Director of U.Va.'s Miller Center of Public Affairs to Retire in
Mid-1998


The governing council of the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the
University of Virginia has announced that its director, Kenneth W.
Thompson, intends to retire in mid-1998.
The Miller Center, one of the foremost institutes in the country for
the scholarly study of the American presidency, was founded in 1975.
Thompson has been its director since 1978.
Council chairman and former Virginia Gov. Linwood Holton praised
Thompson in making the announcement. "No single individual has been
more responsible for the rise to prominence of the Miller Center than
Ken. His extraordinary energy and unwavering focus have helped shape
an institution that has earned broad endorsements as a non-partisan
research and public service asset to the American government and its
citizenry."
During Thompson's tenure, the Miller Center's mission to understand,
study and offer insightful opinion on the effective function of the
presidency has resulted in a multifaceted series of unique programs.
Under his leadership, the center has facilitated an on-going dialogue
with the public about its work through live forums, a scholarly
journal and a new PBS television series.
Resident and visiting scholars, through research and interviews with
representatives of past presidential administrations, have produced
more than 200 scholarly studies, books and oral histories that have
been made available to incoming presidents, their advisors, and the
educational community.
The center has sponsored eight special commissions on key aspects of
the presidency, including presidential disability, the nomination of
the vice president, and relations with the media.
Thompson came to the Miller Center from a vice presidency of the
Rockefeller Foundation where he served for 13 years. He holds an A.B.
degree in history from Augustana College and a master's and doctorate
in political science and international relations from the University
of Chicago. He is also the recipient of eight honorary doctorate
degrees.
He will continue as a professor in the U.Va. department of government
and foreign affairs following his retirement from the Miller Center.
The Washington office of an international executive search firm,
Heidrick & Struggles, will conduct a nationwide search for Dr.
Thompson's replacement.
For more information contact Carol Wood at U.Va. News Services, (804)
924-6189.