Joseph Losco, who served as the chair of the political science department for 14 years and director of the Bowen Center for Public Affairs, retired over winter break.
"He was the definition of someone you’d want to work for or with," said Isaac Miller.
The freshman political science major interned at the Bowen Center during his senior year of high school. Losco spent that year mentoring and teaching Miller about a variety of topics, such as political participation, voting and polling data.
“He gave me invaluable experience and opened my eyes to the field of political science,” Miller said. “I remember him as always willing to make even the most complicated of subjects fun for me and interesting to learn. He taught me the true value of political participation and trying to affect what goes on in your own community, which really defines what I hope to do in my future life and career.”
A Ball State professor since 1983, Losco focused his classes on political theory and American government. He has contributed to government textbooks and videos and served in several national leadership positions, including the Executive Research Board of the International Political Science Association’s Committee for Biology and Politics.
As an undergraduate, Stephen Jendraszak took an undergraduate class, Early Western Political Thought, with Losco for his minor in political science before graduating with a journalism degree in 2005.
“Dr. Losco was an extremely compelling and effective lecturer,” Jendraszak said. "He truly engaged the room, leveraged his great sense of humor and was a fantastic storyteller.
“I had great experiences during my time at Ball State—in journalism, History, English, Economics, the Honors College, and at the Virginia Ball Center—but that class was probably the single most intellectually stimulating of my whole college career.”
When Jendraszak returned to Ball State several years later to work on his master’s degree, he only had room in his schedule for one elective.
“I knew from the beginning it would be the follow-up to that political science course, so I'd have one more chance to experience Dr. Losco's work in the classroom,” Jendraszak said. “I’m sorry future Cardinals won’t have that chance.”
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