The national political director for Dole/Kemp '96, the Republican National Committee's online communications director, two state representatives, a New York Times correspondent, and the former governor of West Virginia have joined the Institute of Politics (IOP) at the Kennedy School of Government as spring 1997 fellows.

The fellows include: Deborah Arnie Arnesen, member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives (1984-1992) and candidate for U.S. Congress, 2nd district New Hampshire (1996); Richard L. Berke, national political correspondent at The New York Times (1986- present) and chief Washington correspondent for the Baltimore Evening Sun (1981-1986); Gaston Caperton, governor of West Virginia (1989-1997); Jill Hanson, national political director of Dole/Kemp '96 (1995-1996) and senior consultant for Jim Edgar for Governor (1994); Robert C. Hayes, House Majority Whip, North Carolina House of Representatives (1994-present) and Republican gubernatorial nominee, North Carolina (1996); and Lisa McCormack, publications and online communications director for the Republican National Committee (1993-present).

"This group of fellows brings a broad range of expertise, background, and political know-how to the IOP," said IOP Director Philip Sharp. "They are a tremendous source of firsthand insight into American politics for our students, the IOP, and the Kennedy School."

The IOP Fellows

Deborah Arnie Arnesen has served as a New Hampshire elected official and community activist for over 15 years. Most recently, she was a candidate for the 105th U.S. Congress from New Hampshire's Second District. In 1992, she was the first woman to be nominated by a major party to run for governor of New Hampshire and she garnered more votes in this race than any other Democratic candidate in state history. Prior to her gubernatorial bid, she was a four-term New Hampshire state representative and has served on the boards of Common Cause, Leadership New Hampshire, and the New Hampshire Sierra Club.

Arnesen received a B.A. cum laude form St. Olaf College, a J.D. from the Vermont Law School, and has been a visiting scholar at Harvard's School of Public Health.

Richard L. Berke, national political correspondent at The New York Times, has reported on national politics for fifteen years. His assignments for The New York Times have included the 1988 and 1992 presidential campaigns, the White House, Congress, campaign finance, domestic politics, and the drug war. He has previously worked as a reporter for the Baltimore Evening Sun, the Minneapolis Tribune, the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, and the Capitol Hill News Service.

Berke received a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he was the managing editor of The Michigan Daily. He also has a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.

Gaston Caperton was governor of West Virginia from 1989 to 1997. In 1991, he was elected chairman of both the Southern Regional Education Board and the Southern Growth Policies Board. As a member of the Democratic Governor's Association (DGA), he served on the

Executive Committee and the Intergovernmental Policy Advisory Committee on U.S. Trade. He was chair of the DGA in 1996.

Caperton graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in business administration.

Jill Hanson, former national political director for Dole/Kemp '96, has managed and consulted for numerous campaigns, including two presidential campaigns, one gubernatorial campaign, and two senatorial campaigns. She has also served as the executive director of Americans for School Choice, as a regional political director (Great Lake and Northeast) for the Republican National Committee, and as the executive assistant to U.S. Sen. John McCain.

Hanson is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Robert C. Hayes is North Carolina's Majority Whip and was the Republican nominee in the 1996 North Carolina governor's race. Owner and president of the Mt. Pleasant Hosiery Mill, he has also served as the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commissioner and on the Governor's Council on Drug Abuse.

Hayes holds a bachelor's degree in history from Duke University.

Lisa McCormack, the publications and online communications director for the Republican National Committee (RNC), is the creator of the RNC's bi-monthly magazine, Rising Tide, the largest opinion magazine in America. The person behind the RNC's Web site "Main Street," she has also created the Monday Briefing, a seven-page RNC newsletter faxed every week to more than 5,000 elected GOP officials, opinion leaders, and members of the media.

McCormack graduated from the University of Oregon in Eugene with a B.S. in telecommunications.