Class Covering 'Dysfunctional Congress' Includes Conversation With David Pryor

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Former U.S. Sen. David Pryor speaks on campus in March. Photo by Russell Cothren

A three-part class on the “Dysfunctional World of Congress” culminates May 27 with an evening with former U.S. Sen. David Pryor that is presented free to the public by the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at the University of Arkansas.

Registration for the first two parts of the class is open and there is a $35 fee. The class meets from 2 to 3 p.m. May 14 and May 21, and the free evening with Pryor will be from 6 to 8 p.m. May 27. All three classes will be at the University of Arkansas Global Campus facility at 2 E. Center St. in Fayetteville. More information is available on the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute website.

Pryor served as governor of Arkansas from 1975 to 1979 and currently is a member of the board of trustees of the University of Arkansas. He served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1966 to 1973 and in the U.S. Senate from 1979 to 1997.

Pryor and his wife, Barbara, were instrumental in the establishment in 1999 of the David and Barbara Pryor Center for Arkansas Oral and Visual History at the University of Arkansas. The center’s mission is to document the cultural heritage of Arkansans by collecting oral and moving image resources and to share those resources with scholars, students and the public.

Brinck Kerr, a U of A professor of political science, and Karen Sebold, a U of A political science instructor, are teaching the first two class sessions. They will focus on the complex, sometimes-strained relationship between the executive, legislative and judicial branches. Sebold will cover how Congress works in developing, discussing and debating a bill, coupled with the role of lobbyists in the process. Kerr will address the recent slide into gridlock and the reasons behind this near paralysis.

Pryor will discuss his experiences during a time when members of Congress were better able to work together and what has happened in recent decades leading to a dysfunctional system. The evening will offer ample opportunity for people to ask questions.

The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute based in the College of Education and Health Professions offered more than 80 non-credit classes this spring for members aged 50 and older.