D. Stephen Voss, Associate Professor
University of Kentucky Political Science Dept.

Steve Voss: Personal Life

My wife, Kathleen J. Elliott, and I tied the knot on the 1991 Summer Solstice after five years of protracted negotiations. Kathy earned a Masters in Education from the University of Kentucky and now teaches literature at Lexington Catholic high school. She has co-authored a couple of books for Barron's on high-school entrance examinations. Kathy's undergraduate degree from LSU is in the Classics (Latin major; Greek, Western Civ and English minors), but we met before that so I guess you could say we're "high-school sweethearts."
	Our son, Gareth James Voss, was born in 1993. We named him after Sir Gareth of Orkney, the most humble Knight of the Round Table. The "James" can stand for James Bond or for his grandfather, the late James Elliott. I took a semester off to provide Gary's primary care while Kathy worked, an experience that has allowed us to maintain a strong bond. Gary's first love is video games. He also likes traditional strategy games (e.g., Axis and Allies, Stratego, Risk, Battle Master). Gary is a voracious reader, especially when it comes to books about World War II (because his grandfather, the late Charles Zimmerman, Sr, served in the Pacific Theater). But he also has a substantial interest in science, which has led him to enroll in Dunbar High School's advanced program in math, science, and technology for 9th grade.
Our daughter, Corrine Faye Elliott, was born in 1995. She was named after two important role models from my high-school years: Corrine Beckert, an artist who gave me a place to crash when I needed one during my high-school years, and my Aunt Faye Zimmerman, who took me to my first rock concert (Adam Ant, with INXS as a little-known opening band) and taught me how to score baseball games. Nina is our logician -- she cuts through parental B.S. mercilessly and shows great skill at finding loopholes in any rule. Nina loves monkeys of all sorts, and from hats through shirts and pants down to her socks and shoes she is almost always wearing something with a monkey on it -- and might be carrying a stuffed monkey as well. She likes to read mystery novels and listen to Styx, Queen, and the Beatles. Her first acting gig was playing servant to Tiresias in a Lexington Catholic portrayal of Sophocles' "Antigone." She is also an accomplished artist, having won prizes in contests sponsored by her school as well as by organizations such as the Lexington Herald-Leader.
	The newest addition to our family is Elizabeth Renee Elliott, who was born in 2004. For the second year now, I've worked the late shift so that I could stay home with Beth during the day and keep her out of daycare. Beth likes to "boogie" to all kind of music -- her Louisiana roots coming through -- but for whatever weird reason she seems to have taken a special liking to heavy music that started with Audioslave when she was a baby but has ramped up since then. This love for metal hasn't helped her escape from gender stereotyping, though. She is obsessed with the Disney princesses, to the point that she'll introduce herself to people as "Cinderella" (a cartoon she'd watch daily if we let her). Lately her demand has been to wear lipstick and "pretty dresses." That'll go over wonderfully in the mosh pit.

As for me, almost my entire extended family, as well as my in-laws, live in the environs of New Orleans. My ancestral lines (including a chaotic mix of German, Cajun French, Cuban, Semitic, and Greek roots) all stretch back for several generations in Southeast Louisiana.

I don't get involved much in politics, despite my research interests, and I have no loyalty to either major political party. But I generally agree with an old maxim: The government that governs best is the one that governs least.

When I need to blow off steam, I usually prefer to shoot pool or to blow up stuff on the computer. I also listen to tons of music from most genres, since I can do that while working. Some favorites:

• Hard music - Mudvayne, Soulfly, Pantera/Down, Black Label Society, Clutch, Tool, System of a Down, Mike Patton, Dog Fashion Disco, Corrosion of Conformity, Alabama Thunder****, etc.
• Acoustic Jazz - e.g., Miles and Coltrane, of course, but also Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, Sam Rivers, Tony Williams, Wayne Shorter
• Blues and R&B - e.g., Buddy Guy, John Lee Hooker, Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett
• Progressive rock - e.g., King Crimson, Yes, Mars Volta, old Genesis, Phish (I appeared as a blue spaceman in their "Down With Disease" video)
• Classical - e.g., Bartok, Ravel, John Adams, Mussorgsky, Bach chamber music

I also make time for a couple of the family's favorite movies and television programs, especially anything by David Lynch but also The X-Files, 24, and Arrested Development.

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