BRIDGES - Kennedy Center - Brigham Young University

16
1987
African studies minor proposed
David M. Kennedy and Jeffrey R. Holland visited Jordan
and met with King Hussein
David M. Kennedy biography published, Martin B.
Hickman, author
Berkeley Spencer replaced Merlin D. Compton as LAS
coordinator
Canadian Studies Outreach conference
Royal Jordan Airlines funds scholarships for Near
East Studies
David M. Kennedy Center for
International Studies
Ray C. Hillam
1985–1991
Ray C. Hillam took over the reins at the Kennedy Center in
1985. He brought a unique perspective to the role of director,
thanks in part to firsthand experience with international politics
and conflict.
The only Kennedy Center director who did not attend BYU
as a student, Hillam received his BA in political science from
the University of Utah. Hillam earned an MA from George
Washington University and a PhD from American University.
Throughout his schooling, Hillam focused primarily on international
relations and Asian studies.
Though he began his teaching career at BYU in 1960,
Hillam’s professional career began several years earlier, when
he spent three years in the U.S. Army in Tokyo, Japan, as a
research assistant in psychological warfare during the Korean
War and a Chinese intelligence analyst for the CIA. In 1966
Hillam spent a year as a Fulbright scholar in Vietnam and as
an advisor to the Vietnamese Political Warfare College. He
received a second Fulbright in 1973, teaching for a year in
Taipei, Taiwan. He also finished his teaching career as a
Fulbright scholar to China in 1992, where he taught future
Chinese diplomats at the Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Beijing
Foreign Affairs College.
Hillam has excelled in academia. He received numerous
teaching awards, including the Karl G. Maeser Distinguished
Teaching Award and the Phi Kappa Phi Faculty Award.
Hillam’s administrative experience included eight years as
coordinator of the IR program he started in 1963, nine years
as Political Science Department chair, and director of five
study abroad programs. He was well suited for his role as
Kennedy Center director.
Though now an emeritus professor, Hillam remains interested
in the Kennedy Center and in international studies.
Lectures:
Guo Sungyi, director of Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing
Arnold Chao, Foreign Language press, Beijing
Father Bartolome Vicens Fiol, personal chaplain of King Juan Carlos
Gregory Newell, U.S. Ambassador to Sweden
His Excellency Frederick Chien, Chinese Ambassador to the U.S.
President Gerald R. Ford
Robert Keohone, political science professor, Harvard
Barry B. Hughes, political science professor, Graduate School of
International Studies, University of Denver
Muhammad Kamal, Jordanian Ambassador to the U.S.