Larry Gerston

Larry Gerston 2014 Don Edwards Lecture Speaker

A professor emeritus of political science at San Jose State University, Larry Gerston examines the public policy making process.  His Public Policy Making in a Democratic Society: A Guide to Civic Engagement has been heralded for defining "hands on" citizen participation.  Recall! California’s Political Earthquake (with Terry Christensen), was selected as “outstanding academic book of 2004” by the American Library Association.  Larry’s Confronting Reality: Ten Problems Threatening to Implode American Society (and How We Can Fix It) addresses fundamental themes that Americans refuse to face.  His Not So Golden After All: The Rise and Fall of California, has been praised for comprehensively addressing the unique phenomenon known as California.

Larry’s twelfth book, Reviving Citizenship Engagement: Policies to Renew National Community, will be published in December 2014.     

Larry Gerston appears twice weekly as the political analyst at NBC11 (the Bay Area NBC station).  He has been on NBC Nightly News, CBS Evening News, BBC, NPR, and CNN’s Inside Politics and has been quoted in the major print media including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and Los Angeles Times.  He speaks several times each year in the U.S. and abroad on civic engagement and political empowerment.