11th Annual Congress and History Conference

University of Georgia, May 24-25th, 2012 -- Georgia Center for Continuing Education

The Congress & History Conference was initially conceived by Professor Ira Katznelson (Columbia University) and Professor Gregory Wawro (Columbia University) as a way to bring scholars of Congress from different backgrounds, perspectives, and cohorts together to pose and answer key questions about the historical evolution and development of Congress. Participants are encouraged to use multiple methodological approaches in their research - from narrative case studies to quantitative analyses to formal models - and to expand the range of historical information that is available for scholarly use. The broad goal of the conference is to encourage discussion and debate among scholars that might not otherwise cross intellectual paths.

Since the first conference was held in 2002 at Columbia University, scholars in American Political Development, Congress, and History have been coming together to create a deeper understanding of the historical evolution of American politics through the lens of the American Congress. Over the past decade, conferences have been held at the following institutions: the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (2003), Stanford University (2004), Washington University at St. Louis (2005), Yale University (2006), Princeton University (2007), George Washington University (2008), the University of Virginia (2009), the University of California at Berkeley (2010), and Brown University (2011).

This year we are holding several joint sessions on Friday afternoon with the Association of Centers for the Study of Congress (ACSC), who will be hosting their annual conference at UGA focusing on archival research. All interested participants are encouraged to attend the Friday afternoon sessions.

The Congress & History Conference at the University of Georgia is supported by the Department of Political Science in the School of Public and International Affairs and Keith T. Poole, the Philip H. Alston Jr. Distinguished Chair of Political Science.