Hofstra to host conference on Obama presidency

Hofstra University will host “The Barack Obama Presidency: Hope and Change,” a three-day conference from April 19-21. The event marks the university’s 13^th presidential conference and will include scholars, journalists and government officials.

Those officials include White House Chief of Staff Valerie Jarrett,  U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, and White House Director of Legislative Affairs Philip Schiliro. They will join other subject experts who will “explore the administration, policy making, and legacy of Barack Obama,” according to Hofstra.

The conference is presented at the Hofstra Cultural Center, the Peter S. Kalikow Center for the Study of the American Presidency and the Peter S. Kalikow School of Government, Public Policy and International Affairs, in conjunction with the Barack Obama Presidential Library, National Archives and Records Administration and the Obama Foundation. Political scholar and journalist Melissa Harris-Perry will be featured in a keynote dialogue on Wednesday.

“Hofstra University takes great honor in this tradition of hosting presidential conferences,” Hofstra President Susan Poser said in a statement.

“Since the first one in 1982, the conferences have provided Hofstra students, faculty, and the general public opportunities to meet and learn directly from those who have had a hand in shaping our nation’s history,” Poser said.

“Hofstra’s 13th presidential conference will address key topics about leadership, politics, and policy making in the Barack Obama presidency,” Conference Director and Political Science Professor Meena Bose said in a statement. “It will include scholarly paper presentations and forum discussions on such diverse topics as domestic and foreign policy, health care, the economy and trade, media coverage, the First Lady, education policy, and communications strategy.”

“Bringing together public officials, journalists, and scholars to discuss President Obama’s consequential leadership and legacy in American politics presents a unique and enduring contribution to presidency studies,” Bose added. “We are delighted that students will have the opportunity to participate in these richly informative conference discussions.”

Hofstra has hosted conferences on the administrations of every U.S. president since the university’s founding in 1935, beginning with Franklin Delano Roosevelt. In addition, the university has hosted three consecutive presidential debates, in 2008, 2012 and 2016. A total of presidents have visited the campus, according to Hofstra.

The full schedule of the upcoming conference is available here. To register, click here.

“