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Penn Law and the National Constitution Center Welcome Visiting Scholars Richard Allen and Geoffrey Stone

November 23, 2010

Richard Allen, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, and Geoffrey Stone, a professor and former dean of the University of Chicago Law School, are the 2010-11 NCC-Penn Law visiting scholars.
Richard V. Allen
Geoffrey R. Stone

The University of Pennsylvania Law School, in partnership with the National Constitution Center, announced today the appointment of Richard V. Allen, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, and Geoffrey R. Stone, Edward H. Levi distinguished service professor and former dean of the University of Chicago Law School, as 2010-11 visiting scholars.

The Visiting Scholars Program is a partnership between Penn Law and the National Constitution Center that brings distinguished constitutional scholars from across the country to Philadelphia to participate in educational outreach programs and to undertake research and writing projects. The program is designed to engage scholars with the general public, bridging the divide that sometimes separates academia from the community at large. Visiting scholars have participated in programs ranging from informal talks to formal academic lectures, and have produced written materials for popular audiences. Geoffrey Stone previously participated in the Center’s annual Supreme Court Preview on September 20 and Richard Allen explored the question, “What is national security,” during the first of a two-part lecture series on November 15. Additional programs featuring the 2010-11 visiting scholars will be announced at a later date.

“We are delighted to welcome these distinguished constitutional experts as NCC-Penn Law visiting scholars,” said Penn Law Dean Michael A. Fitts. “Richard Allen and Geoffrey Stone will bring not only deep understanding but also intellectual diversity to the public discourse on today’s critical constitutional issues.”

“From Vietnam onward, Richard Allen has been one of the foremost architects of America’s military strategy and national security policy,” said National Constitution Center President and CEO David Eisner. “His perspective will be essential as all Americans and our leaders wrestle with where to go from here as we struggle to protect both our citizens’ physical safety and their constitutional rights. Geoffrey Stone’s expertise in civil rights, constitutional law, and the First Amendment makes him a great asset to the Center as we continue to serve as a forum for lively, meaningful discourse on constitutional issues. We are proud to welcome them both as 2010-11 visiting scholars.”

Richard Allen is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, concentrating on foreign and national security policy, international trade and economic policy, and Asia and the Pacific Basin. He previously served as Richard Nixon’s foreign policy coordinator and served twice in the Nixon White House. Allen also served as Ronald Reagan’s chief foreign policy adviser from 1977 to 1980, and as President Reagan’s first national security adviser from 1981 to 1982. A Hoover fellow since 1983, he is currently a member of the U.S. Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee.

Geoffrey Stone has been a member of the University of Chicago law faculty since 1973, specializing in constitutional law. From 1987 to 1993, he served as dean of the University of Chicago Law School, and from 1993 to 2002, he served as provost of the University of Chicago. Stone recently authored two books, Top Secret: When Our Government Keeps Us in the Dark and War and Liberty: An American Dilemma. He received numerous national awards for his book, Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime from the Sedition Act of 1798 to the War on Terrorism. In addition, he is editor-in-chief of a fifteen-volume series, Inalienable Rights, which is being published by the Oxford University Press.

The Visiting Scholars Program is an outgrowth of the alliance between the University of Pennsylvania and the National Constitution Center, which began in 1997 and has expanded significantly since the Center opened in 2003.