Dole Institute to host filmmakers, scholars and leaders this spring semester
LAWRENCE – The Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics at the University of Kansas has announced its virtual programming lineup for the spring 2021 semester. With the inauguration of a new president, the focus of the early schedule will be on the presidency. Spring will also feature a new exhibition, "Voices from the Big First, 1961-1968," and a series of afternoon programs on related topics.
“While our nation continues to deal with the COVID-19 crisis, the Dole Institute will be bringing an impressive slate of guests directly to our audience’s homes,” said Director Bill Lacy. “We will kick off the semester with an eye toward the new administration of President Biden and what we might expect to see in his first 100 days. We will also welcome back to the institute our friend Richard Norton Smith for the 2021 Presidential Lecture Series. We cannot wait to share with our audience this impressive slate of programs for the spring.”
Programming will launch in February with the documentary filmmaker and author Mark Zwonitzer, who assisted President-elect Joe Biden with several autobiographical books. Having worked on Richard Ben Cramer’s now celebrated book chronicling the 1988 presidential election, "What It Takes: The Way to the White House," and then working closely with Joe Biden in additional volumes, including "Promises to Keep," Zwonitzer will provide a unique and deeply informed understanding of the 46th president of the United States, and what Americans might expect from his administration.
Smith will return to the institute for this year’s Presidential Lecture Series, with four programs that seek to answer the question: “Where do we go from here?” He will begin by examining “The Reagan Playbook” and two other remarkably successful Republicans: Dwight Eisenhower and Teddy Roosevelt. Then, he will shift perspective to Franklin D. Roosevelt, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and what Biden can learn from his Democratic predecessors. Smith will then place the last four years in the context of presidential history, focusing on what has changed and what Americans can expect to go back to normal. Finally, he will draw on his encyclopedic knowledge of the nation’s leaders to provide a checklist for a successful presidency, followed by an expanded Q&A session.
Moving from the Oval Office to the city manager’s office, spring 2021 Dole Institute Fellow Patrick Tuohey will bring different facets of municipal public policy to light in discussion groups throughout the semester. As a co-founder of the Better Cities Project, he and his guests will speak to the challenges local leaders and civil servants face and the tools available to meet them. Discussion groups are made possible by the Newman’s Own Foundation.
"Voices from the Big First, 1961-1968" will debut in the Elizabeth Dole Gallery and Reading Room on Feb. 11. Featuring a selection of constituent letters written to then-Congressman Bob Dole from the collections of the Dole Archives, this original exhibition, curated by Kansas history scholar Virgil Dean, offers a window into the hopes and fears of everyday Kansans as they responded to change at home and conflict abroad. Funding for the exhibition is provided by Humanities Kansas.
Dole Institute audience members will have the opportunity to see the new documentary "UnRepresented," an unflinching account of corruption in the United States’ political system, before its debut on PBS. During a follow-up event, a panel of experts will discuss the problems highlighted in the documentary and the audience will have the opportunity to ask questions of the panel.
Six years after its debut on Broadway, Lin-Manuel Miranda’s "Hamilton" shows no signs of fading from the cultural consciousness. Historians Claire Bond Potter and Renee Roman, editors of the book "Historians on Hamilton: How a Blockbuster Musical Is Restaging America’s Past," will evaluate the historical accuracy of the musical and also why it became the phenomenon it is.
Author Robert Blaemire will share insights from his book "Birch Bayh: Making a Difference," a biography of the former U.S. senator. Bayh served the people of Indiana for more than 25 years and sponsored landmark legislation throughout his career, including the Bayh-Dole Act. The bill, co-sponsored with Bob Dole, changed the way inventions created through federal research and development could be licensed by the private sector.
The fourth installment of "A Conversation on Race" will occur in April, as will a program discussing free speech on college campuses.
The Fort Leavenworth series will continue with monthly lectures from faculty from the Command and General Staff College. This year’s theme is “Military Theorists.”
More information on all programs, as well as ongoing additions to the schedule, can be found on the Dole Institute’s website.
Evening Programs
46: The Biden Presidency
Mark Zwonitzer
7 p.m. Feb. 3
Researcher for Richard Ben Cramer’s landmark book "What It Takes: The Way to the White House" and assistant for several autobiographical books for President-elect Joe Biden, Mark Zwonitzer will use his in-depth knowledge of the 46th president of the United States to provide insight into what can be expected from his administration.
Presidential Lecture Series – "Where Do We Go from Here?"
- "The Republicans: The Reagan Playbook, with Nods to Ike & Teddy Roosevelt"
Richard Norton Smith
7 p.m. Feb. 10
Presidential scholar Richard Norton Smith examines three successful Republicans, with a focus on Ronald Reagan, whose 1980 election win paved the way for a center-right nation and set the stage for the last 12-year period of one-party White House control since Roosevelt. - "FDR Revisited: Learning from FDR, Clinton & Obama"
Richard Norton Smith
7 p.m. Feb. 17
As his administration begins, Biden’s likely role models will be Roosevelt, Clinton, and Obama. What can he learn from them? - "Breaking Precedent: The Last Four Years"
Richard Norton Smith
7 p.m. Feb. 23
The last four years featured a most unconventional presidency. What has changed? What will go back to normal? - "What I’ve Learned; Plus 'Ask Richard' Richard Norton Smith"
7 p.m. March 2
In the final lecture of the series, Smith will present his checklist for a successful presidency. This program will feature an expanded audience Q&A session where the audience can ask him questions about the presidency.
"Historians on 'Hamilton': How a Blockbuster Musical Is Restaging America’s Past"
Claire Bond Potter and Renee Romano
7 p.m. March 9
America has gone Hamilton crazy. Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony-winning musical has spawned sold-out performances, a triple platinum cast album and a score so catchy that it is being used to teach U.S. history in classrooms across the country. But just how historically accurate is "Hamilton"? And how is the show itself making history? Scholars examine what the musical got right, what it got wrong and why it matters.
"UnRepresented" — Documentary Screening & Filmmaker Q&A
7 p.m. March 16
"UnRepresented" is an award-winning documentary that uncovers the mechanisms that drive the cycle of corruption in Congress — giving political insiders enormous, unchecked power. The film explores how special interests bankroll political campaigns and relentlessly lobby to rig the system in their favor, all while following the letter of the law. Dole Institute audience members can take part in an exclusive viewing of the documentary before its debut on PBS. During a follow-up event, a panel of experts will discuss the problems highlighted in the documentary, and the audience will have the opportunity to ask questions of the panel.
"Birch Bayh: Making a Difference"
Robert Blaemire
7 p.m. March 23
Author Robert Blaemire will share insights from his book "Birch Bayh: Making a Difference," a biography of the former U.S. senator. Bayh served the people of Indiana for more than 25 years and sponsored landmark legislation throughout his career, including the Bayh-Dole Act. The bill, co-sponsored with Senator Bob Dole, changed the way inventions created through federal research and development could be licensed by the private sector.
A Conversation on Race
Date to be announced
In the wake of the death of George Floyd and the global outrage it sparked, the Dole Institute has provided a forum for discussion about the important and uncomfortable issue of race in America. Additional installments of this series will continue the discussion of the essential topics of racial justice and equality.
Afternoon Programs
Spring 2021 Discussion Groups Series
"The Modern American City: Past, Present, and Future"
Patrick Tuohey
Wednesdays Feb. 24; March 3, 10, 17, 24 and 31; and April 7 at 4 p.m.
Spring 2021 Dole Institute Fellow Patrick Tuohey will bring different facets of municipal public policy to light in discussion groups throughout the semester. As a co-founder of the Better Cities Project, he and his guests will speak to the challenges local leaders and civil servants face and the tools available to meet them. The Dole Discussion Groups are made possible by a grant from Newman’s Own.
Exhibition Preview Event
"Congressman Dole’s Kansas"
Audrey Coleman and Virgil Dean
3 p.m. Feb. 9
What was on Kansans’ minds in the 1960s? Join Audrey Coleman, director of Dole museum and archives, and Virgil Dean, Dole Archives curatorial fellow, for a conversation commemorating the debut of the Dole Institute’s latest original exhibition, "Voices from the Big First, 1961-1968," based on constituent letters Bob Dole received as a lawmaker during his time in the U.S. House of Representatives. This program is the first installment of a multi-part series presented in conjunction with the exhibition. Funding for this program is provided by Humanities Kansas.
The Fort Leavenworth Series
"ISIS, Abu Bakr Naji, and the Management of Savagery"
Brian Steed
3 p.m. Feb. 4
Al-Qaida and ISIS used the Management of Savagery as both an operational concept and doctrine. Written for al-Qaida in 2004 but demonstrated most thoroughly by ISIS from 2014 to 2021, the online published work explains how Islamist ideological groups hoped to defeat the West, generally, and the United States, specifically. This presentation explains the main themes of the work and how it was put into practice.
"John Boyd and Air Power Theory"
Chris Johnson
3 p.m. March 4
More details to come
"Denis Mahan and the Foundations of American Theory"
Ethan Rafuse
3 p.m. April 1
During the first half of the 19th century, no military thinker arguably had more influence on the U.S. Army than Dennis Hart Mahan. By the time he graduated at the top of his class at West Point in 1824, Mahan had become a protégé of Superintendent Sylvanus Thayer, whose wide-ranging reforms would win him recognition as “Father of the Military Academy.” Mahan’s writings and influence on the officers would dominate the Army nearly to the end of the 19th century and made him one of the most important figures in the evolution of American warfare.
"Don Starry, Active Defense, and AirLand Battle"
Lou DiMarco
3 p.m. May 6
More details to come.
The Dole Institute of Politics is dedicated to promoting political and civic participation as well as civil discourse in a bipartisan, philosophically balanced manner. It is located on KU’s Lawrence campus in the West District and houses the Dole Archive and Special Collections. Through its robust public programming, congressional archive and museum, the Dole Institute strives to celebrate public service and the legacies of U.S. Senators Bob Dole and Elizabeth Dole.