Presidential Lecture Series

With attention turning toward the next presidential race, we look at a question we first addressed nine years ago: Will the U.S. elect its first woman president? What unique challenges […]

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 […]

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, […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 […]

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 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 […]

Join moderator Diana Carlin for this year's series, which underscores the two-person nature of the presidency and the influence first ladies have on their husbands’ administrations, women’s issues, and U.S. […]