McCourt School student publishes biography on President Garfield

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, C.W. (Charlie) Goodyear grew up living between Australia and the United Kingdom before returning to the United States to attend Yale University. Since earning his undergraduate degree in global affairs in 2016, Goodyear has co-authored One Mission , with author and veteran Chris Fussell, and ghost-written a number of other books.

His next book, President Garfield: From Radical to Unifier , will be published by Simon & Schuster on July 4, 2023. In more than 600 pages, Goodyear chronicles the extraordinary, tragic life of America’s twentieth president, James Abram Garfield. In search of an American historical figure who defied the polarization of their era, Goodyear found Garfield, who, despite serving as president during the Gilded Age, had a “thin historical footprint.”

“So I dug deeper and, in doing so, came across what I now think is one of the most remarkable rises to political power in American history,” said Goodyear. 

President Garfield, who is often remembered only for his assassination in 1881, was a Union war hero, founder of the first Department of Education, a Supreme Court attorney, an abolitionist preacher, a mathematician, a canal man and more. 

“His life is a breathtakingly rich story — one about the American Dream, the breaking-up and troubled reunion of our country, and a man who dedicated much of his life to just trying to keep Americans in harmony with one another (in ways both good and questionable),” said Goodyear.

In reading more about Garfield’s life and work, Goodyear expects that readers might find parallels between 19th-century and present-day politics.

“Reading and studying about America’s past leaders, in particular, serves as a reminder that our modern challenges are not all that new or unprecedented,” he said, “and that some of our most accomplished leaders had moments of incredible doubt, adversity and even failure. If you combine those two lessons, the result is inspiring.”

Balancing life as an author and full-time graduate student

Goodyear’s passion for history and interest in American government and the driving forces behind it drew him to the McCourt School to pursue a master’s degree in public policy .

It turns out that balancing life as an author and a full-time graduate student is easier than he thought it would be. 

“I arrived at McCourt with the majority of my manuscript written but managed to fit much of the lengthy editing process around my classes,” said Goodyear. “I specifically remember spending time in Old North shaving down my ‘Acknowledgements’ section before heading off to my microeconomics class with Dr. Nada Eissa .”

In his second and final year at the McCourt School, Goodyear will maintain a full course load while working on his next book project.

“During my first semester at McCourt, Dr. Jonathan Ladd coincidentally gave a lecture on the topic I’d like to write about next,” he said. 

As for his graduate capstone project, “that’s still a work in progress.” 

Learn more about President Garfield: From Radical to Unifier , available on July 4, 2023.