Center for the Study of the Presidency

The Center for the Study of the Presidency (CSP) is a non-profit, non-partisan policy and education organization located in Washington, D.C. The Center’s mission is to promote leadership in the Presidency and the Congress to generate innovative solutions to current national challenges; preserve the historic memory of the Presidency by identifying the lessons from the successes and failures of Executive leadership; draw on a wide range of talent to offer ways to better organize an increasingly compartmentalized Federal Government; and educate and inspire the next generation of America’s leaders to incorporate civility, inclusiveness, and character into their public and private lives and discourse.

The Center originated out of the Library of the Presidential Papers in 1969. Inspired by President Dwight Eisenhower's call for programs on the American Presidency for "students old and young…characterized by accuracy, objectivity and perspective," the Center began educating young leaders and examining public policy issues that required Presidential consideration and action. Dr. R. Gordon Hoxie, a historian and Chancellor of Long Island University, became the first President of the Center, and Arthur T. Roth, a banker and Board Vice Chair at Long Island University, the first Chairman of the Center's Board of Trustees.

Today, Ambassador David Abshire (Ret.) is President and CEO of the Center, and Leo A. Daly III serves as Chair of the Board of Trustees.

Programs

The Center’s programs are designed to bring members of the Executive and Legislative branches together with leaders in the private sector, public policy centers, and academic and research communities on a variety of programs and projects. Current efforts include:

Iraq Study Group – The Center was one of the four co-sponsoring organizations of the Iraq Study Group, led by former Secretary of State James Baker and former 9/11 Commission Co-Chair and former Congressman Lee Hamilton. Two Center Trustees, former Senator Charles Robb and former Attorney General Edwin Meese III, were among the eight members of the bi-partisan ISG. The Center nominated distinguished experts for all Expert Working Groups (EWGs), which provided analysis and research on the political situation within Iraq, the broader regional and international strategic environment, military and security issues, and economic reconstruction and development. Center staff also served as advisors to the Strategic Environment EWG as well as the Economic Reconstruction and Development EWG.

Agenda 2008 – During the two years leading up to the next Presidential transition, the Center will conduct a four-part initiative that seeks to educate Presidential candidates and their advisors on a range of critical national issues, both domestic and international, through personal meetings.

Homeland Security – The Center addresses strategic homeland security challenges that require Presidential leadership and has led policy initiatives on combating smuggled nuclear weapons, synergizing the Departments of Defense, State, and Homeland Security, the strategic partnership between the U.S. and Canada, strengthening the transatlantic relationship in the war on terrorism, and crisis leadership for homeland security.

Transatlantic Relations – The Center’s transatlantic efforts have examined NATO's role in the war on terror, put forward a series of proposals on increased NATO-EU coordination in global and homeland security, and identified better crosswalks and institutional capabilities among NATO, the EU and the G8.

Foundation for International Understanding – Once operational, this independent grant-making foundation will support media productions that promote respect, understanding, and shared learning across borders and cultures. Along with radio and television programs, the FIU will support innovative new media, such as interactive Internet productions, educational video games, podcasts, and cyber classrooms. The FIU will neither produce nor broadcast media productions. Instead, through its grant awards, the FIU will marshal creative talent from the media and entertainment industries and educational institutions worldwide.

Presidential Fellows Program – Each year, the Center invites 85 of the nation’s top college and university students to Washington to participate in the Presidential Fellows Program, a series of leadership conferences in the spring and the fall that feature high-level government officials from the Executive and Legislative branches and the policy community.

National Consortium for Character-Based Leadership - In response to the character failures routinely witnessed in government, business, education, religion, and athletics, CSP established the National Consortium for Character-Based Leadership, an organization of more than 40 high schools, colleges, service academies, business schools, and independent institutions. The Consortium aims to unite the often disconnected fields of ethics and leadership education by providing tools for students to grapple with morally complex leadership situations. The Consortium’s inaugural conference was held at Washington and Lee University in September 2006.

Publications

The Center regularly publishes books, reports, and newsletters concerning the Presidency that are of interest to policymakers, scholars and the general public. Publications include:

*"Presidential Studies Quarterly" ("PSQ")
*"Maximizing NATO for the War on Terror: Presidential Leadership Can Strengthen the Transatlantic Relationship and Define and Pursue Shared Homeland Security Interests"
*"An Initiative: Strengthening U.S.-Muslim Communications"
*"Marshalling Science, Bridging the G

*"Lessons for the 21st Century: Vulnerability and Surprise, December 7,1941, and September 11, 2001"
*"Triumphs and Tragedies of the Modern Presidency: Seventy-Six Case Studies in Presidential Leadership"
*"Forward Strategic Empowerment: Synergies Between CINCs, the State Department, and Other Agencies"
*"Comprehensive Strategic Reform: Panel Report for the President and Congress"
*"Dialogues on Presidential Leadership: The President, Congress and the Media"
*"Constructing the Presidency for the 21st Century: Learning from Past Triumphs and Tragedies"
*"Advancing Innovation: Improving the S&T Advisory Structure and Policy Process"
*"In Harm’s Way: Intervention and Prevention"

External links

* [http://www.thepresidency.org/ Official website]