Tribute honoring the life and legacy of Representative Lee H. Hamilton
Representative Lee H. Hamilton devoted his life to strengthening America’s role in the world and upholding the values of democratic governance. Over 34 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, he became a trusted leader of foreign affairs, national security, and bipartisan cooperation – widely respected for his integrity and steady, principled approach to public service.
Representative Lee H. Hamilton devoted his life to strengthening America’s role in the world and upholding the values of democratic governance. Over 34 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, he became a trusted leader of foreign affairs, national security, and bipartisan cooperation – widely respected for his integrity and steady, principled approach to public service.
Hamilton is often described as an "institutionalist" — a believer that Congress is not just a branch of government, but the “first branch” of government, and an essential pillar of democracy. Through his leadership at the IU Center on Representative Government, founded in 1999, he spent his later years calling upon everyday citizens to take part in the political process, bolstering the tenets of the founding fathers, reinforcing the establishment of our co-equal branches of government, and warning against ceding legislative power to the executive branch. The Center became a hub for bipartisan dialogue, reflecting Hamilton’s own career-long commitment to working across the aisle. For over two decades, the IU Center on Representative Government has served as a premier national resource for civic education.
In 2013, Hamilton’s vision was integrated into the broader Hamilton Lugar School of Global and International Studies at Indiana University. The school, named for Hamilton and his Republican counterpart Senator Richard Lugar, stands as a permanent testament to Hamilton's belief that an informed citizenry is the ultimate guardian of liberty. Even after leaving Congress, Hamilton continued teaching and mentoring, meeting with students and encouraging them to ask hard questions and seek common ground.
“Few public servants have shaped our understanding of democracy, global engagement, and principled leadership as profoundly as Lee Hamilton,” said Indiana University President Pamela Whitten. “His lifelong commitment to public service reflects the very best of our democratic ideals and left an enduring impact on our nation.”
Indiana University – and the entire state of Indiana – now reflects on the immense legacy he leaves behind. Hamilton demonstrated that public service, when guided by respect for democratic principles and a belief in the power of dialogue, can change the world for the better.
Read the full statement from President Pamela Whitten on the passing of Lee Hamilton
Learn more about the IU Center on Representative Government
Learn more about the Hamilton Lugar School
IU LAB marks a year of industry partnerships, bioscience startup growth, student innovation
Indiana is a thriving hub of bioscience innovation, recognized globally as a leader in areas like drug discovery, orthopedics, medical devices, radiopharmaceuticals and neuroscience research. At the center of this momentum is Indiana University, where faculty, staff and students are harnessing IU’s $1 billion research enterprise to strengthen Indiana’s booming $99 billion life sciences economy.
In 2023, IU President Pamela Whitten announced a historic investment to accelerate bioscience innovation and improve human health. That commitment was further cemented in 2024 with the launch of the IU Launch Accelerator for Biosciences. Supported by a $138 million Lilly Endowment Inc. grant, IU LAB is a first-of-its-kind academic-industry initiative aimed at making IU and Indiana a global leader in bioscience innovation, talent development and commercialization.
“Indiana is leading the future of biotechnology and life science innovation, and Indiana University is proud to work alongside some of the state’s largest employers to grow Indiana’s research and innovation ecosystem, train the next generation of bioscience leaders, and deliver economic vitality for the state,” IU LAB President and CEO David Rosenberg said. “IU LAB connects IU faculty and students with these partners, who are helping turn our ideas into innovations that will improve health and ultimately strengthen Hoosier communities.”
Even before construction began at its future home in the 16 Tech Innovation District, IU LAB was delivering impact. In its first year, it has mobilized Indiana’s bioscience ecosystem, built partnerships with industry, supported translational research and entrepreneurship, and developed hands-on, real-world opportunities for IU students.
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Learn more about the IU LAB
State Update
This State Update provides a summary of bills the IU State Relations team is tracking and that moved during the seventh week of session. The Indiana House of Representatives reached the third reading deadline on Monday (the Senate’s was last Thursday, Jan. 29). Bills must pass on third reading out of their originating chamber to still be eligible to become law in the second half of session. Of the 452 bills introduced in the House, only 116 or 26%, survived. The Senate passed four fewer bills—112 or 39%, of the 290 introduced. The 228 remaining bills have been assigned to the opposite chamber’s committees and have two more weeks to pass out of committee prior to the Thursday, Feb. 19 committee report deadline.
Read the State Update
Federal Update
This week’s Federal Update covers Congressional and Executive Branch activities of interest in Washington, D.C.
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Economic Engagement Update
IU drug discovery initiative helps researchers move cancer drugs from the lab to patients
An initiative at the Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center is helping researchers move early-stage drug discoveries from the lab to clinical applications that could transform cancer care and advance progress toward cancer cures.
Since its launch in 2019, the cancer center’s Cancer Drug Discovery and Development Accelerator, or CD3A, has partnered with researchers on more than 50 discovery projects, with about 20% of those resulting in startup companies. These projects range from small molecules and cell therapies to repurposed drugs or new combination therapies — all aiming to bring new innovative cancer treatments to patients.
Learn more about the Cancer Drug Discovery and Development Accelerator
Planning grant supports IU artificial intelligence initiative
As artificial intelligence rapidly reshapes how students learn, how faculty teach, and how campuses deliver advising and support, Indiana University has launched a coordinated effort to define how AI will be used across academic and administrative areas.
Supported by a $300,000 planning grant from Lilly Endowment Inc.’s Artificial Intelligence in Higher Education initiative, IU will bring faculty and staff together from across the state to develop a shared, institution-wide roadmap for responsibly integrating AI into curriculum, pedagogy, assessment, student services, workforce alignment and organizational culture.
The planning effort will critically assess where and how generative AI adds real value for teaching, learning, research and university operations — and where it does not — while developing shared principles and decision frameworks to guide thoughtful, responsible and consistent use across IU’s nine campuses.
Learn more about IU’s artificial intelligence initiative
IU in the News
IU Bloomington named top producer for Fulbright U.S. Student Program for 2025-26
Indiana University Bloomington has again been named a Top Producing Institution for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, a national distinction underscoring IU’s role in preparing students for rigorous, globally focused work in research, education and public service.
Twelve IU Bloomington students earned Fulbright awards for this academic year, placing IU among the nation’s top 40 universities, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announced today. A doctoral institution must have at least 10 Fulbright U.S. Students to qualify as a top producer.
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Stronger primary and preventive care could improve health, reduce costs in Indiana, report finds
Targeted investments in primary care and preventive care can significantly improve health outcomes, reduce avoidable high-cost care and strengthen Indiana’s long-term economic competitiveness, according to a new report from the Center for Health Policy at the Indiana University Richard M. Fairbanks School of Public Health at IU Indianapolis.
The report, “Increasing Primary Care and Preventive Care Utilization in Indiana: A State-Level Approach,” was commissioned by the Indiana Business Health Collaborative. It provides Indiana-specific analysis and recommendations for policymakers, employers, insurers and health system leaders as the state pursues strategies to lower health care costs and improve population health.
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Biochemistry lab at IU Bloomington finds chemical solution for tackling antibiotic resistance
Antimicrobial resistance — when bacteria and fungi defend themselves against the drugs design to kill them — is an urgent threat to global public health, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
To combat this threat, the Gerdt Lab at Indiana University Bloomington studies how to weaken bacteria’s defenses against viruses.
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