Cristina Pimenta graduates with PhD!

From her first semester in Fall 2019, Cristina Pimenta, Ph.D. knew she was right where she needed to be in the Comparative Studies program. The fact that she could combine her background in and love for political science with her interest in the fields of sociology and anthropology meant that she could both broaden her academic horizons and explore new avenues of research. Now, 7 years later, as her journey through the program comes to an end, Cristina is thrilled to receive her degree, yet a bit sad to say goodbye to Florida Atlantic University. After all, she’s been a part of the FAU community since beginning her B.A. in Political Science back in Fall 2013.  

Cristina’s research focuses on religion, human rights, and American politics. Her dissertation, titled “The Intersection of Religion & Politics in the United States: Analyses at the Federal and State Level,” examines the impact of Christian Nationalism in American government and society. Her dissertation was supervised by Dr. Angela Nichols, with committee members Dr. Kevin Wagner and Dr. Alan Berger. After graduation, Cristina hopes to convert her dissertation into a published book.  

Apart from her research, Cristina has enjoyed teaching and mentoring college students since her first semester in the M.A. in Political Science program as a TA in Fall 2016. In the last decade, she has taught undergraduate political science courses at both FAU and Palm Beach State College, including Government of the United States, Introduction to World Politics, Comparative Politics, and Global Development & Inequality of Nations. In Fall 2024, Cristina shifted to another area of academia, serving as a Reference Librarian and Political Science Faculty Liaison at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City, MI. However, in the future, she hopes to return to the classroom as a full-time instructor at a community college.