NINETEENTH ANNUAL MEETING
ASSOCIATION OF CENTERS FOR THE STUDY OF CONGRESS

May 10-12, 2022
Virtual

Registration is open. All members – institutional and individual – may register for free.
Members must be logged in to acsc.wildapricot.org to register at no cost. Non-members may register for a fee of $50. 

 

Facts and Figures:  Evidence and the Study of Congress

 

At the Capitol in February 2022, a ceremony marked the naming of the Joseph Rainey Room in honor of the first elected African American representative to the U.S. House. Rep. Jim Clyburn, formerly a public school history teacher, noted the significance of knowing our “facts and figures” so that we may understand where we have come from and appreciate new directions. ACSC 2022 salutes facts and figures as evidence for the study of Congress. Note: details forthcoming for a few of the sessions!

All times in Eastern Standard Time

Tuesday, May 10

1:00 pm. (ET) Welcome

Hope Bibens, President, ACSC

1:10 p.m. (ET) Session 1: Keynote Address

Alexander Bolton, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Emory
University, and Sharece Thrower, Associate Professor of Political Science at
Vanderbilt University, will discuss their book Checks in the Balance:
Legislative Capacity and the Dynamics of Executive Power

 

2:15 p.m. (ET) Break

 

2:30 p.m. (ET) Session 2: Congressional Research (Data, Digital Resources, and Congressional Research)

Panelists in this moderated conversation will discuss the development of databases and the ways in which
researchers can utilize digital resources to further our understanding of Congress and the legislative process.

Jen Selin, Co-Director, Washington Office, Levin Center at Wayne Law
Daniel Shuman, Policy Director, Demand Progress / Every CRS Report
Josh Tauberer, Founder, GovTrack

3:35 p.m. (ET) Break

 

3:45 p.m. (ET) Session 3: Member Updates

ACSC members are invited to share news about their institutional projects in this open exchange. The
session will begin with invited guests and follow with an open forum for updates. 

Carly Dearborn, Assistant Professor, Public Policy Archivist, Ohio State University Libraries, Ohio Public Policy Archives
Thomas A. DeShong, Poage Legislative Library, Baylor University
Dylan McDonald, Political Collections Archivist/Special Collections Librarian, New Mexico State University Library

5:00 p.m. (ET) Adjourn

 

Wednesday, May 11

1:00 p.m. (ET) Session 4: Archives in Policy

ACSC members will discuss their archival work and scholarship relating to the study of Congress in the policy
area of health.

Hope Bibens, Associate Professor and Director of Archives & Special Collections, Drake University
Steve Hussman, Political Affairs Archivist, University of Arizona
Evan Laine, Director of the Law & Society Program and Faculty Director, Arlen Specter Center for Public Service, Jefferson (Philadelphia University + Thomas Jefferson University)
Jill Severn, Access and Outreach Archivist, Russell Library, and Director, Russell Forum for Civic Life in Georgia

2:00 p.m. (ET) Break

 

2:15 p.m. (ET) Session 5: Former Member Panel 

Details forthcoming

3:15 p.m. (ET) Break

 

3:30 p.m. (ET) Session 6: Oversight History

This moderated conversation will consider the dynamics of congressional oversight.  By highlighting strengths and weaknesses in the legislature’s ability to conduct effective oversight across time, panelists will provide insight into how Congress can address important governmental issues in the future.  

Kevin Kosar, Senior Fellow, American Enterprise Institute
Douglas Kriner, Clinton Rossiter Professor in American Institutions, Cornell University
Kate Scott, Associate Historian, U.S. Senate Historical Office
Jen Selin, moderator, Co-Director, Washington Office, Levin Center at Wayne Law

4:30 p.m. (ET) Break

 

4:35 p.m. (ET) Session 7: Directors’ Panel 

Moderated by a founding member and past president of ACSC, this panel presents directors in conversation with each other about aspirations and challenges for their centers, with a focus on how ACSC can be of service.

Audrey Coleman, Director, Robert J. Dole Institute of Politics, University of Kansas
Joseph Jones, Executive Director, Harkin Institute, Drake University
Michael Crespin, Director and Curator, Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center, and Professor of Political Science, University of Oklahoma
Tiffany White, Director, Dirksen Center 
Sheryl Vogt, moderator, Director, Russell Library, University of Georgia

5:35 p.m. (ET) Adjourn

 

Thursday, May 12

1:00 p.m. (ET) Session 8: Facts about Formerly Enslaved and Slaveholding Members of Congress and the First Elected Black Congressman

Julie Zauzmer Weil, Reporter, The Washington Post A New Tool for Researching Congressmen’s Relationship with Slavery

Lorna Rainey, Rainey Film and Media and The Talent Express Slave in the House

Blynne Olivieri Parker, moderator, Head of Special Collections and Associate Professor, University of West Georgia

2 p.m. (ET) Break

 

2:15 p.m. (ET) Session 9: Practitioner’s corner: Deeds and Donors

ACSC members will discuss the advice and counsel on deeds offered to House and Senate members, challenges and lessons learned managing deeds of gift at large congressional repositories, and an effort to renegotiate a senator’s deed of gift.

Heather Bourk, House Archivist, U.S. House of Representatives
Karen Paul, Senate Archivist, U.S. Senate
Mary Goolsby, Director, W.R. Poage Legislative Library and Bob Bullock Archivist, Baylor University
Dorothy Walker, Director, South Carolina Political Collections, University of South Carolina
Rebecca Sherman, Senior Collections Processing Archivist, Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, & Rare Book Library, Emory University

3:15 p.m. (ET) Break

 

3:30 p.m. (ET) Session 10: ACSC Business Meeting

 

4:30 p.m. (ET) Adjourn