White House Food History Symposium Schedule
May 8, 2025
9:00 am – 9:40 am: Breakfast
9:40 am: Welcome
- Stewart McLaurin, President, The White House Historical Association
- Anthea Hartig, Elizabeth MacMillan Director, Smithsonian National Museum of American History
9:50 am – 10:50 am: What is Food History?
- Paula Johnson, Curator and Director of the Food History Project, Smithsonian National Museum of American History
- Steve Velasquez, Curator, Division of Home and Community Life, Smithsonian National Museum of American History
- Ashley Young, Historian and Smithsonian Research Associate
- Moderator: Matthew Costello, Chief Education Officer, The White House Historical Association
Break (10 minutes)
11:00 am – 12:00 pm: Presidential and White House Foodways
- Claire Jerry, Curator, Division of Political History, Smithsonian National Museum of American History
- Lina Mann, Historian, The White House Historical Association
- Jonathan Pliska, Historian and Author
- Moderator: Eitan Bernath, Chef and Content Creator
Lunch
A Taste of History
- Cris Comerford, Former White House Executive Chef
- Moderator: Stewart McLaurin, President, The White House Historical Association
1:45 pm to 2:45 pm: Cooking to a President’s Taste
- Deborah Chang, Author
- Melinda Dart, Author
- Adrian Miller, Historian and Author
- Moderator: Marcia Anderson, Chief Publishing Officer, The White House Historical Association
Break (15 minutes)
3:00 pm to 4:00 pm: Food and Wine in the White House
- Alex Prud’homme, Historian and Author
- Frederick J. Ryan, Jr., Author and Chairman, The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute
4:00 pm – dismissal for the reception