A look at Private Lives and Public Officials: The New Politics will be given in a special presentation by former Massachusetts governor and presidential candidate, Michael Dukakis at Indiana University Northwest on Thursday, April 1. While addressing the issue of recent scrutiny concerning the personal lives of public figures, Dukakis will give his perspective on how this influences the political process from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in Raintree Hall, Room 102.

Dukakis won the Democratic nomination for governor of Massachusetts in 1974 and beat incumbent Governor Frank Sargent in November of that year. Although he was defeated in the Democratic Primary in 1978, Dukakis returned in 1982 and was reelected to an unprecedented third four-year term in 1986 by one of the largest margins in history. In 1986, his colleagues in the National Governors Association voted him the most effective governor in the nation. Dukakis won the Democratic nomination for president in 1988 and was defeated by George Bush. After announcing he would not run for reelection as governor, Dukakis left public office in 1991.

Since that time, Dukakis and wife, Kitty spent time in Australia as guests of the city of Melbourne before going to the University of Hawaii. There, Dukakis served as visiting professor in the political science department and at the School of Public Health. Dukakis has also been a visiting professor at Northeastern University and taught at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He’s published several articles including Compensation and Benefits Management (1993), the Journal of American Health Policy (1992), the Yale Law and Policy Review (1993), and the New England Journal of Medicine (1992).

The Dukakis event is co-sponsored by IU Northwest Division of Public and Environmental Affairs and Political Science and the IU Northwest Chapter of Lambda Alpha Epsilon. The program is free of charge and open to the community.

For more information on the Dukakis event or the IU Northwest Division of Public & Environmental Affairs and Political Science contact the division office at 219-980-6695.