Nick Xenos, Professor of Political Science, has been named a fellow with the Interdisciplinary Studies Institute (ISI) at UMass Amherst for academic year 2015-2016. 

ISI is "a forum for faculty at the University of Massachusetts to engage with one another in a spirit of intellectual and creative adventure in a range of settings and environments." 

At the foundation of ISI is a seminar series which brings together faculty from across disciplines and ranks to explore issues of importance to society. Fellows are competitively selected to lead these seminars and expand on their own research related to the semester's topic. Fellows are given a $1500 stipend to offset some costs associated with their research. 

For 2015-2016, selected fellows will explore the intersection of secrecy, privacy, publicity and security.

"I will [use the seminar and fellowship to] address the notion that political power can ever be made 'transparent,'" says Xenos, and "examine the figurative language that concept generates." 

A political theorist by training, Xenos will critically engage this scholarship by examining the relationship between transparency and democracy and developing a theory around "The Productive Illusion of Political Transparency."