|
Stephen Hess, a distinguished research professor in the School of Media and Public Affairs, has served on two White House staffs under Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and Richard Nixon, and has advised both Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter.
He began teaching at GW in 2004 after working for The Brookings Institution, a private non-profit research organization, for more than 30 years. He was repeatedly encouraged to come to GW by University President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg and Steve Roberts, J.B. and Maurice C. Shapiro Professor of Media and Public Affairs.
"Steve Hess is a thoughtful, congenial colleague with a recognized reputation in the field," Roberts said. "The many times he is quoted in print articles and TV broadcasts has raised the visibility and authority of SMPA considerably."
Hess said he came to GW because of the students. "We really do have terrific students," Hess said. "They are truly involved in (the) affairs here."
Recently, Hess was selected to participate in the Rockefeller Foundation's month-long conference in Bellagio, Italy. He said the conference in May is "a great honor" for him.
Had Hess' application been turned down, he would have had to wait another 10 years before he could reapply. "My wife said she had never seen me so nervous before. The application took me the entire summer," Hess said.
Hess, a graduate from Johns Hopkins University, said his collegiate experience taught him the importance of mentors. As an undergraduate, Hess developed a friendship with his political science professor, Malcolm Moos. Moos later became president of the University of Minnesota and chief speechwriter for President Eisenhower.
After being drafted and serving with a peacetime army in Germany from the fall of 1958 to Jan. 1961, Hess returned to join Moos as Eisenhower's second speechwriter. Hess joked that he literally took Elvis Presley's place in the army since his division replaced Presley's in Germany. Hess was only 25 years old when he began working at the White House.
