With a goal of expanding the work and reputation of the New Hampshire Institute of Politics as a "center for political and civic thought," officials at St. Anselm College have established an influential advisory board, the college said yesterday.

Sen. Judd Gregg and Secretary of State William Gardner were announced as the leaders of a new advisory board to help St. Anselm "expand its role in the state and national dialogue about democracy, government and the major issues facing our country," the college said.

Gregg will serve as chair and Gardner as vice chair. New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte, political analyst Mark Halperin, J. "Bonnie" Newman, director of FairPoint Communications, and Steve Scully, political director for C-SPAN, are among those who will serve on the board.

Established in 2001, the institute has become a focal point of dialogue on government and politics, especially during presidential primary campaigns.

"The institute has reached a level of maturity at this point where it is helpful to bring others into the dialogue and help us plan what we might be able to do on both a continuing basis and during the high points of the presidential primary years," said college president Father Jonathan DeFelice, O.S.B.

DeFelice said the college is hoping for more speakers programs and other programs to serve its students and the community at large.

"I'm very impressed by the people we have on the advisory board and I am very, very grateful to Senator Gregg because this is not the type of thing he usually does," he said. DeFelice called Gregg and Gardner "key figures in New Hampshire politics."

The advisory board, DeFelice said, "adds a certain gravitas to this undertaking. We have assembled and we will continue to assemble a really stellar group of people to provide the brainpower we need" to grow the institute.

DeFelice said the institute "has had some national recognition during the primaries, but I think we have the opportunity to do more. And one of the important things about the institute is that it provides a way for our students to be able to connect to the political process, whether they are studying politics or not."

DeFelice said the goal is to reach beyond the college campus and into the local community and beyond.

Other members of the new advisory board are Helen Aguirre Ferre, opinion page editor of the Spanish-language newspaper Diario Las Americas; John Bridgeland, president and chief executive of Washington-based Civic Enterprises, LLC; Brad Card, managing principal of the Washington lobbying firm Dutko; Jim Demers, president of the Concord-based Demers Group lobbying firm; Judy Fortin, a CNN medical reporter; Alyson Pitman Giles, president and chief executive of the Catholic Medical Center and CMC Healthcare System; Fred Kfoury, chief executive of Manchester-based Central Paper Products Co.; Charles Pollard, chief executive of Omni Air International; Tom Raffio, chief executive of Northeast Delta Dental; Tom Rath, founder of the Rath, Young and Pignatelli law firm; Cathleen Schmidt, president and chief executive of Citizens Bank-New Hampshire; Bill Shaheen, director of Shaheen Gordon and Associates law firm; and Barry F.X. Smith, managing director of BlackRock, Inc., an investment management firm.