The first group of IOP Fellows included ten individuals, nominated in 1967. Since then, 300 people have served as IOP Fellows, representing a spectrum as diverse as American politics.

Geraldine Ferraro, Betty Friedan, David R. Gergen, Al Gore '69, Vernon E. Jordan, Jr. and Paul Simon have all been IOP Fellows.

The Selection Process

Currently, the IOP chooses six individuals as fellows each semester. According to Donovan, IOP leaders nominate candidates for the program with the aid of input from students and faculty.

The criteria used to select the fellows include political experience, past leadership roles and an interest in interacting with students and faculty, Donovan says.

She adds that the program particularly seems to attract individuals who are at a point in their careers where they may benefit from a sabbatical away from their activities.

"The idea of the program is to capture 'in and outers'--people who have served government, and then are taking a break, who will go back into government," Donovan says. "We want to have people who have had experience in government, and that is when you get them, when there are transitions in government."

Whitmire came to the Institute as a fellow for the 1995 fall semester, after serving as mayor of Houston for ten years.

According to Donovan, the fellowship is more often a transition than an endpoint in the political careers of the participants. She notes that many past fellows have returned to successful political careers.

Ronald H. Brown and Richard Riley both served as IOP Fellows, before accepting positions in the Clinton Cabinet. Lamar Alexander, a Republican presidential candidate this year, was a fellow at the Institute in 1971.

While most fellows serve for one semester, a few have stayed on to take teaching positions at Harvard.

Whitmire, a fall fellow, will spend the spring semester at the Kennedy School. She is teaching a class entitled, "Women in Politics: Policy, Advocacy and Leadership."

"I didn't want to leave after just one semester," she says.

Back to School

Each IOP Fellow will lead a study group on topics ranging from political reform in the Republican Congress, to the interaction of science and public policy. The study groups are open to undergraduates and members of the Cambridge community.