The Distinguished Americans Program was launched in the fall of 1991 to mark the thirtieth anniversary of the Kennedy administration.
Through this program, the Kennedy Library presents discussions with politicians, educators, writers, scientists, heads of state, public leaders, artists, and entertainers who have helped shape U.S. history since the early 1960s.
The discussions facilitated through the Distinguished Americans Program focus on the contributions these individuals have made to their country and the way in which their perceptions of various events, decisions and leaders have evolved.
Participants and honorees of the Kennedy Library Foundation's Distinguished Americans Program include:
- Henry Kissinger
- James Farmer
- John Kenneth Galbraith
- Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr.
- Douglas Dillon
- Mary McGrory
- Betty Freidan
- Tom Wicker
- Pierre Salinger
- Ben Bradlee
- Roswell Gilpatric
- Louis Harris
- Esther Peterson
- August Heckscher
- Dorothy Height
- George Reedy
- Elizabeth (Liz) Carpenter
- Myer Feldman
- Nicholas Katzenbach
- McGeorge Bundy
- David Broder
- Lee White
- Stewart Udall
- Orville and Jane Freeman
- Archibald Cox
- Marian Wright Edelman
- President George H. W. Bush
- Helen Thomas
- Congressman John Lewis
- Congressman Joe Moakley
- R. Sargent Shriver
- Daniel Schorr
- Senator George Mitchell
- Senator Joseph Lieberman
- Madeleine Albright
- Harry Belafonte
- Senator George McGovern
- Theodore Sorensen
- Diane Nash
- James Baker
- President Bill Clinton
- Senator Hillary Clinton
- Senator Sam Nunn
- Kenneth Feinberg
- Senator John Kerry
- Walter Cronkite