Ex-Presidential Hopeful Debuts As KGS Professor

Tennessee native and ex-presidential candidate Lamar Alexander began teaching at the Kennedy School of Government (KSG) yesterday as the Goodman Visiting Professor of Practice in Public Service.

The former Republican governor of Tennessee--known best for his plaid shirts and for walking across the state of Tennessee during campaigns--will be teaching a course called "The Ultimate Start-up: The American Presidential Campaign."

Students in the class will try to improve the current electoral system by proposing campaign finance laws, re-structuring the primary system and proposing other electoral reforms. Alexander said he is "intrigued with the idea of the American character," and feels that the American electoral process no longer reflects that character.

"The presidential election must symbolize American possibility," Alexander said. "But that system is broken."

Alexander said his course will examine the problems with today's elections, such as "crowded schedules [that] close primaries to worthy competitors...and media and money [making] decisions voters should be making."

"This means much more than just counting votes," Alexander said, alluding to the recent election problems in Florida.

KSG's Academic Dean Frederick Schauer said that Alexander's class will help students remain interested in the electoral process despite its failings.

"There's concern that electoral politics is not as appealing," Schauer said. "It's important in a sense to demonstrate to students the possibilities in elections."

Alexander will also put his extensive educational experience to work while at KSG. He previously served as the president of the University of Tennessee and as Secretary of Education under former president George H. W. Bush. He is currently the chair of Simplexis, a company that helps schools save money by making purchases on the Internet.

Alexander said he is still unsure how studying education policy will fit into his time at KSG, and that he will most likely wait until the fall semester to teach a course in that area. However, he may form spring term faculty and student discussion groups to address the topic.

"I'm going to wait and see what happens on campus to see where I fit in," Alexander said.

While at Harvard, Alexander will have a suite in Cabot House, but will still commute back and forth to Tennessee.

He said he looks forward to the opportunity to begin teaching now that his political career is over, and that the position will give him time to "write and reflect" on his areas of academic interest.

"At this stage in my life, it's something I intend to have fun doing," Alexander said. "And it gives me the chance to maybe inspire other people into public service."