Paul Simon Public Policy Institute
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The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute is located at
Southern Illinois University Carbondale Southern Illinois University (SIU or SIUC) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois. Founded in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. The university enrolls students from all 50 s ...
. It was founded by
Paul Simon Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actor whose career has spanned six decades. He is one of the most acclaimed songwriters in popular music, both as a solo artist and as half of folk roc ...
, a former two-term U.S. Senator from Illinois and one-time candidate for the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
nomination for
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...
. Opening in 1997, the Institute differentiates itself from similar organizations by working directly with elected officials and others to fashion and implement change in public policy. The institute is
bipartisan Bipartisanship, sometimes referred to as nonpartisanship, is a political situation, usually in the context of a two-party system (especially those of the United States and some other western countries), in which opposing political parties find co ...
and sponsors many on-campus programs featuring state and local politicians, educators, entrepreneurs, and many others. Throughout the year, the institute hosts lectures and conferences around relevant topics featuring significant and controversial issues impacting the region, the state, the nation, and the world. Located at SIUC, the Institute offers a variety of opportunities for students, including legislative internship programs and the Paul Simon Institute Ambassadors, which allows students to network and volunteer their time in assisting the Institute staff in outreach efforts to the campus and community. The current director of the Institute i
John T. Shaw
an author and journalist who for more than 20 years covered the
United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
for
Market News International Market is a term used to describe concepts such as: *Market (economics), system in which parties engage in transactions according to supply and demand *Market economy *Marketplace, a physical marketplace or public market Geography *Märket, an ...
, a global financial wire service. His published works include
JFK in the Senate: Pathway to the PresidencyWashington DiplomacyThe Ambassador: Inside the Life of a Working DiplomatRichard G. Luger, Statesman of the Senate
an
Rising Star, Setting Sun: Dwight D. Eisenhauer, John F. Kennedy, and the Presidential Transition that Changed America
Previous directors include David Yepsen, who served from 2009 to 2016, and Mike Lawrence, who served as director from 2004 to 2008. Simon served as Institute director from 1997 to his death in 2003. Simon died in
Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the capital of the U.S. state of Illinois and the county seat and largest city of Sangamon County. The city's population was 114,394 at the 2020 census, which makes it the state's seventh most-populous city, the second largest o ...
following
heart surgery Cardiac surgery, or cardiovascular surgery, is surgery on the heart or great vessels performed by cardiac surgeons. It is often used to treat complications of ischemic heart disease (for example, with coronary artery bypass grafting); to corr ...
at the age of 75 in 2003.


Initiatives


Restoring American Statesmanship: A Citizen's Guide

In March 2020, the Institute publishe
"Restoring American Statesmanship: A Citizen's Guide,"
a resource for elected officials, businesses, schools, foundations, civic groups and policy institutes. The publication seeks to imagine what a rebirth of statesmanship will look like in Illinois and the United States during a pivotal time in American history.


Speaker Series & Events

The institute regularly hosts lectures and speaker series, including Pizza & Politics, which connects students and the community to political figures. Its Women's Government Day and Youth Government Day bring women and young people to the Illinois Capitol in Springfield. And its Metro East Youth Leadership Weekend brings young African American men from the Metro East St. Louis area to campus for leadership development and community service. During the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, the Institute launched the livestream discussion serie
"Understanding Our New World,""Illinois Authors,"
an
"Meet the Mayor."


Understanding Our New World

Government and private sector leaders, policy experts, historians, diplomats, philanthropists and military leaders have joined Institute Director John Shaw to discuss how our political, economic, and social changes are influencing our present and future. Notable guests have included former Irish President
Mary Robinson Mary Therese Winifred Robinson ( ga, Máire Mhic Róibín; ; born 21 May 1944) is an Irish politician who was the 7th president of Ireland, serving from December 1990 to September 1997, the first woman to hold this office. Prior to her electi ...
, former Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations
Jan Eliasson Jan Kenneth Eliasson (born 17 September 1940) is a Swedish diplomat who was Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations from July 2012 to December 2016. A member of the Swedish Social Democratic Party, Eliasson served as Minister for Forei ...
, former U.S. presidential candidate
Pete Buttigieg Peter Paul Montgomery Buttigieg ( ; ; Sometimes pronounced or , but not by Buttigieg himself. born January 19, 1982) is an American politician and former military officer who is currently serving as the United States secretary of transp ...
, New America CEO
Anne-Marie Slaughter Anne-Marie Slaughter (born September 27, 1958) is an American international lawyer, foreign policy analyst, political scientist and public commentator. From 2002 to 2009, she was the Dean of Princeton University's School of Public and Internat ...
, and U.S. Senator
Tammy Duckworth Ladda Tammy Duckworth (born March 12, 1968) is an American politician and retired Army National Guard lieutenant colonel serving as the junior United States senator from Illinois since 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she represented Ill ...
.


Illinois Authors

This speaker series provides a venue for book and author discussions focusing on Illinois history, politics, economics, sports, and culture. The series was launched as a virtual speaker series during the COVID-19 pandemic, but in-person events are expected to be held in 2022.


Meet the Mayor

This virtual speaker series features conversations with mayors from around Illinois.


Renewing Illinois

This Initiative is built around an annual summit of college students, historical case studies and commemorations, and over-the-horizon seminars by leading analysts on the future challenges confronting Illinois. The Institute launched th
Renewing Illinois Student Summit
in the spring of 2019 with a summit of university students from across the state. The inaugural event's theme was "Ambitious Dreams and Practical Steps to Revive the Prairie State." In 2020, the theme was to be "One Illinois: Noble Aspiration or Impossible Dream?" The 2020 summit was reformatted due to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, and the Institute developed a booklet with letters from Illinois General Assembly leaders, a reflection of the time by one of the state's leading historians, and several travel essays that underscore the beauty and diversity of the state. While preparing for the 2020 summit, the Institute asked 25 prominent Illinoisans to respond to the question: "If you were teaching an 'Illinois 101' course to highly motivated undergraduates, what five books would you assign them to read?" The result is the Institute'
"Illinois 101 Recommended Reading List"
containing essential reading about Illinois history and politics. The Institute in 2021 launched th
Future of Illinois Project
which will convene demographers, historians, political scientists, social activists, futurists, and business leaders to peer out over the horizon and assess the fundamental challenges facing Illinois.


Paul Simon-Jim Edgar Prairie State Statesmanship Award

On Nov. 16, 2020, former Illinois Gov. Jim Edgar and Paul Simon Public Policy Institute Director John Shaw announced a new annual award that celebrates exceptional leadership in Illinois. The award recognizes leaders who display vision, courage, compassion, civility, effectiveness and bipartisanship in their work. The award will be announced at the August meeting of the Edgar Fellows Program. The inaugural award in 2021 recognized 11 Republican members of the Illinois General Assembly who supported a critical budget package in July 2017 to end the
Illinois budget impasse The Illinois Budget Impasse was a 793-day-long budget crisis in the state of Illinois. From July 1, 2015, to August 31, 2017, Illinois was without a complete state budget for fiscal years 2016, 2017, and part of 2018. As a result, many state agenci ...
. The GOP lawmakers joined with Democrats to override then-Governor Bruce Rauner's veto of a budget compromise. This vote ended the two-year fiscal stalemate that tarnished Illinois' reputation, damaged schools, battered the state's credit rating, and led to about $15 billion in unpaid bills. The budget that emerged allowed Illinois to avoid further downgrading of its debt and ensured that state government would resume regular operations.


Simon Review

The Simon Review
is a series of research papers that explore public policy issues, especially in Illinois. In 2021, Steve Brown, press secretary for longtime Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, wrote an exit essay detailing his time working in legislative communications in the statehouse. Professors John Jackson and John Foster also updated their research on the Illinois public budgeting process, finding that despite political messaging, downstate Illinois receives more from public coffers than it contributes in tax dollars.


History

Paul Simon lived for many years in the small town of
Makanda Makanda is a village in Jackson County, Illinois, Jackson County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 547, down from 561 in 2010. In the early 20th Century it used the slogan "Star of Egypt." Makanda is ...
, south of Carbondale, where he was a professor and director of the SIU Public Policy Institute. There, he worked to foster the Institute into becoming a thinktank that could advance the lives of all people. Activities included going to
Liberia Liberia (), officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the West African coast. It is bordered by Sierra Leone to Liberia–Sierra Leone border, its northwest, Guinea to its north, Ivory Coast to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean ...
and
Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...
to monitor their elections, bringing major
speakers Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...
to campus, denouncing the
death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...
, trying to end the
United States embargo against Cuba The United States embargo against Cuba prevents American businesses, and businesses organized under U.S. law or majority-owned by American citizens, from conducting trade with Cuban interests. It is the most enduring trade embargo in modern hist ...
, fostering political courage among his students, and promoting
amendment An amendment is a formal or official change made to a law, contract, constitution, or other legal document. It is based on the verb to amend, which means to change for better. Amendments can add, remove, or update parts of these agreements. They ...
s to the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...
to end the Electoral College and to limit the president to a single six-year term of office. Concerning the Electoral College during the controversial Election 2000 fiasco, Simon said, "I think if somebody gets the majority vote, they should be president. But, I don't think the system is going to be changed." Simon believed modern presidents practice "followship" rather than
leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...
: "We have been more and more leaning on
poll Poll, polled, or polling may refer to: Figurative head counts * Poll, a formal election ** Election verification exit poll, a survey taken to verify election counts ** Polling, voting to make decisions or determine opinions ** Polling places o ...
s to decide what we're going to do, and you don't get leadership from polls... and not just at the presidential level. It's happening with senators, House members and even
state legislator A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Stat ...
s sometimes
hen they Hen commonly refers to a female animal: a female chicken, other gallinaceous bird, any type of bird in general, or a lobster. It is also a slang term for a woman. Hen or Hens may also refer to: Places Norway *Hen, Buskerud, a village in Ringe ...
conduct polls to find out where people stand on something."Simon: Time to reinvent the presidency
Jason Coker


References


External links


Paul Simon Public Policy Institute
{{Authority control Southern Illinois University Carbondale 1997 establishments in Illinois