John C. Stanko is a doctoral student in the Department of Political Science at Indiana University. Thon’s research focuses primarily on non-coercive influence in international relations by authoritarian governments, especially in the Eurasian region. John is particularly interested in the intersection between higher education and foreign policy. John’s work has been published in Global Studies Quarterly, and thon has also previously been a Monterey Summer Symposium on Russia Fellow, a Russian Studies Workshop Fellow at IU, a FLAS recipient, and a Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad participant.