Noted Author, Educator Appointed to Stamp Selection Committee

WASHINGTON, DC — Postmaster General John Potter today announced the appointment of Fordham University professor Clara Rodriguez to serve on the Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC), which recommends subjects to appear on U.S. postage stamps.

“I am pleased that Professor Rodriguez has accepted my appointment to this distinguished committee,” said Potter. “She has received national acclaim as an educator and is recognized as one of the 100 most influential Hispanic Americans. I am confident she will make significant contributions to our historic stamp program.”

“I consider it a great honor to serve on the Citizens' Stamp Advisory Committee,” said Rodriguez. “The USPS has such a long and storied history, and plays such an important role in the lives of all Americans, that to be a part of that history, and to help select the images that reflect the vitality and diversity of this amazing and constantly changing nation, is a major responsibility, and one I embrace with great enthusiasm.”

The Postal Service receives thousands of suggestions from people every year, but annually only 20 to 25 subjects are commemorated on postage. To narrow the selection, CSAC, which includes a cross section of individuals who reflect a wide range of educational, artistic, historical and professional experience, reviews the suggestions and makes recommendations to the Postmaster General for final approval. The committee recommends subjects with all postal customers in mind, not just stamp collectors. A good mix of subjects, both interesting and educational, is essential.

Clara Rodriguez, Ph.D.

Clara Rodríguez is a professor of sociology at Fordham University’s College at Lincoln Center. She is the author of 10 books, including: Heroes, Lovers, and Others (Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 2004); Changing Race: Latinos, the Census, and the History of Ethnicity in the United States (New York University Press, 2000); Hispanics in the Labor Force: Issues and Policies, with Meléndez, E. and Barry Figueroa, J., Eds., (New York: Plenum Press, 1991); Puerto Ricans: Born in the USA (Boulder, CO.: Westview Press, 1991); and Latin Looks: Images of Latinas and Latinos in U.S. Media (Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1997).

She is the recipient of numerous research and teaching awards, most recently the American Sociological Association’s 2001 Award for Distinguished Contributions to Research in the Field of Latina/o Studies and in 2003 her university’s Award for Distinguished Teaching in the Social Sciences. She also was designated “Distinguished Lecturer” by the Organization of American Historians.

Dr. Rodriguez has been a visiting professor at Columbia University, MIT and Yale University. She also has been a visiting scholar at the Russell Sage Foundation and a senior fellow at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History.

Previously, she was the dean of Fordham University’s College of Liberal Studies. She has written more than 50 articles on Latinos in the United States and is co-author of The Culture and Commerce of Publishing in the 21st Century, Stanford University Press (2007), which won a National Jesuit Book Award in 2007.

She has also been a consultant to a number of television shows and documentaries, most recently Dora, the Explorer and Sesame Street. She was recently elected to a three-year term on the American Sociological Association’s Governing Council and was selected as one of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics” by Hispanic Business, October 2007.

The Postal Service encourages individuals with stamp ideas to submit their suggestions in writing to:

Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee
Stamp Development
U.S. Postal Service
1735 North Lynn St, Room 5013
Arlington, VA  22209-6432

For additional information on the committee and the stamp selection process, visit:http://www.usps.com/communications/organization/csac.htm