Study of Christianity and Politics and is currently the Paul B. Henry Chair in Political Science.  

Academic Interests

Micah Watson's broad research interests include political philosophy, politics and religion, politics and literature, ethics and public policy, and constitutional jurisprudence.

Publications