New IOP Fellows Announced

Marking the 25th anniversary of its fellows program, the Institute of Politics (IOP) introduced this spring's six new visiting associates at a forum Thursday night.

The fellows, who will lead study groups for undergraduates at the Kennedy School of Government and can take courses at the University, are:

* Claudine Schneider, a former member of the U.S. Congress;

* Peter Ross Range, a former correspondent for Time and U.S. News and World Report;

* Tom Loftus, who ran for governor of Wisconsin on the Democratic ticket and was the speaker of the Wisconsin Assembly;

* Josie Heath, former commissioner of Boulder county Col. and her state's 1990 Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate;

* William B. Lacy, who directed the presidential campaign of U.S. Sen. Robert Dole (D-Kan.) and worked with Presidents Reagan and Bush;

* William B. Welsh, a consultant on public policy to members of the U.S. Congress.

The IOP recruits fellows each semester to lead study groups for undergraduates and other University affiliates. The discussion sections are non-credit and meet once a week.

"We hope they will be real-life examples for students who have a little glimmer of public service or of running for office," IOP Director Charles Royer said.

Schneider, who served as Rhode Island's Congressional representative for 10 years, told members of the audience Thursday that she hoped her study group, "Making a Difference: Shaping the Congressional Agenda of the 90's," would show students they can change the world.

Health, the former Senate candidate from Colorado, echoed this theme, telling the audience that her childhood experiences inspired her to become a public figure.

"For me, politics was not being someone important. It was about doing something important," said Heath, whose study group will focus on national public service. "And I still think that's the key to it."

Range joked about being the lone journalist in a crowd of politicians and consultants.

"Anytime you get five or six politicians together you need at least one reporter to keep an eye on them," said Range, who covered the Vietnam War and the Berlin student uprisings in the late 1960s.

The six fellows were selected from an original list of more than 100 people recommended by former IOP affiliates and members of the university communities, Royer said.