MA in Government
470.015 Symposium (noncredit; required fall and spring semesters)
Advanced Academic Programs
The Johns Hopkins University
Co-Directors: Professor Paul Weinstein Jr., pweinst3@jhu.edu
Professor James Norton, jnorto14@jhu.edu
The Wednesday Night Symposia Series is required for all students enrolled in Government Program courses in the fall and spring semesters (there is no symposium requirement for summer or intensive sessions). The Symposia brings noted speakers to Johns Hopkins University in order to build community and give students the chance to interact with leaders in their fields.
Official symposia are held (with an occasional exception) on Wednesday nights from 8:05 PM to 9:05 pm in rooms LL6 & LL7 at 1717 Massachusetts Avenue, NW, a short walk from the DuPont Circle Metro stop on the Red Line.
**NEW THIS SEMESTER: This year, the symposia series will be co-directed by the Government and the Global Security Studies programs. Students in the Government program will be supervised by Professor Weinstein while students in the Global Security Studies program will be overseen by Professor Norton. Students in either program can attend any of the official symposia, whether it is moderated by Professor Weinstein or Professor Norton. However, the moderator of the particular symposia will provide the essay question and grade the papers.
Papers submitted by those attending alternative symposia will be graded according to their program (Professor Weinstein for Government students and Professor Norton for Global Security Studies students).
EMAIL LISTS: The symposium program communicates with students via an e-mail list. It is the responsibility of students to make sure their names are on the list. If you have registered for the symposium in the fall and spring semesters, you should be on the e-mail list. If you are not receiving announcements, you should contact submitpapers@jhu.edu ASAP.
REQUIREMENTS:Every student taking classes in the Government & Global Studies program must also enroll in the Symposium. For each class that a student takes, he or she must attend and write a response paper for two talks. (1 Class = 2 papers, 2 Classes = 4 papers). Papers should be from 350 to 500 words in length. All papers must respond directly and specifically to the question assigned by Professor Weinstein or Professor Norton at the end of each symposium. Each paper is due in by 5:00 PM on the Wednesday following the event. Students will not receive credit for late papers except in the case of serious illness or other emergency. Papers are marked on a pass/fail basis and will not be returned.
PLEASE NOTE: Students enrolled in any of the following courses: Independent Study, Pre-Thesis, Intro to Graduate Work, Summer/Intensive courses, online courses and Research and Thesis (470.800) are exempt from the symposium requirement. Also, students who are taking an elective course outside the Government or Global Studies Program are exempt from the symposium requirement.
OFFICIAL SYMPOSIUM MINIMUM REQUIREMENT: In meeting their Symposia requirement, all students must attend at least 2 of the "official" Wednesday Night Symposia (see "Fall 2009 Schedule of Speakers" listed below). Students who are enrolled in 2 or more courses in the Government Program may use alternative symposia (see "Alternative Symposia") to meet their symposia requirement once they have met the "official" symposium minimum.
Students receiving a failing mark will be notified. Professors Weinstein and Norton will read all papers and periodically send out commentary on overall content and quality.
SUBMITTING PAPERS: Students must submit papers by emailing them to submitpapers@jhu.edu . Students should not submit papers to professors Weinstein or Norton directly. Emails should have subject lines that follow the following format:
SUBJECT: [speaker name], [student last name], [student first name], [student email]
All papers should have a clear heading in the upper left-hand corner of each page. The format should be as follows:
[Student Name]
[Name of Speaker]
[Student E-mail Address]
[Program (Government or Global Security Studies]
COURTESY: Students are expected to show up on time. And except in an emergency, students who attend a symposium are expected to stay until the end of the symposium. Of course, all cell phones should be turned off. When asking a question students are expected to raise their hand and give their names. During the question period, students are welcome to challenge the speakers in a respectful manner and engage in spirited debate, but reminded to do so using appropriate and respectful language, sticking to the subject of the talk, and asking genuine questions in a concise way.
ALTERNATIVE TALKS AND LECTURES: From time to time professors Weinstein or Norton will post notice of events that they have approved as alternative symposia. Also, all open lectures at the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), The Brookings Institution, or The Carnegie Endowment for Peace can qualify as alternative symposia without asking for approval. Students wanting to use other events as alternatives, either at the Homewood campus or elsewhere must get prior approval from Professor Weinstein (Government) or Professor Norton (Global Security Studies). Please contact them at the email addresses above.
NOTE: Television programming and films not accompanied by a lecture are not suitable as alternative symposia.
ALTERNATIVE SYMPOSIA LIST
Here is a list of the think tanks which sponsor events that can serve as alternative symposia without advance permission from professors Weinstein (Government) and Norton (Global Security Studies):
The Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS ): http://apps.sais-jhu.edu/insider/this_week_calendar.php
The Brookings Institution: http://www.brookings.edu/comm/ comm_hp.htm (You can sign-up for their Bi-Alerts at the right-hand side of the page by entering your email address.)
The Carnegie Endowment for Peace: www.carnegieendowment.org/events
Progressive Policy Institute - http://www.ppioneline.org
American Enterprise Institute: http://www.aei.org/events/filter.all/events.asp
Cato Institute: http://www.cato.org/events/calendar.html
Heritage Foundation: http://www.heritage.org/Press/Events/index.cfm
New America Foundation: http://www.newamerica.net/index.cfm?pg=Events&AllOf=
National Press Club: http://npc.press.org/calendar/calendar.cfm
Institute for Politics, Democracy and the Internet: http://www.ipdi.org/calendar/?Timeframe=All
Elliott School of International Affairs: http://www.gwu.edu/~elliott/events/
Aspen Institute: http://www.aspeninstitute.org/site/c.huLWJeMRKpH/b.651809/k.8AAD/Our_Calendar_of_Events/apps/cd/month.asp Center for American Progress:
http://www.americanprogress.org/site/apps/nl/newsletter3.asp?c=biJRJ8OVF&b=593305
Center for Democracy and Technology: http://www.cdt.org/
The Wilson Center : http://www.wilsoncenter.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=events.welcome
The National Archives: www.archives.gov
FALL 2009 SCHEDULE OF SPEAKERS: (REVISED OCTOBER 29TH)
| September 16, 2009 |
Edmund Haislmaier |
|
October 7, 2009 |
Dr. Tami Biddle |
|
October 13, 2009(Tuesday) |
Dr. Emily Landau Senior Research Institute for National Security Studies (Tel Aviv) Topic: Israel and America: Perspectives on a Nuclear Iran |
| October 14, 2009 |
Major General Errol R Schwartz |
|
October 22, 2009 |
General Michael Hayden (Ret.) |
|
November 11, 2009 |
Elwood Holstein |
| December 2, 2009 | Martin Baily Former Chair of the President’s Council of Economic Advisors Topic: TBD |