Lawrence Rothenberg, an expert on interest groups and environmental politics, has been named the Corrigan-Minehan Professor of Political Science in the College of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering at the University of Rochester. The professorship supports a scholar who epitomizes the research and teaching excellence of the late political scientist William F. Riker. It was endowed through a gift from E. Gerald Corrigan and his wife, University Trustee Cathy E. Minehan, '68.
"I'm delighted that the University is able to recognize Larry Rothenberg's imaginative scholarship and significant contributions to political science thanks to the vision and generosity of Jerry Corrigan and Cathy Minehan," said University President Joel Seligman.
Corrigan, a former chief executive officer of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, is a managing director at Goldman Sachs. The professorship is part of a $3 million gift to the University of Rochester, which also will be used to fund scholarships. Minehan, former chief executive and president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, now works at Arlington Advisory Partners in Boston.
Rothenberg, who originally joined the University of Rochester in 1989, is the former director of the W. Allen Wallis Institute of Political Economy at the University. From 2002 to 2005, Rothenberg taught at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. During that time he was named Max McGraw Distinguished Professor of Management and the Environment, and director of the Ford Center on Global Citizenship. Rothenberg returned to the University of Rochester in 2005.
Rothenberg, who received his doctoral degree from Stanford University in 1986, is the author of numerous journal articles and four books: Environmental Choices: Policy Responses to Green Demands (CQ, 2002), Why Governments Succeed and Why They Fail (Harvard University Press, 2001; with Amihai Glazer); Regulation, Organizations, and Politics: Motor Freight Policy at the Interstate Commerce Commission (The University of Michigan Press, 1994), and Linking Citizens to Government: Interest Group Politics at Common Cause (Cambridge, 1992).
Gerald Gamm, chair of the Department of Political Science, said Rothenberg is unique in his field because he integrates the study of interest groups, bureaucracy, and regulation, rather than examining interest groups in a vacuum.
"Typically, students of interest groups focus on the inner workings of these groups or the interplay between them and the agencies with which they interact," Gamm said. "But Larry goes much further, showing how decisions by presidents affect negotiations between interest groups and agencies, how courts matter to the process, and how policy is both a consequence and a cause of the mobilization of members in these groups."
Riker, who came to the University of Rochester in 1962, revolutionized the modern study of political science. He helped create the field of positive political theory and demonstrated the value of rigorous, scientific theory for understanding empirical regularities in politics. With his colleagues and their students, Riker established the University's Department of Political Science as one of the nation's leading centers of political science.
Corrigan, an economist who earned his master's and doctoral degrees from Fordham University, is a participating managing director at Goldman Sachs. Prior to joining Goldman in 1994, he served the Federal Reserve for 25 years. His contribution to monetary policy setting as vice chairman of the Federal Open Market Committee for 10 years and to a variety of financial stability issues had national and international impact.
Minehan, who earned a bachelor of arts degree in political science from the College of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering at the University of Rochester in 1968, is well-known for her work in national and international payment systems. She has served as a trustee of the University of Rochester since 1995 and is chair of the executive committee of the Board of Trustees. She holds an MBA from New York University.
About the University of Rochester The University of Rochester (www.rochester.edu) is one of the nation's leading private universities. Located in Rochester, N.Y., the University gives students exceptional opportunities for interdisciplinary study and close collaboration with faculty through its unique cluster-based curriculum. Its College of Arts, Sciences, and Engineering is complemented by the Eastman School of Music, Simon School of Business, Warner School of Education, Laboratory for Laser Energetics, Schools of Medicine and Nursing, and the Memorial Art Gallery.