BU Church-State Prof Appointed Executive Editor Of National Interest
WACO, Texas -- Dr. Nikolas K. Gvosdev, associate director of Baylor University's J.M. Dawson Institute of Church-State Studies, has been named executive editor of The National Interest, the Washington, D.C.-based journal devoted to American foreign policy and world politics.
Gvosdev will take a yearlong leave of absence from Baylor to edit the quarterly magazine. Its current issue features a lead article by former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.
"The National Interest contains content that helps foster national debate," said Gvosdev, the former editor of the Journal of Church and State. "We operate in an arena in which you have the ability to shape opinions and guide discussions. We have the opportunity to affect policies that will be in place the next several decades."
Gvosdev recalled a National Interest article from the 1980s that predicted the Soviet Union's collapse long before anyone thought it possible. "It has the reputation for pushing the envelope," he said. "This is more important than ever because while today there is no clear threat, there is also no clear vision."
Dr. Donald D. Schmeltekopf, Baylor's provost and vice president for academic affairs, called National Interest "one of the most important journals in the country that has to do with international affairs and diplomacy."
"Congressmen and senators, the White House, they all read it and are influenced by it. It has a lot of clout among policy makers," he said.
Gvosdev cited Baylor's growing influence in national affairs and his own expertise in church-state studies as factors that led to his appointment. "Baylor has the reputation as a place that looks at the impact of religion in society, and they were looking for someone who could address the big impact of religion on world affairs," he said.
A Rhodes Scholar and summa cum laude graduate of Georgetown University, Gvosdev came to Baylor in 1999 to join The J.M. Dawson Institute of Church-State Studies as associate director and assistant professor. He has a bachelor's and master's of science in foreign service from Georgetown, and a master of philosophy in Russian and East European studies and a doctorate in modern European history, both from St. Antony's College, Oxford University.
For more information, call the Institute of Church-State Studies at (254) 710-1510.