MAPD lab @ U of Minnesota

Lab Director

Kevin Luo

Prof. Luo is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, and a faculty affiliate in the Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (AMES). His primary research agenda focuses on state capacity and the construction of state power in China and Asia, drawing insights from both historical and contemporary perspectives. He is currently working on a book manuscript titled Grassroots Origins of Regime Power: rural reform, state building, and political orders in Cold War Asia, which focuses on the transformative land redistribution campaigns implemented in China and Taiwan during the 1950s and their political legacies. He is also broadly interested in authoritarianism and democratization, development and security in Asia, and contemporary politics in China and Taiwan.

Prof. Luo usually teaches Chinese Politics (POL3476) every year, and State Building (POL8660, grad seminar) every other year.

Project Coordinator

Xiufan Wu

I am a Ph.D. student in Political Science at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. I study historical state-building with a regional focus on East Asia, with particular interest in how civil society organizations interact with state power to shape the development of state capacity and governmental institutions. My broader interests include contemporary Chinese politics, historical political economy, the modern history of East Asia, and mixed-methods research. Prior to Minnesota, I received a M.A. from the University of Chicago's Committee on International Relations, and a B.S. in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, majoring in International Politics. I have also worked as a research assistant at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Team Members (2026)

Jacob Brownigg

My name is Jacob, and I am a junior double-majoring in Economics and Political Science.

Eleanor Kennedy

Eleanor Kennedy is a third-year student at the University of Minnesota studying political science.

Summer Li

I am a sophomore at the University of Minnesota majoring in Political Science with a minor in Economics. My research interests focus on Chinese politics and economic policies.

Xingyu Pan

Alexander Nelson

I am a 21 year old Taiwanese American studying political science with a focus on international relations, as well as Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Minnesota. I am participating in this research program in order to improve my knowledge on early Chinese politics and put my Chinese reading abilities to the test as well as learning what it is like to work in a professional research environment.

Past Alumni

Yinguang Zhao (PhD student, Political Science, Minnesota)

Zach Zihe Zhou (PhD student, Political Science, Emory)

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