[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 109 (Tuesday, July 22, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S9706]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 COMMEMORATING THE 50TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE AMERICAN POLITICAL SCIENCE 
              ASSOCIATION CONGRESSIONAL FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM

 Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I would like to congratulate the 
American Political Science Association on five decades of tremendous 
success in its Congressional Fellowship Program. Since 1953, the 
A.P.S.A. has trained and supported over 1800 Fellows, bringing top 
academic scholars, political journalists, experienced public servants, 
and others to the Hill. For 9 months, they learn from and contribute to 
the political process. These Fellows include political scientists, 
sociologists, journalists, domestic and foreign policy specialists, 
physicians, Native American Hatfield Fellows, staff from other 
legislative bodies, and international scholars. All of them have 
benefited greatly from the opportunity to take part in the legislative 
process, and Congress as an institution has been improved by their 
participation.
  Throughout my careers in both the House and in the Senate, I have had 
the pleasure of hosting A.P.S.A. Congressional Fellows in my office. 
Beginning in 1985, I have hosted eight Fellows, two of whom are with my 
office now. Joe Bowersox, an associate professor of political science 
at Willamette University in Salem, OR, works on forestry issues, 
wildfire prevention, and a host of other environmental issues. Thad 
Kousser, an assistant professor of political science at the University 
of California, San Diego has assisted with the budget, health care, and 
preventing government waste. Like all of the Fellows I host, they are 
treated as professional staff. They have prepared me for hearings, met 
with constituents and policy experts, drafted statements, worked out of 
my State offices in Oregon, and helped me to craft legislation.
  I am able to give so much responsibility to A.P.S.A. Fellows because 
they have gone through such extensive training in their program. In the 
fall before they begin work, the Fellows attend 3 weeks of intensive 
instruction in a broad range of domestic and foreign policy issues as 
well as practical politics. The training is hosted by the Johns Hopkins 
School of Advanced International Studies and taught by a collection of 
Washington's top experts. After this orientation, the Fellows attend a 
4-day Advanced Legislative Institute Seminar run by the Congressional 
Research Service. Even after they have joined an office, the Fellows 
continue their education by attending the Wilson Seminar Series on 
Friday afternoons. This comprehensive preparation is a large part of 
what has made the program so successful.
  The program has also benefited from the enduring commitment of the 
American Political Science Association to keep the connections between 
academia and Congress strong. It is administered out of the 
Association's national headquarters and has in recent years been 
expertly led by Jeff Biggs, a former A.P.S.A. Fellow himself. Other 
distinguished alumni of the program include Thomas Mann, Norman 
Ornstein, Rep. Bob Filner, former Rep. Steve Horn, and Vice President 
Dick Cheney. I hope that the next 50 years of the Fellowship will be as 
successful as its first five decades.

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