First Ladies & The White House:
Initiatives and Impact
March 11, 2025
9:00 AM to 1:00 PM
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum

This symposium will utilize National Archives records to explore the evolution of the modern office of the First Lady. It will highlight Pat Nixon's pivotal role in shaping this position and her initiatives to restore and renovate the White House during the Nixon Administration.

First Lady Pat Nixon and White House Curator Clement Conger in the renovated White House Red Room. (Image: WHPO - 5596-17)

Schedule

Tuesday, March 11

8:30 AMGuest Welcome and Check-In

9:00 AMOpening Remarks

Secretary Barbara Franklin

9:15 AMThe Changing Role of the First Lady

A look into the role of the First Lady and how it changed drastically, beginning with Eleanor Roosevelt and continuing today.

Alan Lowe, moderator
Heath Hardage Lee
Nancy Kegan Smith
Diana Carlin
Anita McBride

10:40 AMThe People's House

A look at White House restoration and collections over time. This panel highlights First Lady Pat Nixon's work to restore/renovate the White House and add to its legacy.

Lina Mann, moderator
Bob Bostock
Matthew Costello
Patrick Phillips-Schrock
Robert Klara

12:00 PMLuncheon and Remarks

Remarks from Kara Blond
Moderated Q&A with Donna Hayashi Smith, White House Curator, and Tamara Martin, Director of the Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum

1:00 PMClosing Remarks

PARTICIPANTS

Kara Blond Executive for Presidential Libraries

Robert Bostock Curator, Pat Nixon Centennial Exhibit

Dr. Diana B. Carlin Professor Emerita of communication at Saint Louis University

Secretary Barbara Franklin 29th U.S. Secretary of Commerce and Director Emerita of the Richard Nixon Foundation

Dr. Matthew Costello Chief Education Officer and Director of the David M. Rubenstein National Center for White House History

Heath Hardage Lee Author of The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon: The Life and Times of Washington’s Most Private First Lady (St. Martin’s Press, 2024)

Donna Hayashi Smith White House Curator

Nancy Kegan Smith Retired director of the Presidential Materials Division at the National Archives and Records Administration and author

Robert Klara Journalist and author of three critically acclaimed books, including The Hidden White House: Harry Truman and the Reconstruction of America’s Most Famous Residence

Joe Lopez Acting President & CEO, Richard Nixon Foundation

Alan Lowe Host and producer of the podcasts American POTUS and American FLOTUS and the Executive Director of the American Museum of Science and Energy and the K-25 Atomic History Center

Anita McBride Director of the First Ladies Initiative at American University, School of Public Affairs

Lina Mann Historian at the White House Historical Association

Tamara K. Martin Director, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum

Patrick Phillips-Schrock Author of THE WHITE HOUSE; AN ILLUSTRATED ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY (2013) and THE NIXON WHITE HOUSE ACQUISITION AND REDECORATION PROGRAM; AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY (2016).

REGISTRATION

Tickets
Panels and Luncheon- March 11, 2025 Includes full symposium access including lunch and a ticket to tour the Nixon Library post-event. Limited seating available.

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