Center for the Study of the North American West

Our History

Stanford historians David M. Kennedy and Richard White founded the Program for the Study of the North American West in September 2002, mobilizing the academic resources of Stanford University to advance scholarly knowledge of the region and to address wider public policy issues related to the economic, political, environmental, and cultural development of the North American West. In early 2005, after receiving a major gift from Stanford alumnus W. “Bill” Lane, the program became the Bill Lane Center for the Study of the North American West.

2002

Professors David M. Kennedy and Richard White found the program and establish a two-year postdoctoral fellowship (expanded in 2005 to two post-doctoral fellowships)

2003

Interdisciplinary colloquium series established to showcase work of Western scholars, journalists, and policymakers, organized by a graduate student advisory committee

Sponsorship of new courses on Western urban history and Silicon Valley

2004

Major conference on U.S. and Canadian urban growth and environmental impacts

Establish consortium of Western academic centers with USC, Huntington Library, and Autry National Center. Create dissertation workshop for advanced graduate students.

2005

Receive major endowment from Bill Lane, matched by the School of Humanities and Sciences

Conference on the image and identity of the West in national media and culture, featuring leading commentators and journalists from major national and regional news outlets

Interdisciplinary conference on initiatives and referenda on the political culture of the West

Create Western internship program, placing Stanford undergraduates in unique opportunities at Yellowstone National Park and other sites around the West

Sponsor new courses on the Western environment, Native Americans, California politics, and Western photography.

Sophomore College, taught by Richard White, on the federal government and the national image of the West, held at Stanford-in-Washington

2006

Research workshop on sustainable forestry in the West

Hire internship coordinator and expand internship program to include Yosemite and Golden Gate National Parks as well as Western legal and media organizations

Create annual prize for student documentary films on Western topics

Interdisciplinary Sophomore College on California Politics and Constitution

Establish Western Enterprise Reporting Fellowship program for working journalists to seed innovative reporting on the West in the national and international media

Establish Visiting Scholars & Writers program to foster original work on the West

Public roundtable on immigration, featuring leading commentators from the U.S. and Mexico

New sponsored courses on land conservation, politics, and the West in fiction and film

2007

Hold conference on the future of salmon fisheries in the West

Further expand internship program to include opportunities at New America Media, the San Francisco Estuary Institute, and the American Prairie Foundation

Sponsor “Walking the Farm,” a walk around the 23-mile perimeter of Stanford’s lands

Hire Tammy Frisby as Executive Director to manage Center operations

New sponsored courses on the literature of the American West, food production and consumption in the West, and direct democracy and term limits

Hire Sue Purdy Pelosi to manage Center Events and Publicity

2008

Move to new home at Stanford’s Energy & Environment Building

Receive generous endowment gift from George and Mary Lou Shott

Philip Fradkin presents his Stegner Biography

Bill Lane Center Open House for the community

2008 Risser Prize Forum

Walk the Farm 2008: Stanford Waterways

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