The Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics at the University of Kansas is pleased to announce that it will honor former President Bill Clinton with the 2015 Dole Leadership Prize. The prize will be awarded at a program at the Lied Center on the west campus of the University of Kansas. The event will take place at 1 p.m. Monday, Nov. 23, with a live stream available online at DoleInstitute.org.
The program will be free and open to the public with a limited number of tickets available. Tickets will be distributed through the Lied Center Box Office and will be available beginning 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 9. Tickets are for reserved seating and will be limited to two per person. Individuals must claim their tickets in person at the box office.
A total of 500 tickets will be reserved for KU students through the KU Student Union Activities (SUA) office and will be available at 9 a.m. Monday, Nov. 9. Students may claim their tickets with a valid KU ID in person at the Kansas Union Welcome Center, located on level four of the Kansas Union.
A limited number of media credentials will be available. Media wishing to cover the event should contact Erinn Barcomb-Peterson, KU News director, at [email protected] to request a credential. Media who are issued a credential will receive additional information over the coming weeks.
“President Clinton’s presidency included strong leadership and bipartisanship, traits that make him a worthy recipient of the Dole Leadership Prize,” said Bill Lacy, director of the Dole Institute. “Much of his work as president — including his balancing of the budget and efforts to reach across the aisle — mirrors the mission of the Dole Institute and the values of Senator Dole.”
“I am proud that President Clinton will be honored with the Dole Leadership Prize,” said former Sen. Bob Dole. “I speak with the president now and then, and we have become friends over the years. I know the event will attract many students and people from across the Midwest. If I could be there, we could have a lively debate.”
“We are honored to welcome President Bill Clinton to the Dole Institute at the University of Kansas,” said Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little. “As a flagship research university, KU strives to provide students unique opportunities and experiences, which includes hosting some of our society’s most important leaders. To hear directly from President Clinton will be a special experience for our students and a special moment for our university.”
William Jefferson Clinton served as the 42nd president of the United States and was the first Democratic president in six decades to be elected twice. While in office, Clinton led the U.S. to the longest economic expansion in American history, including the creation of more than 22 million jobs. Working with both Republican and Democratic congressional majorities during his presidency, Clinton helped the U.S. achieve the lowest unemployment rate in modern times, the lowest inflation in 30 years, the highest home ownership in the country’s history, dropping crime rates in many places, and reduced welfare rolls. Clinton proposed the first balanced budget in decades and achieved a budget surplus.
The Dole Leadership Prize is awarded annually to an individual or group whose public service leadership inspires others. Previous winners of the Dole Leadership Prize include John D. Kemp, Nelson Mandela, Wounded Warrior Project ®, former Ukrainian president, Viktor Yushchenko, Women Air Service Pilots of WWII, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, Donna Shalala, former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani, former U.S. Senators Howard Baker and George McGovern, former Polish President Lech Walesa, Congressman John Lewis, and former President George H.W. Bush.
After leaving the White House, President Clinton established the Clinton Foundation with the mission to improve global health, strengthen economies, promote health and wellness, and protect the environment.
In addition to his Foundation work, President Clinton has served as the top United Nations envoy for the Indian Ocean tsunami recovery effort and as the UN Special Envoy to Haiti.
