Alumnus sponsors essay contest award

Connersville, Ind., is a sleepy town. Beside a smattering of bed-and-breakfasts and the annual citywide fish fry, not much leaves the Fayette county seat, located 110 miles from Bloomington.\nThat is, until Bob Guttman.\nRecognized by his parents as "studious but fun," Guttman spent his boyhood throwing wild pitches in Little League games and traveling to his family's summer cabin on Crooked Lake, Mich. \nNow, almost half a decade later, the "Bob" has been replaced with "Robert." No longer does the baseball-crazed Little Leaguer traipse the streets of Connersville, home to 26,000 Hoosiers and the nation's first high school band.\nToday, the IU alumnus resides in a Virginia townhouse, minutes from the nation's capital and worlds away from his birthplace and the former Sigma Alpha Mu fraternity house, his Bloomington home for three years. Now, the 54-year-old Guttman fills his days grilling prominent diplomats and authorities on political and economic issues facing the European Union.\nHe returned to campus Tuesday to present an award he founded to give something back to the University he loves.\nHe said he realized how he could contribute to success in IU's international studies programs -- by sponsoring, under the financial auspices of his magazine, an essay contest awarding $500 to the best commentary on contemporary European issues. \nThe winning essay was chosen by a panel of four judges, including Guttman.\nGuttman presented the award Tuesday in the Oak Room of the Indiana Memorial Union. He also presented his new book, "Europe and the New Century: Visions of an Emerging Superpower." \nThe book focuses on the changing face of Europe and outlines Guttman's perceptions of what struggles the continent will face in coming decades.\nRoy Gardner, chancellor's professor of economics and West European studies, said Guttman's award is a testament to the strength of IU's relationship with alumni. \n"We always like validation from alumni who have gone on to successful careers in exactly what they studied at the undergraduate level," Gardner said. "Guttman is, in effect and by example, promoting confidence for success in our graduates -- and that's a valuable thing."\nAs editor in chief of the Washington, D.C.-based Europe magazine, Guttman's lifestyle clashes with the quiet days spent in his childhood home and at IU. \nSince graduating in 1968 with degrees in history and political science, Guttman's career has carried him from positions as an economist with the U.S. Department of Commerce to press secretary on Capitol Hill. Over the years, the desire to give back to his alma mater intensified, he said.\nMeanwhile, word of his accomplishments carried back to Bloomington.\nGuttman jumped at the chance to appear on campus in April 2000 as the keynote speaker for Model European Union, when asked by Andrea Ciccarelli, French and Italian department chair.\nThe homecoming proved therapeutic for the overworked editor. For two days, he immersed himself in rediscovering the University. He said the experience forced him to confront IU's influence on his professional endeavors.\nThe son of self-made entrepreneurs, Guttman could have opted to remain in Connersville to manage his family's furniture store. Part of IU's seduction stemmed from the prominence of the business school; Guttman originally envisioned a career in management or finance. But one professor changed that.\nRobert Ferrell, a distinguished professor emeritus of history, stands apart to Guttman as "considerably the greatest influence" in his interest in diplomatic affairs. The author of 50 books on American and European history, including 10 on the life of former President Harry Truman, Ferrell "demanded nothing less than excellence" from his students, a standard Guttman said he strives to uphold.\n"I did indeed hold Bob to a high standard of dedication to his studies," Ferrell said. "Yet I did so precisely because I saw in him a potential rare in undergraduates. I wanted to challenge that."\nAnd challenge he did, Guttman said. \n"Professor Ferrell took me aside and said, 'Look, business isn't for you,'" Guttman said. "He said, 'You have potential to excel in this. You just have to work for it.' So I did. I've never worked quite so hard, in fact, to prove myself." \nThe memory of that encounter never left Guttman. \nApplying the work ethic originating from his experiences at IU, he completed graduate study in international relations and economics with honors at American University in Washington, D.C. He then began working as an economist for the U.S. Department of Commerce. Throughout the 1970s, he assisted Democratic candidates with their presidential campaigns. \n"I helped George McGovern lose twice," Guttman said, laughing. "After Jimmy Carter crushed him in the polls in '76, I decided it was time to move away from any direct involvement in politics -- for a while, at least."\nHe chose to write about contemporary political issues instead. \nIn 1979, Guttman founded Political Profiles, a publishing house dedicated to the creation of a nonpartisan political magazine. A year later, Guttman's company achieved that goal. Political Profiles, an impartial journal chronicling up-and-coming politicians and candidates, premiered in 1980, selling thousands of copies across the United States\nFour years later, at the pinnacle of Profile's success, CNN offered Guttman a position as a political analyst on the weekly program "Inside Politics." He also appeared regularly as a political consultant on "Larry King Live" and had his own Saturday morning commentary on National Public Radio.\nIn 1989, with the success of Political Profiles waning, Guttman accepted Europe magazine's offer for the position of editor in chief. Regarded as the "official magazine of the European Union," Europe was looking for "someone to shed a fresh perspective on the pressing issues surrounding the European continent," according to the magazine's publisher, Willy Helin. \nGuttman has surpassed those expectations. \nIn 1992, he launched the Russian edition of Europe and began writing for the European Union magazine in Tokyo. He contributes to Europe's publications in Milan, Copenhagen, Prague, Tokyo, Berlin and Rome. \nReflecting on these successes after his homecoming last year, Guttman noted the dominant influence his undergraduate experience afforded him. \nBasing his decision to establish the award partially on dwindling interest in western Europe on college campuses, Guttman said "it's nice to see universities like IU attempting to preserve the tradition of European study. Indiana's programs influenced my career tremendously, and I'd like to think I can give back to that somehow, to perpetuate the study of European politics"