Dr. Eddie Boucher

Boucher PicAssistant Professor Eddie Boucher holds BA and MA degrees in History from the University of Missouri, Kansas City with regional and topical emphases in South Asia, Cultural Studies, and Religious Studies. In 2018, he earned his PhD in Cultural Studies and Global Education from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and his ongoing ethnographic research explores the impact of coercive forms of globalization on India’s handicraft sectors, education system, and culture more broadly. At MSU he offers ISS courses in Craft and Material Culture Studies, Social Inequality (as expressed through media and comedy), and Contemporary Issues in Asian Studies. He is also developing study abroad, service-learning opportunities for MSU students to work alongside students in India who study and document India’s vast craft sector for the expressed benefit of the largely marginalized handicraft artisans working in our global era. 

CURRENT RESEARCH 

  • Craft Studies and Material Culture Studies in India
  • Media/Cultural Studies in Global and Comparative Education in South Asia
  • Pedagogy in Visual Storytelling and Interdisciplinary Studies 

ASSOCIATED PROGRAMS

  • Study Abroad in the College of Social Science 

RECENT PUBLICATIONS & PUBLICATIONS IN-PRESS/UNDER REVIEW

Boucher, E. (under review). Competition Exams and Topper Praise in India: A Media Case Study Exploring Educational (In)equality. In T. Saeed, R. Iyengar, M. Witenstein, and E. Bykar (Eds.), The Politics of Education: Exploring Education and Democratization in South Asia. Palgrave Macmillan.

Boucher, E. (2020). Democracy, Neoliberalism, and School Choice: A Comparative Analysis of India and the United States. Journal of Global Education and Research, 4(2), 96-112.

Boucher, E. (2020). The Systemic Gentrification of Education in India: A Media Case Study. In J. DeSena and J. Krase (Eds.), Gentrification Around the World, Volume 2:  Innovative Approaches, pp. 289-313. London, UK: Palgrave Macmillan.

Boucher, D. E., & Clark, C. (2018). After Postmodernism: Working Woke in the Neoliberal Era. Journal of Educational Philosophy and Theory, 50(14), 1446-1447.

Boucher, E. (2017). Colonial Liberalism, Global Neoliberalism, and Education in India. The Global Studies Journal, 10(2), 51-66.

RECENT CONFERENCE PRESENTATIONS

Boucher, E., Quillinan, T., Keeley, K., Johnson, N., Mize, R., & Pickford, D. (2021, May). ISS Innovation:  Documentary Storytelling as Engaged Learning in General Education. Poster & Short Documentary presented at the Michigan State University Annual Teaching, Learning, and Student Success Conference, East Lansing, MI. 

Boucher, E. (2021, April). Equity Demerits in Meritocracy Education:  The Global Pandemic, Media Reporting, and Stakeholder Resistance to India’s High-Stakes Board Exam System. Poster presented at the 65th Annual Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), Seattle, WA 

Boucher, E. (2020, March). Craft Education in India: Potential Educational Counter Spaces Beyond Utilitarian, Neoliberal Models. Poster presented at the 64th Annual Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), Miami, FL.

Boucher, E. (2019, April). Craft Education in India: Cultural Sustainability within a Global World. Poster presented at the 63rd Annual Conference of the Comparative and International Education Society (CIES), San Francisco, CA. 

Boucher, E., & Russell, L. (2018, July). The Globalization of a Sacred Narrative: Situating India’s Ramayana Traditions within Colonial, Postcolonial, and Neoliberal Global Contexts. Paper presented at the Eleventh International Conference of the Global Studies Research Network (GSRN). University of Granada, Granada, Spain.

COMMUNITY-ENGAGED/PUBLIC SCHOLARSHIP (In Progress)

Boucher, E., Mattes, S., Almerigi, J., Munoz, L. & Quillinan, T. (IDS Faculty-Student Research and Production Team). (In progress, Fall 2022 anticipated release date). Farmers Markets in Mid-Michigan: Sustaining Communities, Resources, and the Environment in our Global Era (A Community-Engaged Documentary). United States.

Boucher, E. (Producer and Director). (2019, in progress). Handmade Craft in the World: Master Tarkashi Artisans of Jaipur (Documentary). India and the United States.

Boucher, E. (Producer) & Boucher, E., & Sen, K. (Co-Directors). (2018, full feature in progress). Handmade Craft in the World: Block Printing in Jaipur (Documentary). India and the United States.

RECENT TEACHING AWARDS

Michigan State University, Recipient, Faculty Teaching Innovation Award, College of Social Science, 2020-2021

Michigan State University, Recipient, #iteachmsu Educator Award, Office of the Provost, 2020-2021 

Michigan State University’s Academic Advancement Network (MSU-AAN) & The HUB, Co-founder & Co-facilitator, MSU Learning Community in Team-Based Teaching, Learning & Research, 2020-2021, (renewed) 2021-2022