Victor Jones Memorial Lecture Series
About the Series
The Institute of Governmental Studies (IGS) is pleased to present the Victor Jones Memorial Lecture on Metropolitan Governance. This occasional lecture series is administered by IGS and serves as a lasting tribute to Victor Jones, Professor Emeritus of Political Science, who died on April 1, 2001 at the age of 92.
Victor Jones was a pioneer in the academic study of metropolitan government. 
His seminal treatise, Metropolitan Government (University of Chicago Press), published in 1942, laid the groundwork for a generation of scholars that studied postwar urban governance issues. Professor Jones first came to Berkeley in 1938 as a research associate attached to the Bureau of Public Administration, later known as the Institute of Governmental Studies. He became a full professor of political science in 1955 and briefly served as department chair before retiring in 1976.
Professor Jones's lifelong commitment to the study of regional government was instrumental in the founding of the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) in 1961. Jones, along with the League of California Cities, helped to craft the formation of ABAG, the San Francisco Bay Area's nine-county planning agency that addresses regional issues such as environmental quality, land use, and state-local financing of public projects. During Professor Jones's distinguished career, he served in advisory positions to ABAG, the U.S. Advisory Council on Intergovernmental Relations (ACIR), the League of California Cities, and the National Association of Regional Councils.
Jones later studied comparative intergovernmental issues between the United States and Canada and became an expert in Canadian federalism. He was a founding member of the UC Berkeley Canadian Studies Program in 1982. During his notable career, Jones was honored with special tributes from the American Political Science Association and the National Association of Regional Councils. In 1978 he was elected as a fellow to the National Academy of Public Administration.
The Victor Jones Memorial Lecture on Metropolitan Governance brings to the UC Berkeley campus distinguished speakers on the topic of regional affairs, urban studies, federalism, comparative government, metropolitan and local administration, and intergovernmental relations. A special fund is in place to finance this public lecture series. A committee, appointed by the IGS director, is be charged with selecting the lecturer. Contributions to support this lecture series may be made by sending a tax-deductible donation to: The Victor Jones Memorial Fund, c/o Institute of Governmental Studies, 109 Moses Hall #2370, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-2370. Please make checks payable to the UC Berkeley Foundation.