Michael Kohler
Michael Kohler’s military career with the U.S. Army came to an abrupt end when shrapnel from a roadside bomb in Baghdad tore through his Stryker and into his left leg. Twenty-one surgeries later, his mission, like his leg, remains intact: to serve the public.
By 2010, three years after his injury, Kohler had moved to the Akron area with his wife to be near her family. He enrolled at UA and graduated in 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in political science. After finishing his master’s in political science (security studies track) in spring 2015, he hopes to return to government service.
“My ideal career, as it stands right now, is I would like to end up somewhere in the State Department,” says Kohler, who recently gave a presentation to UA’s Board of Trustees on his Akron Experience. “There are some specific groups within the department that handle public opinion and intelligence from the public opinion data, which is kind of a niche for me.”
Drawn to public opinion
He developed that niche in his role as a research assistant for UA’s Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, where he specializes in surveys of public opinion.
As an undergraduate, Kohler joined John Green, Bliss Institute director and distinguished professor of political science, to co-author the “Financing the 2012 Presidential Nomination Campaigns” chapter of the book “Financing the 2012 Election,” edited by David B. Magleby and published in late September.
Pictured with Michael Kohler are, from left, are his mother, Fran Long; wife, Bethany; and Dr. Nancy Marion, professor of political science.
“I understand how public opinion surveys work,” Kohler says, “so I’d like to take that experience and turn it around and hopefully be useful to somebody in the State Department who is looking to learn something about another country.”
Seeking new knowledge
Green believes he will do well in such a role.
"Michael is one of those rare students with a deep curiosity about the world and the skills to constantly seek new knowledge,” notes Green.
For Kohler, his career ambitions are simply a way to continue what he has been doing since joining the military.
“For me, joining the military was really about public service. When I got injured, it left me with this void. I could have sat at home and collected disability, but I wanted to see if there was some way I could give back more of my time, more of myself. Having lost the ability serve the way I was serving, I saw a new way to serve the public.”
Story by Nicholas Nussen
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