America at 250 Special Exhibits
2026-02-16 - 2026-09-07 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Commemorate America at 250 with three special exhibits highlighting the Declaration of Independence, Kansas, and the last major commemoration of America’s founding. Experience these special exhibits starting Feb. 16, on display in the Elizabeth Dole Gallery & Reading Room.
Declaration 1776: The Big Bang of Modern Democracy uses primary sources to illustrate how Americans and people across the world have been inspired by the Declaration of Independence in their pursuit of equality and self-determination. This special exhibit was developed by the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History.
Spirit of ’76 features original artifacts from the Dole Archives that highlight the 1976 Bicentennial celebrations, which commemorated 200 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Kansas in 1776 provides insight into what the Kansas landscape looked like while the Founding Fathers penned the Declaration of Independence in 1776. This special exhibit was developed by Humanities Kansas.

This exhibit is presented in partnership with Humanities Kansas

Inside the Electorate: A Bipartisan Look Ahead to the 2026 Midterms
2026-02-26 19:00 - 20:30 (America/Chicago) | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The nation enters a critical midterm election year with voters trying to come to grips with economic anxieties, international disruptions, and ongoing debates about the nation’s culture. The Wall Street Journal’s new bipartisan polling team, Democrat John Anzalone and Republican Adam Geller, will join Dole Institute Visiting Fellow Jerry Seib for their first public appearance to discuss the nation’s mood as seen through their surveys and extensive experience.

Jerry Seib has been a journalist with The Wall Street Journal for almost 45 years. He served as the Journal’s Executive Washington Editor and wrote the weekly “Capital Journal” column for 29 years. He also reported from the Middle East for the Journal in the mid-1980s, covered the White House, has moderated three presidential debates, and interviewed every president since Ronald Reagan.
John Anzalone, one of the nation’s leading Democratic pollsters, is the founding partner of Impact Research. A veteran of Democratic politics, he’s served as the chief pollster for President Joe Biden in 2020. He also polls for Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, Roy Cooper’s 2026 U.S. Senate race (NC) and House Democratic Caucus Chair, Pete Aguilar (CA). John also conducts public opinion research for many Fortune 500 companies, as well as national associations and advocacy groups such as the AARP.
Adam Geller is the chief executive officer of National Research, Inc., a polling and political research firm. Active in numerous Republican campaigns over the years, he was a pollster for President Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign and Trump-aligned super PACs during the 2020 and 2024 presidential election cycles, in addition to working with many congressional, senatorial, and gubernatorial campaigns. Adam also regularly works with corporate, public relations, and C-suite executives to provide political insights and strategies.

The Case for Limited War: European Military Treatises through Machiavelli
2026-03-04 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Warfare in the European Middle Ages (c. 500-1500) can be broadly characterized as limited: limited objectives, limited budgets, and limited size of armies. Despite medieval society having an overall martial culture, these factors conspired to make warfare episodic, defensively oriented, and positional in character. This lecture will explore the intellectual underpinnings of medieval limited war by surveying the major writers on the subject, including Vegetius, Maurice, Leo VI, Nikephoros Phokas, John of Salisbury, Giles of Rome, Honoré Bouvet, Christine de Pizan, and Niccolò Machiavelli.

John D. Hosler (Ph.D. University of Delaware) is a Professor of Military History at the Command and General Staff College. Before coming to Fort Leavenworth, he was a tenured Full Professor of History at Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland. An expert on medieval warfare in Europe and the Near East, he is the author or editor of nine books, including The Third Crusade, 1189-1192 (2025), the Routledge Handbook of Medieval Military Strategy (2024), Jerusalem Falls: Seven Centuries of War and Peace (2022), and The Siege of Acre ( 2018). He is a book series editor of “War and Conflict in Premodern Societies” for ARC Humanities Press and a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. He is currently writing his tenth book, a world history of the relic of the True Cross in war from A.D. 325-2025, for Yale University Press.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

Lawrence Reviewed at the Dole Institute
2026-03-09 17:30 - 19:30 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The Anthropocene Reviewed: Civic Education Edition invites students and community members to critically engage with their own local slice of the Anthropocene by contributing their own reviews, modeled by Green’s work. Stop by the Dole Institute of Politics on March 9 anytime from 5:30-7:30 p.m. to view our America at 250 Special Exhibits and explore our museum gallery. Also, see the World’s Largest Stained Glass American Flag Window as well as the September 11 Memorial.
And as part of Lawrence Reviewed, you can leave a review, talk with Lawrence Reviewed and Dole Institute staff, and participate in fun activities! As always, admission is FREE.

Plan your visit →

Liberty In a Pluralistic Society
2026-03-25 16:00 - 17:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Liberty is America’s founding ideal, bursting from our shores and spreading to nations far and near. But, our own story is rife with contradictions and presents challenges even today as we balance the desires of a changing society. How do we balance competing ideas of liberty in a pluralistic country? How can we secure this most American of ideals for all within our nation?

Jeff King serves as the executive vice president of the Rodel Institute, where he founded and runs fellowships for judges of all ideological persuasions, as well as bipartisan groups of elected officials, to explore ways that leaders can transcend differences to promote judicial independence and cross-party dialogue. A former Kansas Senator (R) representing southeastern Kansas, Jeff worked extensively on criminal justice issues, pension reform, education finance and tax policy as chair of the Senate Judiciary, Pension, and Rules committees. A former Tenth Circuit clerk and president of the Appellate Section of the Kansas Bar, Jeff has handled over 60 appeals across the country on issues of school finance, trust, state government and constitutional law. He holds degrees from Brown University, Yale Law School, and the University of Cambridge.
Mark McCormick is a New York Times bestselling author with nearly 30 years of experience as a reporter, editor, and columnist. He most recently served as the inaugural executive director of the Kansas Black Leadership Council and deputy director of the ACLU of Kansas. He also served for a total of six years as executive director of The Kansas African American Museum. An alum of the University of Kansas, McCormick is a trustee of the William Allen White School of Journalism at KU, served as a professional in residence at the University of Oklahoma, and was appointed by Governor Laura Kelly to two Kansas state commissions, including the Kansas African American Affairs Commission. He has earned numerous awards and recognitions over his career and was inducted into the Kansas Newspaper Hall of Fame last year.

POSTPONED - In Conversation with Ambassador Bogdan Klich
2026-03-31 19:00 - 20:15 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The Republic of Poland’s Head of Mission to the United States, Bogdan Klich, will be in conversation with Dole Fellow and former Kosovar diplomat Qëndrim Gashi on Poland’s experience in public diplomacy with the United States and examine key aspects of U.S.-Polish bilateral cooperation. Their discussion will also offer perspectives on current U.S. foreign policy and Poland’s priorities.
This program is presented in partnership with

H.E. Bogdan Klich is the Head of Mission in the Embassy of the Republic of Poland as of November 2024. He has been Senator in the Polish Parliament between 2011 and 2024. Between 2015 and 2019, he was Minority Leader of the Polish Senate. Mr. Bogdan Klich served as Poland’s Minister of Defense from 2007 to 2011 and was a member of the European Parliament. Klich managed the Information Department at State TV Centre in Cracow between 1990 and 1992. He then was Head of the International Centre for Development of Democracy in Krakow from 1993 to 1999 and Head of the Institute for Strategic Studies from 1999 to 2003. In 1998 and 1999, he was an Adviser to the government plenipotentiary for Poland’s accession negotiations with the EU. Mr. Klich graduated from the Faculty of Medicine at the Krakow Medical Academy and the Faculty of Philosophy and History at the Jagiellonian University. He was a lecturer at the Institute of European Studies at the Jagiellonian University. Mr. Klich has authored numerous publications on foreign policy and international security. In the late 1970’s and 1980’s he was active in the democratic opposition movement.
Dr. Qëndrim Gashi is an associate professor at the University of Prishtina and was Kosovo’s Ambassador to France from 2016 until 2021. He has served in supervisory boards of various private and state institutions and think tanks and has won a number of scholarships, awards and honors, including receiving the insignia of Commander of the French Legion of Honor in 2022. Educated at the University of Chicago (PhD 2008), the University of Cambridge (MA St 2003), and the University of Prishtina (Diploma 2002), he has given talks at many universities, was the founder and first President (2008-2012) of the Kosovar Mathematical Society, and since April 2022 also serves as the Kosovo American Education Fund Development Manager.

The Maginot Line
2026-04-01 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The Maginot Line has assumed a mythical status as the height of French interwar doctrinal stagnation. The reality, however, is that the Maginot Line represented a potential solution to the difficult French strategic position. Dr. Cameron Zinsou of the Command and General Staff College shows how its development, manning, and the debates about the Line shaped and prepared French military and civilian thought in the leadup to the Second World War.

Dr. Cameron Zinsou is an Assistant Professor of History in the Department of Military History at the Command and General Staff College. His research focuses on the intersection of occupation, requisitions, civil/military relations, and citizenship in World War II France. Dr. Zinsou has a manuscript under contract with the University Press of Kansas, Occupied: Requisitions, Meaning, and the French Experience during World War II. He has also featured on numerous media platforms including multiple podcasts and the Smithsonian Channel’s documentary series World War II Battles in Color and has publications in the New York Times and War on the Rocks.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

The Effects of Federal Health Policy on Kansas
2026-04-02 19:00 - 20:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Join the Dole Institute Student Advisory Board for the spring Student Advisory Board Program, featuring a discussion on how the One Big Beautiful Bill’s effects on Medicaid and the new Rural Health Transformation Grant may change the healthcare landscape in Kansas.
SAB coordinator Abbie Clements will be in conversation with Kansas health policy experts Sheena Schmidt, senior policy analyst and strategy team leader at the Kansas Health Institute, and David Jordan, president and CEO of the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund, to talk about the path forward.

David Jordan is a proven leader with over 25 years of achievement in improving access to health care in Kansas and nationally. David has served as the president and CEO of the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund (Health Fund) since 2018, leading the statewide health foundation’s grantmaking, external relations, and policy and advocacy efforts. Before joining the Health Fund, David served as the executive director of the Alliance for a Healthy Kansas, a coalition of over 100 organizations working to improve health and access to health care in Kansas. David oversaw the Alliance’s operations and the effort to expand and improve KanCare, Kansas’ Medicaid program. David joined the Alliance after spending nearly seven years at Community Catalyst, a leading national consumer health advocacy organization. David also oversaw the MassACT! Coalition spearheading the ballot campaign that led to Massachusetts’ landmark 2006 universal health care law. David is recognized for his expertise in health care, early childhood and civic engagement issues and is often called upon to serve on committees and task forces, including the Governor’s Commission on Racial Equity and Justice, the Governor’s Early Childhood Transition Task Force, Kansas Rural Health Innovation Alliance, Kansas Complete Count Committee, and the Office of Early Childhood Transition Advisory Group. David holds a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Kansas and bachelor’s degree in speech communication from Emerson College. He lives in Lawerence, Kansas, with his wife Suzanne and their two school-aged children.
Sheena L. Schmidt, M.P.P., Senior Analyst & Strategy Team Leader, leads strategic planning and programmatic activities related to access to care, including Medicaid and other publicly funded programs, the health care workforce and rural health issues. She has over 14 years of experience in public service at the federal, state and local levels. At the state level, Sheena recently served as the Director of Administrative Services for the Kansas Department for Children and Families, where she oversaw grants and contracts for the agency, among other key operational areas. At the local level, Sheena was the Senior Grants Program Administrator and a Grant Writer for the City of Topeka, where she developed strategic funding priorities which resulted in several million dollars for projects related to infrastructure and social services. She also worked at KHI as an Analyst from 2012-2016 and prior to that as an Analyst at the U.S. Government Accountability Office in Washington, D.C. Sheena earned a master’s degree in public policy with a concentration in politics and institutions from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s degree in political science with a minor in history and a certification in nonprofit management from Washburn University. As a lifelong Kansan, she is invested in helping others understand how policies impact their health, in addition to research interests related to health equity. Her personal interests include listening to podcasts and making memories traveling with her family.

The 2026 Easter Egg Roll with Dole
2026-04-04 10:00 - 13:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Come one, come all, for the Dole Institute’s Easter Egg Roll with Dole! Join us on Saturday, April 4, for a morning of family fun, including a White House-style egg roll race, egg hunt, games, crafts, and more. The event is free and open to the public, and will go on rain or shine.

Learn more about this event by visiting our website.

A Republic, If You Can Keep It
2026-04-08 16:00 - 17:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Ben Franklin promised us unparalleled freedom with burdens to uphold it, never before placed upon a citizenry. What was this novel form of government bestowed on our young nation and what have we, as a free people, done to keep it? What burdens do we share, what challenges do we face, and what actions must we take to keep the American republic strong for another 250 years?

Jeff King serves as the executive vice president of the Rodel Institute, where he founded and runs fellowships for judges of all ideological persuasions, as well as bipartisan groups of elected officials, to explore ways that leaders can transcend differences to promote judicial independence and cross-party dialogue. A former Kansas Senator (R) representing southeastern Kansas, Jeff worked extensively on criminal justice issues, pension reform, education finance and tax policy as chair of the Senate Judiciary, Pension, and Rules committees. A former Tenth Circuit clerk and president of the Appellate Section of the Kansas Bar, Jeff has handled over 60 appeals across the country on issues of school finance, trust, state government and constitutional law. He holds degrees from Brown University, Yale Law School, and the University of Cambridge.
Mark McCormick is a New York Times bestselling author with nearly 30 years of experience as a reporter, editor, and columnist. He most recently served as the inaugural executive director of the Kansas Black Leadership Council and deputy director of the ACLU of Kansas. He also served for a total of six years as executive director of The Kansas African American Museum. An alum of the University of Kansas, McCormick is a trustee of the William Allen White School of Journalism at KU, served as a professional in residence at the University of Oklahoma, and was appointed by Governor Laura Kelly to two Kansas state commissions, including the Kansas African American Affairs Commission. He has earned numerous awards and recognitions over his career and was inducted into the Kansas Newspaper Hall of Fame last year.

Rick Atkinson
2026-04-13 19:00 - 20:30 | Lied Center of Kansas, 1600 Stewart Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
In honor of America at 250, Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian Rick Atkinson joins Dole Institute Director Audrey Coleman to discuss his career and work process, the legacy of World War II and the historian’s craft in the 21st century, and his new book, The Fate of the Day, the second of The Revolution Trilogy.
Limited copies of The Fate of the Day will be available for purchase at the event. Rick Atkinson will also be available to sign copies of books for guests in attendance following the public program.

This program is presented in partnership with the Watkins Museum of History and the Lawrence Public Library

About the Dole Lecture
Held each spring, the Dole Lecture commemorates the date on which Senator Bob Dole was critically wounded while serving in Italy during World War II. To honor his courageous recovery and commitment to serve the nation, the Institute welcomes a guest who embodies the commitments that Senator Dole held throughout his career in public service.

About Rick Atkinson
Rick Atkinson has authored eight narrative histories spanning five American wars. His most recent book, The Fate of the Day: The War for America, Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780, debuted at #1 on the New York Times nonfiction bestseller list. It joins the earlier bestseller The British Are Coming: The War for America, Lexington to Princeton, 1775-1777 as part of his Revolution Trilogy, which chronicles the events that unfolded during the American Revolutionary War.
He previously wrote the Liberation Trilogy, a narrative history of the Allied campaign to liberate Europe in World War II. The first volume, An Army at Dawn: The War in North Africa, 1942-1943, received the 2003 Pulitzer Prize in history. The second and third volumes in the trilogy, The Day of Battle: The War in Sicily and Italy, 1943-1944 and The Guns at Last Light: The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945, were both New York Times bestsellers, with The Guns at Last Light reaching #1.
Atkinson’s additional works include The Long Gray Line, a narrative saga on the West Point Military Academy class of 1966; Crusade, a history of the Persian Gulf War; and In the Company of Soldiers, which chronicles Atkinson’s time embedded with the 101st Airborne Division, led by General David H. Petraeus, during the invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Throughout his career, Atkinson has been honored for his work as both a historian and journalist. In addition to receiving the 2003 Pulitzer Prize in history, he also received the 1982 Pulitzer Prize for national reporting, and was part of the Washington Post team awarded the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for public service. His other honors include the 1989 George Polk Award for national reporting, the 1989 John Hancock Award for excellence in business writing, the 2003 Society for Military History Distinguished Book Award, the 2007 Gerald R. Ford Award for Distinguished Reporting on National Defense, the 2015 Peggy V. Helmerich Distinguished Author Award, and the 2020 George Washington Prize for the year’s best work on the American founding era, among others.
Atkinson began his journalism career in 1976 writing for the Morning Sun in Pittsburg, Kansas. He joined the Kansas City Times in 1977, and moved to the Washington Post in 1983. During his two decades at the Post, he served as a reporter, foreign correspondent, bureau chief, assistant managing editor, and senior editor. His reporting covered Germany and NATO, conflicts in Somalia and Bosnia, the 101st Airborne during the invasion of Iraq in 2003, and roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2007.
Born in Munich, Germany, Atkinson is the son of a U.S. Army officer and grew up on military posts. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from East Carolina University, and a Master of Arts degree in English literature from the University of Chicago. He and his wife, Dr. Jane Chestnut Atkinson of Lawrence, Kansas, live in Washington, D.C.

About Fate of the Day
In the second volume of the landmark American Revolution trilogy by the Pulitzer Prize-winning and #1 New York Times bestselling author of The British Are Coming, George Washington’s army fights on the knife edge between victory and defeat.
The first twenty-one months of the American Revolution—which began at Lexington and ended at Princeton—was the story of a ragged group of militiamen and soldiers fighting to forge a new nation. By the winter of 1777, the exhausted Continental Army could claim only that it had barely escaped annihilation by the world’s most formidable fighting force.
Two years into the war, George III is as determined as ever to bring his rebellious colonies to heel. But the king’s task is now exponentially more complicated: fighting a determined enemy on the other side of the Atlantic has become ruinously expensive, and spies tell him that the French and Spanish are threatening to join forces with the Americans.
Prize-winning historian Rick Atkinson provides a riveting narrative covering the middle years of the Revolution. Stationed in Paris, Benjamin Franklin woos the French; in Pennsylvania, George Washington pleads with Congress to deliver the money, men, and materiel he needs to continue the fight. In New York, General William Howe, the commander of the greatest army the British have ever sent overseas, plans a new campaign against the Americans—even as he is no longer certain that he can win this searing, bloody war. The months and years that follow bring epic battles at Brandywine, Saratoga, Monmouth, and Charleston, an infamous winter of misery in Valley Forge, and yet more appeals for sacrifice by every American committed to the struggle for freedom.
Timed to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the beginning of the Revolution, Atkinson’s brilliant account of the lethal conflict between the Americans and the British offers not only deeply researched and spectacularly dramatic history, but also a fresh perspective on the demands that a democracy makes on each of its citizens.

The Counselors: Should the United States Enact Universal Basic Income?
2026-04-23 18:30 - 20:30 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The Dole Institute and the Washburn University School of Law are proud to present the spring edition of The Counselors, featuring a debate on whether the United States should enact universal basic income. Attorneys and Dole Institute Visiting Fellows Ed Duckers and Pedro Irigonegaray will be joined by members of the Dole Institute Student Advisory Board and Washburn Law students to examine the issue along with a panel of expert witnesses.
Student Advisory Board member Ella Rhuems, a senior majoring in Political Science and Psychology, and incoming 1L at Washburn School of Law, will moderate the debate.

Negating side
Ed Duckers is a partner at Stoel Rives LLP, where he leads the firm’s Litigation Practice in California and is a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. He is a past chair of Stoel Rives’ Food and Agribusiness Industry team.
Paul Byrne is a professor of economics at Washburn University. His research focuses on public finance and public economics, with particular focus on economic development incentives, eminent domain, tax increment financing, and Medicaid expansion.
Kynsee Fennel, 2L at Washburn University School of Law
Harini Sreekanth, KU senior and Student Advisory Board member, majoring in political science and philosophy
Michael Redlich, KU freshman and Student Advisory Board member, majoring in finance and political science

Affirming side
Pedro Irigonegaray is an attorney and partner at Irigonegaray, Turney, & Revenaugh. A trial lawyer since 1973, Pedro is a former President of The Kansas Trial Lawyers Association, a Fellow in The American College of Trial Lawyers, and a Fellow in The International Academy of Trial Lawyers.
Linsey Moddelmog is a professor of political science at Washburn University, where she has taught since 2009. She has done research in the area of electoral systems and representation in the U.S. and around the world. She is excited to return to the Dole Institute, where she worked for several years while in graduate school at KU.
Riley Keiter, 1L at Washburn University School of Law and former Student Advisory Board member
Ava Levin, KU sophomore and Student Advisory Board member majoring in political science and Spanish
Estrella Hernadez, KU senior, majoring in philosophy and sociology.

This program is presented in partnership with the Washburn University School of Law

The Pursuit of Happiness: Is America Still the Land of Opportunity?
2026-04-29 16:00 - 17:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
We live in a land of unprecedented wealth and success. Yet, America is plagued with economic disparities and despair – a place where our “happiness” ranks only 24th among developed nations. Our Founding Fathers built a land of remarkable opportunity that elevated the lives of billions globally. Is the American dream alive today? What does it look like? How can we elevate it to foster happiness in generations to come?

Jeff King serves as the executive vice president of the Rodel Institute, where he founded and runs fellowships for judges of all ideological persuasions, as well as bipartisan groups of elected officials, to explore ways that leaders can transcend differences to promote judicial independence and cross-party dialogue. A former Kansas Senator (R) representing southeastern Kansas, Jeff worked extensively on criminal justice issues, pension reform, education finance and tax policy as chair of the Senate Judiciary, Pension, and Rules committees. A former Tenth Circuit clerk and president of the Appellate Section of the Kansas Bar, Jeff has handled over 60 appeals across the country on issues of school finance, trust, state government and constitutional law. He holds degrees from Brown University, Yale Law School, and the University of Cambridge.
Mark McCormick is a New York Times bestselling author with nearly 30 years of experience as a reporter, editor, and columnist. He most recently served as the inaugural executive director of the Kansas Black Leadership Council and deputy director of the ACLU of Kansas. He also served for a total of six years as executive director of The Kansas African American Museum. An alum of the University of Kansas, McCormick is a trustee of the William Allen White School of Journalism at KU, served as a professional in residence at the University of Oklahoma, and was appointed by Governor Laura Kelly to two Kansas state commissions, including the Kansas African American Affairs Commission. He has earned numerous awards and recognitions over his career and was inducted into the Kansas Newspaper Hall of Fame last year.

Arctic Security: The New Front Line
2026-05-05 19:00 - 20:15 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Join Ambassador Mike Sfraga, former Ambassador-at-large for Arctic Affairs, and Colonel Russell Vanderlugt, commanding officer of the U.S. Army 11th Airborne Division’s Arctic Aviation Command, for a high-level conversation moderated by Dole Institute Visiting Fellow Jerry Seib on why the Arctic matters now—where diplomacy and military strategy converge amid strategic chokepoints, great power competition, and evolving national security challenges.

This program is presented in partnership with the KU Office of National Defense Initiatives, the Intelligence Community Centers for Academic Excellence, and the KU Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies. This program is co-sponsored by KU International Affairs and the KU Department of Political Science.

Jerry Seib has been a journalist with The Wall Street Journal for almost 45 years. He served as the Journal’s Executive Washington Editor and wrote the weekly “Capital Journal” column for 29 years. He also reported from the Middle East for the Journal in the mid-1980s, covered the White House, has moderated three presidential debates, and interviewed every president since Ronald Reagan.
Ambassador Mike Sfraga, Ph.D., was nominated and later confirmed by a bipartisan vote of the U.S. Senate to serve as the nation’s first ambassador-at-large for Arctic affairs. He was twice appointed to serve as chair of the United States Arctic Research Commission. Sfraga previously served as the founding director and then-chair and distinguished fellow of the Polar Institute, as well as director of the Global Risk and Resilience Program, at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He is a Fulbright Scholar and co-developed and twice served as co-lead scholar for the U.S. State Department’s inaugural Fulbright Arctic Initiative. Sfraga earned the first Ph.D. in Northern studies and geography from UAF. He also has a bachelor’s degree from UAF and a master’s degree from Bowling Green State University.
Colonel Russell Vanderlugt assumed command of the 11th Airborne Division’s Arctic Aviation Command at Fort Wainwright on August 8, 2024. The Arctic Aviation Command is a brigade-level organization consisting of 71 aircraft and all aviation elements assigned to the US Army’s Arctic Division. In his previous assignment, he served at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson as Joint Director of Strategy and Plans, J-5, for the Alaskan NORAD Region and Alaskan Command – a joint command reporting to US Northern Command. He holds a doctorate in Arctic and Northern History from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. While serving on active duty in the Army over the past 24 years, he and his spouse have raised four children – now all teenagers – two of whom were born in Fairbanks.

The Operational Perspective: American Observations of the Franco-Prussian War
2026-05-06 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
This presentation examines the experiences of American military and political figures who were present in France for the Prussian victory in 1870-71 over Napoleon III, as well as the observations of newspaper editors and columnists in the United States opining on military events overseas. Some of these observers were veterans of the American Civil War. Their commentary offers a window into how warfare in Europe, including the innovations of Helmuth von Moltke and the Prussian army, compared with American understandings of large-scale military operations.

Zachery A. Fry is an associate professor of military history at the U.S. Army Command & General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, and the author of A Republic in the Ranks: Loyalty and Dissent in the Army of the Potomac (University of North Carolina Press, 2020). He taught history previously at the U.S. Military Academy West Point. Fry’s research focuses on politics in Civil War armies, and his work has received the Coffman Prize from the Society for Military History, the Hay-Nicolay Prize from the Abraham Lincoln Institute / Abraham Lincoln Association, and the Hubbell Prize from Civil War History.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

Napoleon: The Man and the Method
2026-06-03 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Napoleon remains a character of endless fascination, even more than two centuries after his death. The God of War, as one biographer identified him, conquered much of Europe before his ultimate downfall, and is often counted with Alexander the Great and Caesar as one of the greatest military minds in human history. This talk will discuss the personality behind the historical figure and examine the methods that enabled him to achieve what he did.

Dr. Jonathan Abel is an Associate Professor of Military History at the US Army Command and General Staff College, where he teaches courses on French history as well as Greece and Rome and wargaming. He received his PhD from the Military History Center at the University of North Texas in 2014, and he is the author of several works on the eighteenth-century French army.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

KPR 105 Live from the Dole Institute ft. Elexa Dawson + Bao Wowz Food Truck
2026-06-04 11:30 - 15:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Join KPR 105 Live for a special performance featuring Kansas artist Elexa Dawson at the Dole Institute of Politics. Before her performance, enjoy food and refreshments from Bao Wowz Food Truck, and family activities starting at 11:30 a.m. Free concert begins at 1 p.m.

Elexa Dawson is a practitioner of the soul. Her red-dirt honey vocals and rhythmic guitar style deliver a sound that hits home. Deeply connected to land, her themes center earth and community, and celebrate all relationships, from mother and child to friend and lover. Elexa is a Citizen of the Potawatomi Nation in Oklahoma. She founded Good Way Gardens in Emporia, Kansas, a land-based arts organization providing a concert series and educational community garden. Elexa is the lead songwriter of the Kansas-based folk group, Weda Skirts. Elexa’s latest release, Stay Put, reached #9 on the Folk International Chart, and #14 on the NACC Folk Chart.
Bao Wowz Food Truck brings bold, vibrant Asian Fusion flavors to the heart of Kansas City. From soft, mouthwatering bao buns to savory rice bowls, every dish is made with the freshest ingredients and served with a side of love. Come for the flavors, stay for the experience—because at Bao Wowz, it’s not just food, it’s a celebration of taste. View Bao Wowz Food Truck menu →

Kansas 1776: A Dynamic Landscape
2026-06-09 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Although the land we call Kansas has changed greatly since 1776, it was already a dynamic cultural and environmental landscape before the “Founding Fathers” forged a new nation. Author and historian Adam Hodge discusses how human activities and natural processes alike had transformed Kansas over the course of millennia as a changing climate, Indigenous burning practices, dynamic waterways, and other developments shaped and reshaped what became the Sunflower State.

Funding for this program was provided by Humanities Kansas, with support from the State of Kansas through the Kansas Arts Commission and the National Endowment for the Arts and the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund.

Adam Hodge is the head of reference at the Kansas State Historical Society in Topeka. He has a Ph.D in history with specialization in environmental and Indigenous history of the North American West.

KPR 105 Live from the Dole Institute ft. Kelley Hunt and Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg + The Mad Greek
2026-06-11 11:30 - 15:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Join KPR 105 Live for a special performance featuring singer-songwriter Kelley Hunt and former Kansas Poet Laureate Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg at the Dole Institute of Politics. Before their performance, enjoy food and refreshments from The Mad Greek, and family activities starting at 11:30 a.m. Free concert begins at 1 p.m.

Kelley Hunt’s love for her craft was ignited listening to early blues, R&B, roots rock, jazz and Gospel influences — artists like Ruth Brown, Mahalia Jackson, Billie Holiday, Ann Peebles, Ray Charles, Dinah Washington, Aretha Franklin, Charles Brown, Wanda Jackson and a crossection of the New Orleans/St. Louis/KC piano traditions of Professor Longhair, Toots Washington, Johnnie Johnson and Kansas City masters Jay McShann and Mary Lou Williams among others. Before that came the sound of her mother singing jazz and blues – her first musical memories – and the influence of her New Orleans Gospel singer grandmother. You can hear all of the above in her music and see it in a career built on fierce independence, incredible will, unassailable cred and hard-won accomplishment. The narrative includes 1800+ performances with appearances on a long list of premier North American and International roots, blues and pan-genre festival stages, six times on American Public Media’s ‘A Prairie Home Companion’, seven critically acclaimed studio albums and two singles and 150,000+ indie units sold and downloaded on her own label.
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg is the 2009-13 Kansas Poet Laureate, a writer, teacher, and facilitator, and coach and consultant who explores how the spoken, written and sung word can help us live more vibrant lives. Caryn received her Ph.D. from the University of Kansas and has trained in organizational development, grassroots organizing, poetry therapy, and teaching yoga. She taught for 33 years on the college level, at Goddard College, Haskell Indian Nations University, and the University of Kansas. She is the recipient of Kansas Arts Fellowship in Poetry, the Rocky Mountain National Park artist-in-residency, and other honors.
The Mad Greek has been a Lawrence institution since its founding in 1988. The restaurant was founded by George and Peggy Kritos, whose commitment to quality Greek and Italian cuisine brought over two decades of success and economy to Massachusetts Street. In 2014, in their much deserved retirement, George and Peggy passed along the legacy of The Mad Greek to their long-time family friends Theo and Deb Tagtalianidis. As the new owners, Deb and Theo promise the same passion and consistency as the Kritos family, while adding a Tagtalianidis flare. View The Mad Greek’s menu →
Food vendor menus are subject to change on the day of the event.

KPR 105 Live from the Dole Institute ft. Maria The Mexican + JB Tacos
2026-06-18 11:30 - 15:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Join KPR 105 Live for a special performance featuring Mexican folklore and Rock N’ Roll artist Maria the Mexican at the Dole Institute of Politics. Before their performance, enjoy food and refreshments from JB Tacos, and family activities starting at 11:30 a.m. Free concert begins at 1 p.m.

Maria The Mexican is a mezcla of Mexican folklore and Rock n’ Roll. For ten years, Maria Elena Cuevas and her sister, Teresa, performed with Mariachi Estrella founded by their grandmother Teresa Cuevas in 1970. As one of the first all female mariachi bands in the country, Maria Teresa Alonzo Cuevas is a pioneer in the Hispanic musical community. In 2012, Maria and Teresa connected with long time Alt-R&B musician, Garrett Nordstrom to form the fusion of Maria The Mexican. MTM is mixed with a touch of blues, soul, funk, and rock n’ roll enhanced by the musical knowledge and sounds of Nordstrom. With a southwestern flair and melancholy motifs, Maria The Mexican rocks it out in Spanish and English with a host of emotion.
View JB Tacos menu →

KPR 105 Live from the Dole Institute ft. Switchgrass String Quartet + JBs Tacos
2026-06-25 11:30 - 15:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Join KPR 105 Live for a special performance featuring Dr. Susan Mayo and the Switchgrass String Quartet at the Dole Institute of Politics. Before their performance, enjoy food and refreshments from JBs Tacos, and family activities starting at 11:30 a.m. before the concerts begin at 1 p.m.

Dr. Susan Mayo has been part of the musical landscape of Kansas for many years and is active as a cellist, composer, and community arts organizer. She is passionate about using sound, the universal tongue, as a vehicle for creating community and celebrating place. Vibrations unleashed in the atmosphere truly transform us. Each locale has unique sounds, sharing these promotes and celebrates cultural conversations. Mayo blends genres creating unique sounds in both her performance groups and her compositions. She is intrigued by the blending of technology/nature – acoustic/electronic forces and is passionate about putting interesting music in interesting places. She has performed globally with both classical and alternative ensembles and is currently co-executive director of Flint Hills Counterpoint an ecology arts project based in Marion County Kansas, executive director for the historic Sunflower Theatre, and a member of the Wichita Symphony Orchestra.

This Land is Your Land
2026-06-29 19:00 - 20:15 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian Beverly Gage joins former Archivist of the United States Colleen Shogan to discuss her new book, This Land is Your Land: A Road Trip through U.S. History, ahead of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Limited copies of This Land is Your Land will be available for free.

This program is presented in partnership with the Watkins Museum of History and the Lawrence Public Library

Dr. Colleen Shogan served as the 11th Archivist of the United States – the first woman to be appointed by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate to lead the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). She currently serves as a senior fellow at More Perfect where she leads In Pursuit, an ambitious history-based nonpartisan civics initiative that is identifying the most insightful and timeless lessons from the past 250 years of American history. Shogan last visited the Dole Institute in January 2026, where she was recognized at the 2026 Elizabeth Dole Women in Leadership Lecture.
Beverly Gage teaches American history at Yale. Her book G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century received the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Biography, the Bancroft Prize in American History, the National Book Critics Circle Award for Biography, and the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in Biography. She is also the author of The Day Wall Street Exploded: A Story of America in its First Age of Terror, and writes for numerous journals and magazines, including The New Yorker, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

About This Land is Your Land
Ride along with Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Beverly Gage as she travels the country to see the museums, historic sites, roadside attractions, reenactments, and souvenir shops where Americans learn—and fight—about our history. From the birth of the nation in Philadelphia to Disneyland and the California dream, This Land Is Your Land offers a guided tour of thirteen places and thirteen key moments that define America’s greatest successes and challenges.
The year 2026 marks the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, a document that proclaimed the liberty and equality of all human beings, but produced a country that often failed to agree upon—or live up to—those ideals. This Land Is Your Land is for everyone who wants to find that history—to experience it and confront it, to celebrate it and condemn it—in the places where it happened.
Gage shows that Americans can face their past and still love their country. Toss the book in the back seat—or listen on audio with the windows down—and join the journey.

Sunday Jayhawk Jukebox ft. Mire Pral
2026-07-05 14:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The Dole Institute, the Lied Center of Kansas, and the KU School of Music invite you to join us on Sunday, July 5, for Sunday Jayhawk Jukebox featuring Mire Pral’s string Jazz music in the 30’s and 40’s styles of Django Reinhardt.

Sunday Jayhawk Jukebox ft. The Lost Keys
2026-07-12 14:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The Dole Institute, the Lied Center of Kansas, and the KU School of Music invite you to join us on Sunday, July 12, for Sunday Jayhawk Jukebox featuring The Lost Keys.

The Lost Keys are a family string band from Lawrence, KS. Headed by renowned fiddlers, artists, and multi-instrumentalists Tricia Spencer and Howard Rains of the duo Spencer & Rains. They are a blended family that have played music together since Tricia and Howard met in 2012. The band features Tricia and Howard on fiddle and guitar and vocals and their kids, Isaiah, Orion, and Ru on fiddle and guitar, banjo-uke, and bass respectively. Together, they play a mix of old-time string band music, bluegrass, and hillbilly swing. Both Tricia and Howard’s families have been playing music for many generations and when The Lost Keys play it shows just how deep their traditions go.

The Boundless Game: Soccer Stories from Across the Street to Around the World
2026-07-14 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Ahead of the 2026 World Cup Final, join author and historian Tim Bascom for a discussion on his new book, The Boundless Game: Soccer Stories from Across the Street to Around the World, which explores how soccer matters so much in our common, everyday lives, and how it brings the world closer together.

Limited copies of The Boundless Game will be available for purchase following the program. Tim Bascom will also be available to sign copies of books for guests in attendance.

This program is presented in partnership with the University Press of Kansas

Tim Bascom, who learned to play soccer as a youth in Ethiopia, is the author of two prize-winning memoirs, Chameleon Days and Running to the Fire; two essay collections, The Comfort Trap and Climbing Lessons; a collection of short stories, Continental Drift; and the novel Squatters’ Rites.

About The Boundless Game
A lifelong soccer player and award-winning author shows us how the sport transcends races, ethnicities, cultures, and experiences and brings us all closer together.
Tim Bascom spent half his childhood in Kansas and the other half in East Africa. Living and traveling around the world, the game of soccer proved a constant truth. Through storytelling that effortlessly flows between poignant and funny, sobering and charming, Bascom explores why soccer matters so much in our common, everyday lives, and how this ordinary yet extraordinary game can bring us all a little closer together.
His passionate vision for this most global game leads Bascom to describe how soccer brought him sanity in the middle of a brutal revolution in Ethiopia and how bridging divisions of race and culture was key to success for teams he joined in Chicago and Kansas. From watching Arsenal’s energetic rise in the Premier League to the bravery of a besieged Afghanistan Women’s National Team, and from pickup games in the Midwest and the Middle East, Bascom finds universal truths and deeply human meaning in the beautiful game of soccer.

Saving the Army: Washington at the Battle of Long Island
2026-08-05 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Following the Declaration of Independence from Great Britian, the United States’ Continental Army under the leadership of George Washington attempted to defend New York City in August of 1776. During the Battle of Long Island, the leadership and actions of George Washington would save his army from capture and defeat and ultimately preserve the cause for independence.

Patrick Howlett is a 2006 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point where he studied History and is currently still serving as an active-duty officer in the United States Army. He currently is an instructor of Military History at the Command and General Staff School at Fort Leavenworth and is enrolled in the doctoral program in history at Kansas State University.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

U.S. Strategy and Sherman’s Savannah Campaign
2026-09-02 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Perhaps the most memorable campaign that underpinned US Army LTG Ulysses S. Grant’s military strategy of 1864, MG William Tecumseh Sherman’s Savannah Campaign exhausted the Southern Confederacy and hastened an end to the American Civil War. The “March to the Sea” has inspired mixed mythologies of the war: it became synonymous in the Lost Cause with devastation and destruction, a misleading interpretation that has proven resilient even in US military circles. In point of fact, Sherman’s campaign was restrained in its conduct despite achieving lasting and significant effects, foremost among them, the destruction of racial slavery in the United States.

Mitchell G. Klingenberg is an assistant professor in the Department of Military History at the US Army Command and General Staff College. Previously, he served on the faculties of the United States Military Academy at West Point and the US Army War College. He is the author of numerous articles and reviews, a monograph on the China Campaign of 1900, and shorter pieces of military history. His writings have been published in numerous venues, including American Nineteenth Century History, Civil War History, The International Journal of Military History and Historiography, the Modern War Institute at West Point, and War on the Rocks.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

Clausewitz, Mao, and Operational Art
2026-10-07 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Throughout history, command in war has demanded skill, knowledge, experience, creativity, and judgement in the application of military force. It has also required what is today called “operational art.” Current U.S. Army doctrine defines Operational Art as “the cognitive approach by commanders and staffs … to develop strategies, campaigns, and operations to organize and employ military forces by integrating ends, ways, and means.” This lecture explores key concepts related to Operational Art through the writings of two key military theorists: Carl von Clausewitz and Mao Tse-tung. In doing so, it underscores the unchanging nature of military command and the cognitive acumen necessary for managing the complexities of war at the operational level.

Martin G. Clemis is an associate professor in the Department of Military History at the Command and General Staff College. He is the author of The Control War: The Struggle for South Vietnam, 1968-1975 (University of Oklahoma Press, 2018), and a contributing author in Beyond the Quagmire: New Interpretations of the Vietnam Conflict (University of North Texas Press, 2019), Drawdowns: The American Way of Postwar (New York University Press, 2017), and War and Geography: The Spatiality of Organized Mass Violence (Ferdinand Schoningh, 2017). Martin has had articles published in Army History and Small Wars and Insurgencies.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

Jomini and the Foundations of Modern War
2026-11-04 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
Antoine-Henri Jomini was a foundational 19th-century military theorist whose approach to warfare sought to define universal principles of strategy and tactics. His emphasis on geometric concepts like interior lines of operation, massing combat power at decisive points, and the critical importance of logistics remains highly relevant today. In the contemporary security environment, Jomini’s structured principles continue to underpin modern military planning, joint doctrine, and multi-domain operations by providing a framework for organizing complex campaigns. Ultimately, while the character of war has evolved with advanced technologies, Jomini’s enduring focus on objective analysis and the concentration of force continues to shape how modern militaries conceptualize and execute military operations across multi domain operations.

Dr. Sean N. Kalic is a Cold War historian. He lectures and publishes widely on topics such as U.S. space policy, the Cold War, the post-Cold War security environment, and transnational terrorism. Prior to CGSC, he taught at Youngstown State University, Kansas State University, and Norwich University. He has presented lectures for the U.S. Navy War College’s Fleet Seminar Program, The Slovenian General Staff, The Slovenian Command and General Staff College, The U.S. Army’s Futures Command, as well as numerous international conferences. He has taught in the Department of Military History at the US Army Command and General Staff College since 2004.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.

Soviet Interwar Years Theory and Doctrine
2026-12-02 15:00 - 16:00 | The Dole Institute of Politics, 2350 Petefish Drive, Lawrence, KS, 66045, United States
The First World War brought enormous changes to the battlefield that all combatants struggled to master. After the war’s end, military officers began to try to understand what would be needed to succeed in the next war, in the Soviet Union no less than anywhere else. While the Red Army has been often seen as thoughtless, throwing men relentlessly into the meatgrinder of combat, its officer developed one of the most sophisticated understandings of what modern war would entail in the period between the wars, setting them up for success against the eventual German invasion. This talk examines Soviet doctrine in the interwar period, how it outthought and outfought its German adversary, and how it made significant contributions to modern military theory.

Benjamin M. Schneider is an assistant professor in the Department of Military History at the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College. He has held fellowships at the U.S. Naval War College, the Harry Frank Guggenheim Foundation, and the U.S. Army Center of Military History. He received his doctorate from George Mason University in 2019, and his research has appeared in The Journal of Contemporary History and War In History. His book American War Crimes in the Second World War: The Failure of Military Justice is forthcoming with Oxford University Press.
The Ft. Leavenworth Series is an annual roster of lectures focusing on significant historical events, usually with an emphasis on military history. Each lecture is presented by faculty from the United States Army Command and General Staff College in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas. Established by General William Tecumseh Sherman in 1881, the CGSC is the graduate college for U.S. Army and sister service officers. The esteemed faculty and guests of the CGSC provide unique and captivating insights into the history of military conflict from the ancient to the modern ages at the Dole Institute of Politics.

The opinions expressed herein are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency.
