Located within the Kennedy School of Government, the Harvard University Institute of Politics emerged out of the desire to create an organization that would reflect the late President John F. Kennedy's commitment to public service. As such, the Institute of Politics was created in the fall of 1966, and placed under the able direction of Professor Richard E. Neustadt. The Institute of Politics strives to engage young people in politics and public service, and does so by providing a number of internship opportunities, study groups, conferences, and excellent speakers. While some of these programs are limited to Harvard undergraduates, there is a good deal of information for the general public on the site. The research and publications area is a good place to start, as it contains the results of recent polls of the voting tendencies of America's college students, along with previous survey results. This same section also contains an interesting policy paper on youth civic engagement efforts across 11 cities in the U.S. The real highlight of the site is the video archive that presents recent Forum events in streaming video format. Visitors can peruse events from 2001 to the present day, and the topics covered in these erudite forums are quite wide-ranging. Recent forum topics have included "Gays and God: Being LGBT and a Person of Faith" and "The Challenge of Resolving Conflicts & Developing Africa".
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