"Jackson is a great American," he said, "He is imbued with the spirit for public service that the Kennedy School represents."

Recently, Jackson has made headlines and sparked controversy by orchestrating the release of three American POWs from Kosovo. Jackson went ahead on his mission without the consent of the State Department.

Charles E. Lewis, a second-year MPP student and president of the KSG student government, said the recent events make the selection of Jackson particularly timely.

"It puts the Kennedy School at the forefront of the debate," he said.

Nye said he did not think Jackson's actions in Kosovo would have a negative effect on his reception.

"I believe the students will focus on Jackson's career as a whole and not on his most recent endeavor," he said.

In both 1984 and 1988, Jackson made a bid for the Democratic Party's presidential nomination. In 1984, Jackson received 3.5 million votes and, in 1988, 7 million.

Jackson is president and founder of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, a multicultural activist group, and since 1992 has been the host of the television program "Both Sides With Jesse Jackson" which airs on CNN.