Abraham (Abe) Goldberg is an Associate Professor of Political Science at James Madison University with teaching and research interests in civic learning and engagement, American democracy, community placemaking and higher education. Embedded in all his work is a deep commitment to building a more inclusive, just and equitable society. He previously served as director of the James Madison Center for Civic Engagement at JMU and as director of the Office of Service-Learning and Community Engagement at the University of South Carolina Upstate.  

Abe recently published Leaning Into Politics: Higher Education and the Democracy We Need (Information Age Press, 2024), along with several journal articles and book chapters on political learning and democratic engagement in outlets such as the Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, Research and Practice in Assessment, Palgrave-MacMillan, PS: Political Science and Politics and others.  He has also written extensively on how the built environment of urban places and the accessibility of community amenities contributes to the social connectivity, health, and happiness of residents, as found in Social Science and Medicine, Urban Design and Planning, Urban Affairs Review and Journal of Urbanism. 

Abe has been a Civic Fellow with AASCU's American Democracy Project and served on the advisory boards for the Educating for American Democracy initiative and the Civic Engagement Core Team for the Viginia Service Commission.  He regularly presents his work at conferences for the American Association of Colleges and University, Campus Compact and other national organizations in higher education's civic engagement space. He received a Ph.D. in Political Science from West Virginia University.