A former British prime minister, two ex-presidents and three members of the Little Rock Nine will gather at Central High School today to celebrate with Presidential Leadership Scholars program graduates.
Two conversations will ensue, according to a press schedule. The events are closed to the public but will be streamed live online.
The first is between Ernest Green, Minnijean Brown-Trickey and Carlotta Walls LaNier of the Little Rock Nine, the first black students to integrate Central High in 1957.
The second features former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush as well as Tony Blair, the former British prime minister, and Alexis Herman, co-chairman of the Presidential Leadership Scholars Advisory Committee.
Hal Bass, a professor of political science at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkadelphia, said that Little Rock has not suffered a shortage of visits from heads of state. Former prime ministers have lectured in Arkansas, and the 2004 opening of the Clinton Presidential Center yielded visits by several former U.S. presidents.
That being said, Bass said, today's events should be special.
"It's a big deal, obviously, anytime you have former presidents coming together, particularly former presidents from different political parties," Bass said. "In this polarized age, it has important symbolic significance."
Although Bush, a Republican, and Clinton, a Democrat, hail from different parties and had different challenges as presidents, they had one shared experience: Blair.
"Blair kind of developed his own leadership perspective in the footsteps of Bill Clinton, finding a middle way or third way," Bass said. "And he of course was a stalwart ally of President Bush on the foreign policy front. Blair is a constant there."
More than 600 applied to join the Presidential Leadership Scholars program. Sixty-one will graduate today. This is the program's second class.
According to the Presidential Leadership Scholars website, the program "requires a six-month commitment. During that time, the class meets for an opening week session and one extended weekend per month during the following five months."
The program draws on the resources of the George W. Bush Presidential Center, the Clinton Foundation, the George Bush Presidential Library Foundation and the Lyndon Baines Johnson Foundation.
It is "designed for mid-career leaders from diverse backgrounds who share a commitment to helping solve society's greatest challenges," according to a news release.
"Participants connect with some of the best minds in the study of leadership and benefit from the assets of the Presidential Centers and the insights of former Presidents and the people who served with them," it states.
Davy Carter, a former state House speaker who is one of two Arkansas graduates from last year's class, said he went to the Clinton library to speak with scholars on Tuesday.
"They were having some really powerful discussions about policy views and race relations, the things that have been in the news lately," he said. "Just to hear from that kind of diverse group, how they view things ... understanding where everyone is coming from is a big step."
Carter said he learned a lot about leadership from the program and made lifelong friends, but what he took away was an appreciation and respect for how Bush and Clinton -- politicians of different political persuasions -- each handled issues during their presidencies.
"None of these issues are easy, right? When it gets to certain levels, it's at those levels for a reason," he said. "People never know the full story. They never know each others' actions. They never know the consequences and how you have to weigh those."
Sometimes there isn't a good decision, but people are good and leaders on different sides of the issue do their best, he said.
"I think that the message that this program sends and those people in the crowd send and frankly what 98 percent of the country sends, is we're united," Carter said.
He encouraged Arkansans to apply for next year's class of scholars.
Clinton, whose wife, Hillary, is seeking the presidency, is the headliner at another event Friday in central Arkansas . He will speak at the Democratic Party of Arkansas' 35th annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner at Verizon Arena in North Little Rock.
Information on watching today's events online is available at www.PresidentialLeadershipScholars.org, according to a news release. The program begins at 2:30 p.m.
A Section on 07/14/2016