Lucas Knight

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Political Science, International Affairs, and Asian Religions and Cultures triple major Lucas Knight graduated from WKU’s Gatton Academy in 2016 and from WKU in 2020. He was in the Chinese Flagship Program, was the chair of the Student Coalition for Renters’ Rights, and participated in Bowling Green Fairness.

While at Gatton, Lucas started a research project focused on Taiwan with Professor Timothy Rich. When he decided to stay at WKU, he continued his research with a FUSE grant, looking at individual opinions on free trade agreements in Taiwan. He presented this research at the 2018 Southern Political Science Association Conference in New Orleans and expanded the project in his Honors thesis. Additionally, Lucas studied abroad in Taiwan and China to study Mandarin.

Lucas chose to major in International Affairs at WKU because of how the program pushes students out of their comfort zone and how its interdisciplinary nature allowed him to major in Asian Religions and Cultures and minor in Economics. On his professional experience, Lucas felt that the major positioned him well for his post-graduation plans.

“Professionally, I think some of the personal benefits also apply. Cultural competency and critical thinking ability are all widely applicable. I’ve been able to develop a number of skills in things like data analysis, research methodology and presentational speaking that I wouldn’t have been able to refine without the opportunities through the International Affairs major. Combine this with a number of publications and presentations at conferences, and I’ve come away from the program with a skillset and accomplishments that leave me well-placed to continue my education or, in the case of skills, are useful in a professional setting.”

On a more personal level on his experience in the Political Science Department, he comments that “I’ve met some wonderful people, both students and faculty, that I wouldn’t have met if not for the program.”