For this Am Civ course, today's class is in D.C.

It will be a long journey to class today for students in American Civilization 280. They're meeting on Capitol Hill. Am Civ Lecturer Frank Luntz and about 50 students from his Campaigns, Consultants and Candidates class will travel to the nation's capitol for a packed schedule of debates and discussions with political experts and politicians. Luntz said that he wants his course on political campaigns to go beyond classroom theory and delve into real politics. "You can learn only so much about politics from a classroom," he said. "I want my students to come face to face with real politicos making real decisions and to try to think critically, not just to make assumptions about politics." The class is scheduled to leave Philadelphia early this morning and arrive at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill at 9:30 a.m., where they will hear a lecture on "The Political Legacy of Vietnam and the Iraqi War" from Adrienne Cronauer, the disc jockey the movie Good Morning Vietnam was based on. The students will then participate in a panel discussion entitled "Who's really running the show?" Panelists include Bob Schieffer of CBS News, Cokie Roberts of ABC News, Walter Mondale's 1984 Campaign Manager Bob Beckel, and Pat Caddell, who served on the inner circle of the presidential campaigns of Jimmy Carter, Gary Hart, Joseph Biden, and is currently running Jerry Brown's campaign. The panel discussion, in which students will ask questions of the experts, is expected to be broadcast on the C-SPAN cable network. ABC anchorman Sam Donaldson will then give a speech to the class entitled "Get Yelled At!" from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. The afternoon will include a talk by Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.) on how he won his Senate seat by 1000 votes, and Harrison Hickman, the chief campaign strategist for presidential candidate Sen. Bob Kerry (D-Neb.), who will discuss the 1992 presidential campaign. After meeting with Hickman, the class will meet with two "surprise guests." Luntz said that C-SPAN may cover the entire day's events on a live broadcast starting at 10 a.m. Even if the events are not shown live, highlights would then be shown tonight and throughout the weekend on the cable network. Luntz's students said they are anxiously anticipating the trip and are grateful to have such a special opportunity. "I'm pretty psyched in general," said College sophomore David Seidman. "We're learning from the cream of the crop . . . the names speak for themselves." "Professor Luntz sets the standard for excellence for the study of political science," said College sophomore Jamie Daves. "We're learning from a practitioner, not an observer." Attendance for class members is not mandatory, and Luntz said he is allowing classmates to bring a guest for $15 to cover the cost of students who cannot otherwise go. Luntz added that the student's agenda may extend into the evening, but he said the evening activities are "off the record."

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