Maris A. Vinovskis, a 1961 graduate, was born in Latvia, was sent with his family to Germany during World War II, and emigrated to Blair, Nebraska, in 1949. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Wesleyan University (1965) and his M.A. (1966) and Ph.D. (1975) from Harvard. After working briefly at the University of Wisconsin, he moved to the University of Michigan where he is the Bentley Professor of History, Research Professor of the Institute for Social Research, and Professor at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. Vinovskis has published ten books, edited seven books, and written over 100 scholarly essays. Among his books are The Origins of Public High Schools, An “Epidemic” of Adolescent Pregnancy?, History and Educational Policymaking, Revitalizing Federal Education Research, and The Birth of Head of Start. He was the Deputy Staff Director to the U.S. House Select Committee on Population in 1978 and served as a consultant on population and adolescent pregnancy issues in the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare in the early 1980’s. He worked on questions of educational research and policy in the Department of Education in the 1990’s. He has received a National Merit Scholarship, a Danforth fellowship, and a Guggenheim fellowship. In addition, he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, National Academy of Education, International Academy of Education, and President of the History of Education Society.