Details of Condoleezza Rice's Memoir Released

Last February the former Secretary of State and National Security Advisor signed a two book deal with Crown Publishing Group. In a statement this week, Ms. Rice revealed that the first book will focus on her childhood in Birmingham, Alabama in the 1950s and '60s against the backdrop of the civil rights movement.

"After I left Washington it seemed important to write about how my very special parents, my extended family and so many mentors shaped me for the challenges that lay ahead. I decided that was the story I wanted to tell first."

The first book will be titled Extraordinary, Ordinary People: A Memoir of Family and is set for an October 12, 2010 release.

Apparently, curious readers will have to wait until the second book to learn more about her time in the Bush administration.

Ms. Rice (we're told she really doesn't like to be addressed as "Dr. Rice") will be bringing her story to The Richmond Forum stage on April 10th and Forum patrons will have the chance to pose their questions to her. (No matter which volume of her life those questions may deal with.)

Obama Asks Plouffe To Oversee Midterm Elections

President Obama has asked David Plouffe to oversee House, Senate and governor's races in the midterm elections. Read more in this New York Times article:

Obama Moves to Centralize Control Over Party Strategy

Plouffe takes The Richmond Forum stage on Saturday, February 6th to address The Future of the Democratic Process in a Tweeting World.

Republican Politicians Make A Social Media Push

Here is a link to an interesting story that aired on NPR about how some Republican politicians are using social media.

In his Richmond Forum program on February 6th, David Plouffe will be talking about how technology and the growing use of social media could reshape the political process in America. In fact, in a recent phone call with Plouffe he told us that very soon the revolutionary use of new technologies by the Obama campaign "will look like Jurassic Park." Should be a fascinating program!

Greg Mortenson on Bill Moyers JOURNAL

This Friday, January 15th, Greg Mortenson is the featured guest on Bill Moyers JOURNAL on PBS. Check your local listings for times.

Greg taped the program just two days before his appearance last Saturday at The Richmond Forum, and I asked him how the interview went. He said it went very well, and that the team at the JOURNAL were so pleased with it that they delayed the program airdate by one week so they would have more time to promote the program. (It was originally scheduled to air last Friday, the night before The Forum.)

Great Feedback on Mortenson

We have been receiving really great feedback on the content of Greg Mortenson's Forum program!

Here are a few comments from subscribers who attended:

• I have attended the Richmond Forum for a number of years and I believe Mr. Mortenson's presentation was one of the best I have attended. This I contribute to the fact that it seems as if he is still untouched by politics and the media in his passion.
• Greg Mortenson's eyes shone with a light more than any other speaker I have seen in around 19 years of attending The Forum. He truly has found his passion.
• One of the best Forum programs I can remember and I've been attending forever!

And my personal favorite comment (no, not submitted by my husband!):

• Met my wife's expectations. Need I say more?

Tickets for this event were in incredibly high demand, and from the volume and enthusiasm of the comments we have received, Mortenson did not disappoint.

Thanks in part to Forum subscribers' donations to the Ralph Krueger Memorial Fund, we were once again able to include over 100 area students in this otherwise sold-out program by setting up a student viewing room at the Landmark Theater where students could watch the program on a large screen. Greg Mortenson visited with the students both before the program and at intermission. His passion for education and his ability to connect and communicate with students was clear the moment he walked into the room. I really think he would have been happy to personally meet and talk with each student if only we had enough time.

Thanks to all who attended, including students from Lee Davis High School, St. Catherine's, University of Richmond, Freeman High School, St. Gertrude's, Midlothian Middle School, Collegiate Middle School, and other area schools in Henrico, Chesterfield, and the City of Richmond.

We've been updating our Forum Facebook over the past several days with photos from the evening and people have been sharing their impressions of the program on our Wall, so be sure to visit and share your own thoughts and opinions!

Midlothian Middle School Students Ready For Greg Mortenson

Here is a great photo of a group of students from Midlothian Middle School. These students and 100 other area students will be viewing Saturday's sold-out program featuring Greg Mortenson from our student viewing room at the Landmark Theater.

1,300 Midlothian Middle School students have read the youth version of Three Cups Of Tea during the last few months. We are delighted that they will be able to participate in the program, thanks in part to subscriber donations to the Ralph Krueger Memorial Fund.

Reaching Students Around The World

Two people who will be in the Richmond Forum audience for the Greg Mortenson program Saturday night (January 9th) are Amy White and Drew Austen, both Richmonders currently on a two-year teaching assignment at the International School of Belgrade in Serbia. Both teachers delayed their flight back to Serbia after the holidays by one day so they could be sure to have the opportunity to hear Greg Mortenson speak here.

Amy is teaching Three Cups of Tea to her students this year. She had hoped to receive the books in time to begin the fall semester, but all of the student copies got held up in being shipped internationally to Belgrade! For the first eight chapters, the class shared one copy and focused on students reading aloud.

The books finally arrived, and then they really began in earnest. They focused on two major themes, the idea of a modern hero and how the concept applies to Greg Mortenson, and looking at the world from a global perspective, using newspaper articles to learn more about current events in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and studying the geography of the region.

When classes resume after the holidays, students will begin to write about their own lives and explore how they have impacted those around them. They were also inspired to begin their own service project related to an issue of local concern, and will be raising money for one of the only animal rescue shelters in Belgrade.

Amy brought a number of questions for Greg Mortenson from her students in Serbia. We'll be sharing them with Greg and maybe even asking some of them from the stage on program night. Just a few of the thoughtful inquiries from these young minds:

• What is the most important thing Haji Ali taught you?
• How has the politics of the area affected your schools?
• Do you want your children to follow in your footsteps?

If you know in advance of a question you would like to ask Greg Mortenson, post it early here on the Forum blog or our Forum Facebook to be considered on program night, or be ready to write your question on the question sheet that will be in your program book and hand it to a student usher at intermission.

We look forward to seeing you at the program on Saturday!