In the 2016 Presidential Lecture Series, noted presidential historian and former Dole Institute director Richard Norton Smith returns this spring to examine the politicians who were nominated to America’s highest office but never elected. Covering their careers and the reasons behind their losses, this timely four-part series will shed light on the impact of presidential […]
On April 2, 1917, President Woodrow Wilson asked a joint session of Congress to make the world “safe for democracy.” Four days later, the United States entered World War I, one of the deadliest wars in American history. The 2017 Presidential Lecture Series will welcome expert guest lecturers to dive inside U.S. involvement in the […]
Presidential historian and former Dole Institute director Richard Norton Smith returns for a deep dive into presidential rankings and what they can teach us. Smith will guide the audience through an examination of the executive office from the exalted to the ignoble, with his participation in the annual C-SPAN Presidential Historians Survey serving as a […]
Public service leadership has many faces, and no two paths are the same. Four female leaders from various stages of their public service careers will join the Dole Institute to discuss how they prepared to take on their leadership roles and how they mentor others to follow in their footsteps. Both inspirational and practical, this […]
This year’s Presidential Lecture Series, created and developed by award-winning presidential rhetoric scholar Dr. Robert Rowland, focuses on presidential speeches and rhetoric, from the greatest speeches, to the process of speechwriting, to changes in presidential rhetoric in the age of social media. Join us for this compelling journey through the words that defined presidencies. Robert […]
Richard Norton Smith is a nationally recognized authority on the American presidency. He worked for Senator Bob Dole, with whom he collaborated on books. Mr. Smith served as Director of the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum, the Dwight D. Eisenhower Center, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. In December 2001, Mr. Smith became director […]
The Presidential Lecture Series is presented in partnership with the Harry S. Truman Presidential Library & Museum and the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library, Museum & Boyhood Home. Join notable historians and archivists as they discuss the military service of former U.S. presidents and the relationship of that service to their own politics, leadership, and […]
Since George Washington made it clear that Martha was his partner in the presidency by providing her with her own schedule of meetings and having her serve as hostess and surrogate, first ladies have each defined the role as it best suited their backgrounds, personalities, the times, and their husbands’ views of the role. Some […]
Anyone asked to list the top first ladies usually draws on their own experience studying or knowing about the women during their lifetimes. A few first ladies were far more powerful than history classes typically reveal. This program centers on three of those women: Sarah Polk, Florence Harding, and Edith Wilson and the power they […]
Abigail Adams was famous for her letter to John urging him to “remember the ladies” as a new country and government were developed. John and most of his successors ignored that plea until the early 20th century. This program looks at the women who supported women’s rights, those who could have supported but chose not […]
While the ERA did not pass, three first ladies—Pat Nixon, Betty Ford, and Rosalynn Carter all supported the amendment. These women also supported other women’s issues as did several of their successors. This program explores some of the little-known efforts of first ladies to move women’s rights forward. Moderated by Dole Institute Director Audrey Coleman, […]
The history of the American First Lady has seen a number of defining moments, incidents or challenges that are distinctive and leave a clear impression of the presidential spouse. Included in this presentation are discussions of Eleanor Roosevelt and Marian Anderson (1936); Jacqueline Kennedy’s Tour of the White House (1962); Betty Ford and Breast Cancer […]
The Dole Institute is committed to universal accessibility in all programs and resources. We are in the process of making all of our web projects fully accessible. An accessible version of the material represented on this site will be made available upon request. Please contact us at doleinstitute@ku.edu to request the material be made available in an accessible format, or for general assistance.