Laura Heller

Lecturer

About

Dr. Laura Heller is a graduate of Northeastern University’s Doctor of Law & Policy program. Her doctoral thesis, entitled “Actions Speak Louder than Words: Policy Legitimation and the National Security Strategy,” explored the ways in which political speech can shape public opinion. In doing so, Laura's research considered the relationship between presidential rhetoric and public policy legitimation, and how rhetorical strategies can advance a foreign policy agenda. 

Laura earned her Juris Doctorate from University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. Her master’s degree is in Diplomacy (International Relations), with a concentration in International Conflict Management from Norwich University, Her bachelor’s degree is in Anthropology from California State University, Northridge. She is also a graduate of the U.S. Army Command & General Staff College.

Laura's teaching interests include international relations, international law, and public policy, as well as human rights and conflict resolution. In addition to teaching online and on-ground courses in Northeastern’s Global Studies and International Relations program, she serves as the principal legal counsel for labor and employment law at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. Dr. Heller's legal practice over the years has specialized in government ethics, government information and privacy practice, and fiscal, trademark, and copyright law. Laura's teaching portfolio includes Introduction to International Politics, International Law & Organizations, Genocide, International Conflict and Cooperation, and Public Diplomacy.

When she's not teaching, Laura volunteers with the Australian Cattle Dog Rescue Association and Lollypop Farm, the Humane Society of Greater Rochester. Although she has lived in the state of New York more years than any other state (including Missouri, Arizona, Virginia, and Washington), Laura considers herself a Californian, having spent her formative years (middle school, high school, and college) in the greater Los Angeles area and law school in Sacramento. She currently lives amidst the scenic beauty of the central region of the “Show Me State.”

Education

PhD from Northeastern University (2017)