Professor Theda Skocpol, the Victor S. Thomas Professor of Government and Sociology at Harvard University, delivered three outstanding public lectures in the 1999 Julian J. Rothbaum Distinguished Lecture in Representative Government on October 26, 27, and 28. She also met with an honors class on civic engagement taught by Professors Ron Peters and David Ray. 

As evidenced in this issue of Extensions, Skocpol participated in a round table discussion of her work with Professors Bob Cox, Jos Raadschelders, and Ann-Marie Szymanski. In between these major events, she visited a few local antique stores and collected some choice artifacts of voluntary associations for her research.

Skocpol also attended a ceremonial dinner in her honor where she engaged the audience in a question and answer session related to her lectures. At the dinner, Joel Jankowsky spoke for the Rothbaum family, thanking Skocpol for her participation in the lecture series and expressing appreciation for the way in which the series has developed over the years under the leadership of Ron Peters. Rothbaum family members who were present included Julian Rothbaum, Carol Jankowsky, Ruth Nelson and Tom Murphy, and B. J. Rothbaum with his daughters Ann and Rebecca. Other special guests of the Rothbaum family included Alice Friedman, Mildred Wise, Ted Zarrow, Cary Bertrand, former Oklahoma governor David Walters and his wife Rhonda, and former lieutenant governor Robert S. Kerr III and his wife Charlotte.

The 1999 Rothbaum Lecture was enhanced by a reunion of Carl Albert Fellows to celebrate the Center's twentieth anniversary. Twenty-five fellows from all over the country returned to the Center to participate in the events of that week. They also taught several classes and participated in professional development seminars with groups of students to discuss career opportunities in teaching, politics, and government. At the Rothbaum ceremonial dinner, the fellows were given special recognition by host Ron Peters who paid tribute to all of the individuals who have participated in the creation and growth of the Carl Albert Center.

The week concluded with a reunion dinner where the fellows surprised Ron Peters with the announcement that they are raising funds to endow an academic award in his honor. The annual award is to be given to a graduate teaching assistant who shows superior teaching ability in political science at the University of Oklahoma.

During the fall semester, the Center also hosted a visit from Mickey Edwards, the John Quincy Adams Lecturer in Legislative Politics at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. In an American politics class, Edwards talked with students about his initial experience in seeking and then holding office for sixteen years as the representative of Oklahoma's First Congressional District. Drawing upon his leadership experiences in the House, Edwards also conducted a seminar, "Reflections on the Republican Congress,"and engaged the students and faculty in informal discussion. Edwards was accompanied by his wife, Elizabeth Sherman, the director of the Center for Women in Politics and Public Policy, University of Massachusetts.

The first recipient of the annual Carl Albert Dissertation Award, Daniel Lipinski, a professorial lecturer for the department of government at American University, visited the Center in September and conducted a seminar on his dissertation research, an examination of communication strategies used by members of the House of Representatives. The award for best dissertation in legislative studies is sponsored by the Carl Albert Center. The award winner is selected by a committee of the Legislative Studies Section of the American Political Science Association, and the award was presented by them to Lipinski at the section's annual meeting. Lipinski, a recent APSA congressional fellow and a recipient of a dissertation grant from the National Science Foundation, completed his dissertation at Duke University in 1998.

At the annual awards ceremony of the department of political science in September, Carl Albert Fellows Lesli McCollum and Craig Williams received academic scholarships from the department. McCollum and Williams are currently participating in the American Political Science Association's Congressional Fellowship Program in Washington, D.C. Remaining at the Center this year are third year fellow Jocelyn Jones and new fellows Melody Huckaby and Lynsey Morris. Melody earned her B.A. and law degrees from the University of Oklahoma and was in the private practice of law prior to becoming a Carl Albert Fellow. Lynsey is a 1999 graduate of Berry College.

Former Undergraduate Carl Albert Fellow Andy Ferrell (1998-1999) of Claremore also received an academic scholarship at the political science department's annual awards ceremony. Other students currently participating in the undergraduate research program at the Center are Jerrel Scott Henderson of Norman; Jeffrey Kramer of Wichita Falls, Texas; Jeffrey Mankoff of Denver, Colorado; Jennifer Mulhall of Coffeyville, Kansas; Leah Pennington of Duncanville, Texas; Bryan Pepper of Edmond; and Misty Wetmore of Lawton.

Former fellow John David Rausch, Jr. has received an Outstanding Professor award from the College of Education and Social Sciences at West Texas A&M University where he is an assistant professor of political science.

An essay by the Center's assistant curator, Todd Kosmerick, is being published in the Western History Quarterly. Part I of "Exploring New Territory: The History of Native Americans as Revealed Through Congressional Papers at the Carl Albert Center" appeared in the summer 1999 issue of the quarterly and Part II will be published in the winter issue.

A special conference, Women Transforming Congress: Gender Analyses of Institutional Life, will be hosted by the Center in April 2000. Assistant Director Cindy Simon Rosenthal has organized an impressive gathering of current and former congresswomen, scholars, and graduate students for this event, including a keynote address by former congresswoman Susan Molinari (R-N.Y., 1990-1997). Other current and former congresswomen who have agreed to participate in the conference include Barbara Kennelly (D-Conn., 1982-1999) who is currently Social Security Commissioner; Patsy Mink (D-Hawaii, 1965-1977, 1990 - present); and Cardiss Collins (D-Ill.,1973-1997). Details regarding the program schedule, registration, lodging, and scholarships can be found on the web page at http://www.ou.edu/special/albertctr/wtc/.