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Dole anniversary marks highs, lows
Early departure of director Smith raises concerns
By Jay Senter jsenter@kansan.com Kansan staff writer
It was a year ago tomorrow that the dedication of the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics brought former president Jimmy Carter, NBC anchorman Tom Brokaw and hundreds of World War II veterans and their families to Lawrence.
It is fair to say that the celebration of the institute's one-year anniversary will be somewhat less involved.
"We may have some Dole pineapple juice here, but there is no formal event," said Richard Konzem, the institute's deputy director of administration.
Last November, Richard Norton Smith, the institute's inaugural director, left to be head of the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, Ill. Smith, who had directed four presidential libraries prior to assuming his duties at the Dole Institute, said the opportunity at the Lincoln library was too good to pass up.
It was, in some ways, a roller coaster of a first year for the Dole Institute, with unexpected low-points, undeniable highpoints and lingering uncertainties.
Smith's departure left many people involved with the institute concerned about its future. Diana Carlin, dean of the graduate school and office of international programs at the University, had been working with Smith on the institute's academic outreach program when he left.
But upon his departure, Smith aired frustrations with the "academic bureaucracy" he experienced while at the University of Kansas, citing several disputes he had with the school's administration while planning for the dedication ceremony.
"It is really hard to overlook the fact that Richard is a nationally known scholar, and incredibly well connected," Carlin said. "It is hard to replace that quickly. While we have some excellent people handling the day-to-day operations, very few people had the vision that Richard had, or the tenacity to make it all happen."
Chancellor Robert Hemenway named law dean Steve McAllister as the interim director, and said he hoped to have a full-time replacement selected by May.
Kansan File Photo
Last year, visitors to the Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics browsed display cases under light cast by the world's largest stained glass American flag. One year has passed since the institute was dedicated, but there are no formal anniversary events planned.
ture left about the future vitality of the institute was at least temporarily forgotten in April when the institute scheduled former president Bill Clinton as the first speaker in the Dole Lecture Series.
Demand for the event escalated so quickly that University administrators moved the speech from the 1,900-seat Lied Center to Allen Fieldhouse, where 12,000 attendees endured hot and stuffy conditions to hear Clinton speak.
The success of the lecture ended the academic year on a positive note. But Hemenway's May deadline for a new director has come and gone.
Konzem said he was under the impression that McAllister would decide between devoting himself full-time to either the Dole Institute or the law school in the near future. Both McAllister and Hemenway were out of town and not available to comment on the issue.
But while the future of the Dole Institute's leadership remains somewhat uncertain, Konzem said the purpose of the institute was clear, and was being fulfilled.
"Richard Norton Smith laid a great foundation, he had a great vision, and there is no reason we can't continue to carry it out," Konzem said. "But the key right now is Senator Dole. He's the guy who can write a letter, or pick up the phone, and get Bill Clinton to come here without paying his appearance fee."
Whatever uncertainty Smith's depart — Edited by Erik Johnson