Dear Friends of IGS:

For almost 90 years, the Institute of Governmental Studies (IGS) at UC Berkeley has benefited from the generous support of our faculty, students, visiting scholars, alumni, and friends in sustaining our tradition of excellence in research, teaching, and public service regarding American politics and civic life.

2008 was a banner year for the Institute. We have held major conferences on the American presidency and on California policy issues, published several significant books, and greatly expanded opportunities for students to pursue public service and civic engagement. This was made possible through the generosity of our donors, who support activities such as the Cal-in-Sacramento Platinum Fellowship for summer internships in state government, the John Gardner Public Service Fellowship, and the Mike Synar Research Fellowship and Nelson W. Polsby Grant for Public Affairs Research to reward talented young scholars. A major new development is that IGS has received federal funding to create an endowment for initiating the Robert T. Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service, which will open additional doors for students and enhance campus life.

Our affiliated faculty members generated $2.25 million in competitive extramural funding to support innovative research initiatives on critical public policy topics ranging from health care reform to managing biodiversity to elections administration. Our graduate students continue to receive prestigious awards and to be placed upon graduation in teaching positions at leading institutions of higher education.

With your continued generosity, these IGS activities that train the next generation of leaders and scholars will be sustained and strengthened despite declining state support.

Sincerely,


Jack Citrin
IGS Director and Heller Professor of Political Science, UC Berkeley

UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau will soon officially dedicate the Robert T. Matsui Center for Politics & Public Service based at IGS. The new center, named in honor of the late Congressman Robert T. Matsui (Class of 1963), will engage students in public life through internships, public events, and the presence of distinguished visitors to campus. The Center will emphasize the creation of opportunities for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. As part of this program funded by the US Congress, the papers of Congressman Matsui will be made available to scholars at the Bancroft Library. The new Center will be located in Room 111 Moses Hall and be under the leadership of Ethan Rarick as its first director.

On September 19th, IGS and the Berkeley School of Law organized a major conference of political scientists and legal scholars entitled: The American Presidency at War. The keynote address was a conversation with John Podesta and Ken Mehlman on the view from inside the White House during wartime. If you missed this fantastic event, you can watch much of the conference on the IGS webcast.

Miss an IGS event in 2008? Watch these online:

• Choosing the President in 2008: The Evolving Process
  

• Proposition 13 at 30: The Political, Economic, and Fiscal Impacts
  

• Global Financial Market Turmoil: A Panel Discussion
  

IGS released a 6 minute video, entitled Voices of Tomorrow, that provides a stunning visual portrait of what the Institute does and how we encourage young adults to explore careers in public service. Our fantastic students are the stars of this show!

IGS was the perfect Berkeley spot to be at during this year's political season. We opened up the Institute to the entire campus community as a place to come and watch the presidential debates and Election Night activities. For each event, over 400 students, faculty, and friends packed Moses Hall to get connected to American politics. This season, due to heavy campus interest in the election, we set up outdoor viewing of these national political events in the Moses-Stephens Courtyard. We received national press coverage from several major media outlets.

Carl Guardino, President & CEO of the Silicon Valley Leadership Group, will be the 5th Victor Jones Memorial Lecturer on Metropolitan Governance to be held on Wednesday, February 25, 2009, 3-5 pm, at UC Berkeley Alumni House. Mr. Guardino, one of Silicon Valley's most distinguished business and community leaders, will speak about how his public policy trade association influences regional planning in Santa Clara County. This event is free and open to the public.

New books released by the Berkeley Public Policy Press:

Racial and Ethnic Politics in California: Continuity and Change (3rd edition), edited by Bruce E. Cain & Sandra Bass.

The New Political Geography of California, edited by Frederick Douzet, Thad Kousser and Ken Miller.

New titles by IGS affiliated faculty:

Public Opinion and Constitutional Controversies, edited by Jack Citrin et al.

Democracy in the States: Experiments in Election Reform, edited by Bruce E. Cain et al.

Global Neighborhoods: Jewish Quarters in Paris, London & Berlin, by Michel Laguerre.

Did you know that IGS now offers you the ability to make gift transactions online using a major credit card? You can now make your tax deductible charitable contribution conveniently from your home, office, or laptop. There is still time this holiday season to make a year-end gift to support the Institute's student leadership training programs.

Click here to make a gift today!

To see why our supporters give back to IGS, visit the "Why I Give" section of the Friends of IGS website.