Leanne Purdum

 Assistant Professor
Office Location: 105 Medbury Hall
Fall 2023 Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday, 10 AM - 12:30 PM

Email: leanne.purdum@drake.edu 

Phone: (515) 271-1973

Leanne Purdum has a PhD in Geography from the University of Georgia, specializing in critical legal geography. As a scholar she is broadly interested in law and power, with a focus on US immigration policing and critical approaches to humanitarianism. Her dissertation research stems from volunteer work as a legal advocate in the South Texas Family Residential Center, a “family” detention center in Dilley, Texas.

Professor Purdum offers a variety of courses, including Detention and Deportation Systems, Geographies of Law and Power, Legal Advocacy, and a First Year Seminar. She has previously taught Cultural Geography, Geography of Human Rights, and Introduction to Latin America and Caribbean Studies. Her teaching starts with a curiosity about the socio-legal world, and urges students to connect theoretical texts to everyday experiences of personal interest. She was a 2018 Future Faculty Fellow at the University of Georgia Graduate School and the Center for Teaching and Learning, and she has completed the Interdisciplinary Graduate Certificate in University Teaching from the UGA Graduate School.

In her free time she enjoys gardening, cooking, stand-up comedy, and long walks.