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Upcoming Events For full event text, click on the headline to expand. Click on the headline a second time to contract. 
Past Events Archive
PROFESSOR SHOBA WADHIA TO ADDRESS CONSTITUTION AND IMMIGRATION Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia will present a lecture titled: "Immigration Law and Policy After 9/11 and Prospects for Reform." at 7 pm on Thursday, September 16 in the Auditorium of the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies. Wadhia's talk, the sixth annual Tom E. Moses Memorial Lecture on the U.S. Constitution, is part of the observance of Constitution Day 2010 at Shepherd University. A discussion and reception will follow. The event is free and open to the public. Directions to the Byrd Center can be found at www.byrdcenter.org. Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia is the director of Center for Immigrants’ Rights at the Penn State Law School where she is clinical professor of law. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Indiana University and her law degree from Georgetown University Law Center. Professor Wadhia worked for several years as deputy director for legal affairs at the National Immigration Forum, an immigration advocacy organization in Washington, D.C. She also taught Immigration Law and Asylum and Refugee Law at Howard University School of Law and the American University Washington College of Law. She litigated deportation matters as an attorney with Maggio Kattar, P.C. in Washington, D.C. Wadhia is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers’ Guild and holds bar licenses in Maryland and New Jersey. Constitution Day was established in 2005 through the leadership of Senator Robert C. Byrd. It is celebrated on or near September 17 each year because it was on that date in 1787 that delegates meeting in Philadelphia in the Federal Convention approved the U.S. Constitution. Events are planned at educational institutions and government facilities across the country. Held each year at Shepherd University in conjunction with Constitution Day, the Tom E. Moses Memorial Lecture on the U.S. Constitution is named for the late Tom E. Moses. Moses was a committed defender of the Bill of Rights who founded the Eastern Panhandle branch of the American Civil Liberties Union and served on the board of the ACLU-WV. The Moses Memorial Lecture brings distinguished speakers to Shepherd University each September to discuss major issues related to the US Constitution and civil liberties. The lecture series was established by his three daughters, Lynn Moses Yellott, Merle Crawford, and Jeri Moses-Eichler. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
Jailed Without Justice: Immigrant Detention Program with immigration specialist Wendy Young and film The Visitor.
PROFESSOR DAVID COLE TO ADDRESS CONSTITUTION, WAR ON TERROR David Cole is Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, DC. A graduate of Yale University and Yale Law School, Professor Cole began his career as a law clerk to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He then joined the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York City where he litigated several major First Amendment cases. Currently he is the legal affairs correspondent for The Nation and a commentator on National Public Radio: All Things Considered. Professor Cole is the author of five books, including Less Safe, Less Free: Why America Is Losing the War on Terror (2009) with Jules Lobel, and Terrorism and the Constitution: Sacrificing Civil Liberties in the Name of National Security (2006). Constitution Day was established in 2005 through the leadership of Senator Robert C. Byrd. It is celebrated on or near September 17 each year because it was on that date in 1787 that delegates meeting in Philadelphia in the Federal Convention approved the U.S. Constitution. Events are planned at educational institutions and government facilities across the country. Held each year at Shepherd University in conjunction with Constitution Day, the Tom E. Moses Memorial Lecture on the U.S. Constitution is named for the late Tom E. Moses. Moses was a committed defender of the Bill of Rights who founded the Eastern Panhandle branch of the American Civil Liberties Union and served on the board of the ACLU-WV. The Moses Memorial Lecture brings distinguished speakers to Shepherd University each September to discuss major issues related to the US Constitution and civil liberties. The lecture series was established by his three daughters, Lynn Moses Yellott, Merle Crawford, and Jeri Moses-Eichler.
C-SPAN's BRIAN LAMB TO SPEAK APRIL 29 Brian Lamb is founder and CEO of C-SPAN Networks. Begun in 1979, C-SPAN employs approximately 270 people and delivers coverage of Congress and public affairs programming on three television channels, the internet and radio. Brian has been a regular on-air presence at C-SPAN since the network’s earliest days. He has interviewed Presidents Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Clinton, and George W. Bush and many world leaders such as Margaret Thatcher and Mikhail Gorbachev. For 15 years, beginning in 1989, he interviewed 800 non-fiction authors for a weekly program known as Booknotes. Four books of collected interviews have been published based on the Booknotes series. Currently, Brian hosts Q and A, an hour long interview program on Sunday evening with people who are making things happen in politics, media, education or technology. Mr. Lamb was born and reared in Lafayette, Indiana. After graduating from Purdue with a degree in speech he joined the Navy. His tour included the USS Thuban, White House duty during the Johnson Administration and a stint in the Pentagon public affairs office during the Vietnam War. In 1967, his navy service complete, Mr. Lamb returned home to Lafayette. He soon returned to the nation’s capital as a freelance reporter for UPI radio. Later, he served as a Senate press secretary and worked for the White House Office of Telecommunications Policy. In 1974, Brian returned to journalism, publishing a biweekly newsletter called The Media Report. He also covered telecommunications issues as Washington bureau chief for Cablevision Magazine. It was from this vantage point that C-SPAN began to take shape. Congress was about to televise its proceedings; the cable industry was looking for programming to deliver to its customers by satellite. Brian Lamb brought these two ideas together with C-SPAN, which launched with the first televised House of Representatives debate on March 19, 1979.
FORMER CIA ANALYST CALLS FOR During his 27 years as a Senior CIA Analyst, Ray McGovern delivered daily intelligence briefings to presidents and other high government officials. He was honored with the Intelligence Commendation Award, the Agency’s highest award. In January 2003, after it became clear that intelligence analysis was being corrupted by political pressure to justify an unprovoked attack on Iraq, Ray co-founded Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS). His outrage at the CIA’s use of torture led him to return his medal. Mr. McGovern will focus on why we should not sweep torture under the rug. He will talk about why torture and other coercive actions, such as state-sponsored kidnappings, are not only immoral but also illegal and ineffective. McGovern will explain why he thinks allegations of criminal behavior committed under the policies of the Bush administration must be investigated. He will discuss why our ability to require lawful conduct from the intelligence community in the future may depend on our ability to hold officials accountable now.
SPEAKER, FILM ADDRESS ISLAM AND THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN Ms. Pelon Keyed, who was born in Lebanon, moved with her family to Saudi Arabia after the Israeli-Lebanese war of 1982. Barred, as a woman, from pursuing her chosen course of study in Saudi Arabia, she moved to Paris to work on a doctorate in political science at the Universite de Paris. She currently serves as the Academic Advisor in the Culture Division of the Embassy of Libya in the United States. In addition to Ms. Pelon Kayed’s lecture there will be a screening of the award winning documentary They Call Me Muslim at 7:30 pm, Thursday, March 12, also in the Byrd Center Auditorium. The film, which runs 30 minutes, compares the situations of two women, one in France and one in Iran, who struggle with restrictions and requirements regarding the traditional hijab, or headscarf donned by many Muslim women. The event is free and open to the public.
The history of presidential debates in the television age will be the topic of a presentation by Dr. John Splaine at 7 pm on Wednesday, October 15 in the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies Auditorium. Dr. Splaine will screen video examples and lead a discussion on the evolution of televised political debates. Splaine's presentation will be followed by a live screening of the third televised presidential debate of 2008. In the course of his distinguished career John Splaine has accrued many achievements and accolades. In 2003, Dr. John Splaine retired as the Amos B. Hostetter, Jr., Chair at the University of Denver where he taught courses in political communication. He taught at the University of Maryland from 1973 to 2001 retiring with Emeritus status. Currently he teaches at the University of Maryland as well as Shepherd University. He earned his B.A. (1963) and M.A. (1965) in American History at the University of New Hampshire, and his Doctorate in Education from Boston University in 1973. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
Senator Robert C. Byrd's new book of advice to the next president of the United States is now available in bookstores. Letter to a New President: Common sense Lessons for Our Next Leader, written with Steve Kettmann, is published by Thomas Dunne Books, a division of St. Martin’s Press. The book was written before the current nominees were selected and its advice applies equally to both parties. Senator Byrd urges the next president to pay attention to the U.S. Constitution and to be a leader in teaching its principles. He urges our new leader to be open and accountable to the American people and to restore diplomacy rather than war as our first and best tool of international relations. Above all, the next president must tell the American people the truth about what the administration is doing. He urges the next president to bring back the Fireside Chat that Franklin Roosevelt used to great effect in explaining government policy to the people. In an opening letter "Dear New President," to be read on Inauguration Day, January 20, 2009, Senator Byrd writes: “I do not know how many years I have left, or even if I will still be among the living as you read these words I’ve labored over here in my ninetieth year, for my state and my country, but I will say this: If you are looking for partners in an effort to help us build a new era of national healing, I am ready to join you, and to enlist the help of a few friends here in the United States Senate and many more back home in West Virginia, too. We need to put our people back to work on the job of rebuilding the faith of the citizenry in their government. This is what they want to do. They want their belief restored. They are weary of doubting their leaders. The people want to be inspired, not whipsawed by fear and manipulation. They want to be able to hope again.”
Donald A. Ritchie, associate historian of the United States Senate, will deliver a Constitution Day lecture titled: "If Not Perfect, At Least Excellent: The Constitution and Elections" at 7 pm on September 17 in the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies Auditorium. Ritchie's talk, the fourth annual Tom E. Moses Memorial Lecture on the U.S. Constitution, is part of the observance of Constitution Day 2008 at Shepherd University. A discussion, reception and book signing will follow. Constitution Day was established in 2005 through the leadership of Senator Robert C. Byrd. It is celebrated on or near September 17 each year because it was on that date in 1787 that delegates meeting in Philadelphia in the Federal Convention approved the U.S. Constitution. Events are planned at educational institutions and government facilities across the country. Held each year at Shepherd University in conjunction with Constitution Day, the Tom E. Moses Memorial Lecture on the U.S. Constitution is named for the late Tom E. Moses. Moses was a committed defender of the Bill of Rights who founded the Eastern Panhandle branch of the American Civil Liberties Union and served on the board of the ACLU-WV. The Moses Memorial Lecture brings distinguished speakers to Shepherd University each September to discuss major issues related to the US Constitution and civil liberties. The lecture series was established by his three daughters, Lynn Moses Yellott, Merle Crawford, and Jeri Moses-Eichler. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
Tinker v. Des Moines School District Plaintiff
George Washington as Surveyor and Planter Lecture The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies will host a lecture by Dr. Philander Chase, editor of the Colonial Series of the Papers of George Washington, on Saturday, April 19 at 2 pm. Dr. Chase's lecture is sponsored by The Jefferson County (WV) Historical Society, Friends of Happy Retreat, and the George Washington Institute of Living Ethics. The lecture will be will be held in the Center's auditorium on the campus of Shepherd University at 213 North King Street, Shepherdstown, WV. The event is free and open to the public. Dr. Chase will discuss George Washington's experiences as a Shenandoah Valley surveyor and landowner in what is now Jefferson County, West Virginia, and how those experiences fostered his commitment to western development and American nationalism. Prior to his recent retirement, Philander Chase was a senior editor of the Papers of George Washington at the University of Virginia, a project to which he contributed for 35 years. He earned his Ph.D. in early American history from Duke University and has written numerous articles and reviews.
Nursing and Feminism Author Susan Gelfand Malka will speak about her new book Daring to Care: American Nursing and Second Wave Feminism on Tuesday, March 25 at 7 pm at the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies on the campus of Shepherd University. A book-signing and reception will follow Malka’s talk. The event, in celebration of Women’s History Month, is co-sponsored with the Shepherd University Department of Nursing Education. The lecture and reception are free and open to the public. Malka’s book Daring to Care examines the impact of feminism on the nursing field since the 1960s. The author, a former nurse and nursing instructor who teaches history at the University of Maryland College Park, discusses two eras in nursing history. The first extended from the mid-1960s to the mid-1980s, when second wave feminism seemed to disparage nursing while also fueling a drive for greater authority and independence for nurses. The second era began in the mid-1980s, when feminism grounded in the ethics of care began to be incorporated into nursing education. While nurses accepted aspects of feminism, they did not necessarily identify as feminists. Nonetheless, they used, passed on, and developed feminist ideas, which is evident in nursing school curricula changes and the increase in self-directed, specialized roles available to twenty-first-century expert caregivers. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
The Robert C. Byrd Center will show the documentary film Have You Heard From Johannesburg?: Apartheid and the Club of the West on Thursday, February 28 at 6 pm. David Hostetter, Byrd Center Director of Programs and Research and author of Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics, will introduce the film and lead a discussion afterward. A reception will follow the film and discussion. The event is free and open to the public. Have You Heard From Johannesburg?: Apartheid and the Club of the West is a documentary produced and directed by award winning film maker Connie Field. Have You Heard shows how a nation-wide campaign of civil disobedience and student protest led to legislative action to end apartheid in South Africa. Led by African American activists inspired by the Civil Rights Movement, the grassroots campaign placed racism in South Africa on the agenda in the US, drew mainstream media coverage, and persuaded corporations, universities, municipalities, and the federal government to end support for the apartheid regime. The film won Best Documentary Feature at the 2006 Vancouver Film Festival and the 2007 Pan African Film Festival. More information is available at www.clarityfilms.org. David Hostetter is Director of Programs and Research for the Byrd Center and adjunct professor of history at Shepherd University. His book, Movement Matters: American Antiapartheid Activism and the Rise of Multicultural Politics evaluates the political and cultural impact of the campaign to change American policy toward South Africa. David earned his Ph.D. in History from the University of Maryland College Park and has held teaching positions at the College of Southern Maryland and Goshen College. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
Scot M. Faulkner, former chief administrative officer of the U.S. House of Representatives, will speak about his new book Naked Emperors: The Failure of the Republican Revolution on Wednesday, March 5 at 7 pm at the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies on the campus of Shepherd University. A book-signing and reception will follow Faulkner's talk. The event is free and open to the public. Naked Emperors is Faulkner’s eyewitness account of the Republican Party’s unsuccessful attempt to make Congress of the United States more open and accountable. The historic elections of 1994 raised hopes that the new Republican majority would end corruption while updating the administration of the business of Congress. Naked Emperors recounts how Faulkner’s team of change management experts battled both Democrats and Republicans. Faulkner contends that the recent wave of Congressional scandals arose from a deeply-rooted system that resisted fundamental change. He concludes with proposals for addressing the challenges faced by government and democracy in the twenty-first century. Ray Smock, Director of the Byrd Center for Legislative Studies and former Historian of the House of Representatives describes Naked Emperors as "an absolutely fascinating eyewitness account of the clash of ideas and personalities during the first Republican takeover of the House of Representatives in forty years." Scot M. Faulkner served as the first chief administrative officer of the U.S. House of Representatives. The business reforms he and his team introduced into the U.S. House saved $148 million, became a model for the operation of forty-four national parliaments worldwide, and were named among the "Top 100 Innovations in American Government" by Harvard University and the Ford Foundation. He is currently senior partner for global operations with Phoenix Consulting Associates. More information on Faulkner can be found at his own web site at www.scotfaulkner.com. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
Environmental experts Allan Tweddle and Joel Katzin will debate the causes of global warming on Thursday, February 7, at 7 pm in the auditorium of Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies. The debate is co-sponsored by the Institute for Environmental Studies and the Byrd Center. There will be an opportunity for questions and discussion. A reception will follow the debate. The event is free and open to the public. Allan Tweddle, who will argue for the human causation position, has long been active with the West Virginia Environmental Council. Mr. Tweddle received training from Nashville-based Climate Project, the group that provided much of the data behind Al Gore's film An Inconvenient Truth. Tweddle has been instrumental in raising awareness on key environmental issues such as the use of overweight coal trucks, the long-term idling of diesel school buses, and the vulnerability of West Virginia's water resources. Dr. Joel Katzin, who will represent the environmental cycles point of view, earned his PhD in physics from the University of Maryland, and has served as physics teacher and researcher. As a defense scientist he developed algorithms and conceptual designs that solved seemingly intractable strategic and tactical military problems. He brings his physics credentials directly to bear on the science behind global warming and the alternatives explanations to the single cause scenario. The Institute for Environmental Studies is a multidisciplinary teaching and research institute located at Shepherd University. The Institute includes faculty and students in Environmental Studies, Astronomy, Physics, Physical Science, and Science Education. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
Mine safety expert Davitt McAteer will speak about his new book Monongah: The Tragic Story of the 1907 Monongah Mine Disaster, the Worst Industrial Accident in American History on Wednesday, February 6 at 7 pm at the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies, 213 North King Street in Shepherdstown. A book-signing and reception will follow McAteer's talk. The Monongah catastrophe occurred December 6, 1907, when runaway coal cars plunged into the mine sparking huge explosions. Rescuers worked for six days but found few survivors. McAteer shows that nearly 500 miners, rather than the official count of 362, lost their lives at Monongah, leaving behind hundreds of widows and over 1,000 orphans. Monongah examines the tragedy in the context of the history of the coal mining industry in Appalachia as well as the political and social atmosphere of the era. The author also describes the mine conditions at the time of the disaster. McAteer's book is the product of more than thirty years of research and includes interviews with victims, survivors and descendants. Davitt McAteer is currently Vice President of Sponsored Programs at Wheeling Jesuit University. He served as Assistant Secretary for Mine Safety and Health in the U.S. Department of Labor during the Clinton administration. He worked with consumer advocate Ralph Nader to help enact the landmark 1969 Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act. During the 1970s, he led the safety and health programs of the United Mine Workers of America and founded the Occupational Safety and Health Law Center. In January of 2006, West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin asked McAteer to conduct an independent investigation into the cause of the Sago Mine Disaster and the Aracoma Alma No. 1 mine fire. His testimony before the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives on the need for improvements in mine safety helped to facilitate the passage of the Miner Act of 2006. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
On Tuesday, November 6 at 6 pm the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies will host a panel discussion on the politics of mountaintop removal. Penny Loeb, author of Moving Mountains: How One Woman And Her Community Won Justice From Big Coal, top state official Arley Johnson, and Terry Sammons, chairman of the Mingo County Redevelopment Authority, will discuss the potential impact of the buffer zone rule change, as well as the politics and economic future of the coalfields. The panel will be moderated by Edward Snyder, professor and chairperson of the Shepherd University Department of Environmental Studies. The discussion will take place in the Byrd Center Auditorium. A book-signing and reception will follow the discussion.
On September 25, 2007, in the historic Old Senate Chamber, the Leadership Portrait of Senator Robert C. Byrd was unveiled. The ceremony featured reminiscences from current and former Senators from both parties, who praised Senator Byrd's tenure as the longest serving Senator in U. S. history and as the man who has held more Senate leadership positions, in the majority and the minority, than any other Senator. On June 21, 2007 Senator Byrd became the first Senator to cast 18,000 votes. From left to right: Senators John Warner, Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, Edward M. Kennedy, Majority Leader Harry Reid, Daniel Inouye, Robert C. Byrd (seated), Paul S. Sarbanes, and Howard H. Baker, Jr. Photo courtesy of the Office of the Secretary of the Senate.
On Tuesday, September 11, 2007, at 7:00 PM, The League of Women Voters of Jefferson County will hold a public forum addressing the issue of affordable health care in West Virginia at the Robert Byrd Center for Legislative Studies. Invited speakers include Perry Bryant, Executive Director of West Virginians for Affordable Health Care, and Carl Callison, Mountain State Blue Cross Blue Shield's Director of Communications and Corporate Planning, and our local State Delegates. Health care is a major national issue; this forum will focus on what West Virginia can do for its citizens.
Anthony Williams
On Monday, September 17, at 7 pm, Anthony R. Williams will present a lecture titled "Human Rights in the Struggle against International Terrorism." Williams talk, the third annual Tom E. Moses Memorial Lecture on the U.S. Constitution, will be presented at the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies as part of the observance of Constitution Day at Shepherd University. A discussion and reception will follow. Anthony Williams is a retired CIA Senior Intelligence Officer. He served for over three decades in a wide range of national security-related positions in which he worked with the White House, Pentagon, and Congress. Mr. Williams is a graduate of Old Dominion University and earned his masters and PhD certificate from the University of Virginia. Currently Mr. Williams teaches at the Army War College and Dickinson College. Constitution Day was established in 2005 through the leadership of Senator Robert C. Byrd. It is celebrated on or near September 17 each year because it was on September 17, 1787 delegates meeting in Philadelphia in the Federal Convention approved the U.S. Constitution. Events are planned at educational institutions and government facilities all across the country. Held each year at Shepherd University in conjunction with Constitution Day, The Tom E. Moses Memorial Lecture on the U.S. Constitution is named for the late Tom E. Moses, long-time civil libertarian and defender of the Bill of Rights. Moses founded the Eastern Panhandle branch of the American Civil Liberties Union and served on the board of directors of the ACLU-WV. The Moses Memorial Lecture brings distinguished speakers to Shepherd University each September to discuss major issues related to the constitution and civil liberties. The lecture series was established by his three daughters, Lynn Moses Yellott, Merle Crawford, and Jeri Moses-Eichler. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting.
Georgetown University Professor of History Michael Kazin will discuss his book A Godly Hero: The Life of William Jennings Bryan Tuesday May 1, 7pm in the Auditorium of the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies. The event is free and open to the public. A book signing and reception will follow the talk. In A Godly Hero author Michael Kazin has re-evaluated the contributions of "The Great Commoner" to American politics, arguing that Bryan's faith-based liberalism provided the foundation for Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. In Kazin's appraisal the key to Bryan's mass appeal was his ability to speak to "the yearning for a society run by and for ordinary people who lead virtuous lives." Dr. Kazin is also the author of The Populist Persuasion: An American History and Barons of Labor: The San Francisco Building Trades and Union Power in the Progressive Era. CONTACT: David Hostetter 304-876-5701 dhostett@shepherd.edu
APRIL 25 EARTH DAY COLLOQUIUM ON HISTORIC PRESERVATION FEATURES DR. MARK MADISON AND SHEPHERD UNIVERSITY HISTORIC PRESERVATION STUDENTS The featured speakers will lecture on the following topics: Dr. Mark Madison, Historian for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service: What Do We Owe The Future? The Ethics Of Historic And Natural Preservation Nicholas Redding, Shepherd University student: A Historic Opportunity: Preserving Shepherd University's Endangered Past Barbara Fisher, Shepherd University student: The Association of Education Levels and Per Capita Income with the Location of National Register Sites in Maryland The Institute for Environmental Studies is a multidisciplinary teaching and research institute located at Shepherd University. The Institute houses faculty and students in Environmental Studies, Astronomy, Physics, Physical Science, and Science Education. The Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies is a private, nonpartisan, and nonprofit educational organization administered by the Congressional Education Foundation with facilities on the campus of Shepherd University. The mission of the Center is to help foster better public understanding of the United States Congress, the Constitution, and representative democracy both historically and in a contemporary setting. CONTACTS: David Hostetter, 304-876-5701, dhostett@shepherd.edu Keith Alexander, 304-876-5053, kalexand@shepherd.edu
Editor in Chief Matthew Wasniewski at a reception for the publication of Women in Congress held in the Cannon Caucus Room on March 28, 2007.
The Committee on House Administration of the U.S. House of Representatives has released a new publication, prepared by the Office of History and Preservation, Office of the Clerk, entitled Women in Congress 1917-2006. This impressive volume of 1008 pages is a major revision and expansion of the previous edition issued in 1990. The volume contains introductory essays providing historical context and photographs and biographical sketches of all 229 women who have served in the House and Senate since the first woman, Jeanette Rankin of Montana, was elected in 1916. The volume also contains statistical graphs and charts and appendices showing committee assignments held by women. The Office of History and Preservation staff that prepared the volume are: Matthew A. Wasniewski, Editor in Chief, Kathleen Johnson, Erin M. Lloyd, and Laura K. Turner, who were writers and researchers for the volume. The volume can be purchased through the Government Printing Office for $59. Orders can be placed online at http://bookstore.gpo.gov In addition to the new book, the Office of History and Preservation, Office of the Clerk established an excellent website that contains all the information in the printed volume plus educational resources and new information about women in Congress that has transpired since the volume went to press, most notably, the election of Nancy Pelosi of California as Speaker of the House, the first woman to hold this high constitutional office. The website can be found at: http://womenincongress.house.gov
Leslie Sewell
On Wednesday March 28 at noon Women's History Month will celebrated be at the Byrd Center with a showing of Government Girls of World War II followed by a discussion with the film's director Leslie Sewall. The one-hour documentary tells the story of the young women who moved to Washington, D.C. in the 1940s and how their experiences during the war years changed their lives, the city and American society. Young women of all races, nearly a million strong by war's end, streamed into Washington from all over the country, filled with patriotism and enthusiasm to aid the World War II homeland effort. The government staged a full-scale propaganda effort to recruit them and by doing so changed the face of women's employment and racial attitudes for the rest of the century. Government Girls combines movie footage from the era with interviews of the participants and discussions with scholars about the ways that women's roles changed during the twentieth century. More information on the film can be found at www.governmentgirls.com Leslie Sewell is an experienced senior television producer. She has written, directed and produced network television programming for nearly twenty years. Sewall has worked as a Congressional reporter for NBC and contributed to the NBC Nightly News, the Today program, the Public Broadcasting Service, National Public Radio, and Fox News Channel. Sewell has a BA from Northwestern University and is working on an MA in classics at St. Johns College in Santa Fe.
Senator Byrd listens as his Chief of Staff Barbara Videnieks reads the Friend of History Award. Senate Historian Richard A. Baker is standing on the left and seated next to Senator Byrd is Will Sperry, the son of Paul Sperry, a member of the OAH award delegation.
Senator Byrd speaks with passion about the importance of teaching American history.
On March 1, 2007, the Organization of American Historians gave its prestigious "Friend of History" award to Senator Robert C. Byrd in a ceremony held in the Senate Appropriations Committee Room at the U. S. Capitol. The delegation of OAH members that met with Senator Byrd included the incoming president of the OAH, Nell Irvin Painter and OAH executive director, Lee Formwalt. Other members of the OAH attending the ceremony were: Richard Baker, Don Ritchie, and Betty Koed of the Senate Historical Office, Ray Smock, director of the Robert C. Byrd Center for Legislative Studies, Paul Sperry, representing the Leadership Advisory Council, Alida Black of George Washington University, and Lee White, executive director of the Coalition for History. Also attending was Will Sperry, the young son of Paul Sperry, who sat next to Senator Byrd during the presentation. The award recognized Senator Byrd's leadership in promoting the study of American history through the Teaching American History grant program which has been a major factor in revitalizing the teaching of American history in high schools and has been responsible for forging new partnerships between local school agencies and universities, museums, leading scholars, and historical sites to improve teaching of American history. Senator Byrd told the OAH delegation how important the study of American history was to his own development and he recalled the names of the history teachers who most influenced him. He stressed the importance of knowledge of American history as a requirement for good citizenship and he reminded the delegation that when the people are ignorant of the U. S. Constitution they will not be aware when it is abused and threatened. Knowing history is not an abstraction, it is a civic responsibility of vital necessity.
Bruce A. Jacobs speaks at the Byrd Center in commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
Mr. Jacobs meets with students following his address.
On January 17, 2007, the Byrd Center and the Shepherd University Office of Multicultural Affairs sponsored a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day address by author Bruce A. Jacobs who spoke on the subject of his newly updated and revised book Race Manners for the 21st Century: Navigating the Minefield Between Black and White Americans in an Age of Fear. Jacobs, a Harvard graduate who resides in Baltimore, Maryland, is a dynamic speaker who urges us all to conduct and maintain a civil dialogue on the issue of race that has to be based on honesty and candor and not evasiveness, ignorance, political and social propaganda, or stereotypes. This dialogue is all the more important in the wake of the disaster of 9/11/2001, where new fears flamed by racial and religious misunderstandings of Muslims have tended to polarize our debate even more. The mass media news, especially talk radio and television shows based on confrontational dialogue distorts important issues and turns them into partisan shouting matches that only add to fear, confusion, and hostility. Jacobs' book, and his lecture, offer suggestions for survival in this age of partisan confrontation and fearmongering from public officials and media outlets who find shouting matches easier and cheaper to produce than serious news gathering. One of his survival suggestions in the wake of 9/11 reads: Understand that the only "new" thing about the post 9/11 hysteria is its flavor. Don't fall for the hype abut "everything being different"; it is dead-end reasoning that leaves you at the mercy of fearmongering public figures who offer rhetoric and aggression but not true solutions. Yes, the tactics for addressing mobile, decentralized terrorists are very different from those for other types of conflicts. But the underlying solution to this newest reign of terror is the same as the solutions to our previous ones: understand and address the grievances that drive the conflict. In this case they are the Israeli occupation of Palestine, American abetting of economic and political injustice in heavily Muslim nations, and now the war in Iraq. If we fail to deal with these triggers, we will chase bands of terrorists forever.
The Byrd Center for Legislative Studies has launched a documentary editing research project on the petitions received by the House of Representatives and the Senate during the early years of the Republic from 1789 to 1817. These petitions, most never published before, offer a fascinating glimpse into the lives and concerns of Americans of the time and what they expected Congress to do for them. Each petition is a story unto itself. We hear the voices of Indians, New England whalers, women, abolitionists, both black and white, and manufacturers urging Congress to protect their fledgling industries against the unfair prices of foreign imports. These petitions helped shape the very nature of the House and Senate and for the first time, beginning in 1789, the people of all the states had a national government to hear their grievances.
During 2005 and 2006 the Byrd Center organized and hosted a wide range of educational programs. The Center worked with Shepherd University and a range of groups in West Virginia while building partnerships nationally and internationally. On September 16, 2005 Senator Byrd inaugurated Constitution Day, which Congress enacted in response to his initiative. September 17 marks the anniversary of the signing of the Constitution by the delegates to the Constitutional Convention in 1787. Senator Byrd included in federal legislation, signed into law November 2004, a provision requiring schools and federal agencies to set some time aside to study the Constitution. The event was attended by over 400 people and broadcast live on C-SPAN.
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