RISING COLLEGE SENIORS FROM ACROSS THE NATION GATHER IN LEXINGTON TO PARTICIPATE IN UNIQUE PROGRAM ADDRESSING THE IMPORTANCE OF STATESMANSHIP IN TODAY’S WORLD

Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship Launches Inaugural Student Congress

JULY 19, 2008 (LEXINGTON, KY) – In the midst of global conflict and with one of the most talked about, yet potentially divisive US presidential elections on the horizon, the need for a way to bridge the nation’s and the world’s differences has never been greater.  Addressing this need, The Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship announced today the start of its Inaugural Student Congress, a unique curriculum titled Resolving Conflict in a Modern World.  This one-of-a-kind program will run from July 19 - July 26, 2008 on the campuses of the University of Kentucky and Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky.

“At a time of such polarization within the nation and abroad, the ideals of Henry Clay could not be more relevant,” said D.G. Van Clief, Board President of the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship. “Our mission with this program is to educate a new generation of leaders in the skills and processes of statesmanship.”

The goal of the Student Congress is to promote statesmanship through Henry Clay’s ideals of debate, diplomacy, communication and beneficial compromise.  The Congress brings together 51 rising college seniors from every state and the District of Columbia, nominated by their respective state’s senior United States Senator and college and university officials. 

The curriculum was developed by the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship in coordination with the University of Kentucky Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce and Martin School of Public Policy and Administration, Transylvania University and Ashland, the Henry Clay Estate, in Lexington.

This Student Congress curriculum will include lectures by international diplomats and those who support and report upon statesmanship and international affairs,  including former Kansas Senator Nancy Kassebaum-Baker and MSNBC’s John Harwood.

Media Contacts:

Whitney Peabody
Conover Tuttle Pace, wpeabody@ctpboston.com 617-699-1373 (cell)

Mindy Shannon Phelps
Executive Director of the Henry Clay Center for Statesmanship, hccs@insightbb.com 859-619-1642 (cell)