News Releases

Former Ohio congressman to give 2007 Vickers lecture at KU

John R. Kasich will deliver the 2007 Vickers Lecture at the Lied Center.

Tuesday, April 3, 2007

LAWRENCE — John R. Kasich, former Ohio congressman and best-selling author and businessman, will give the 2007 J.A. Vickers Sr. and Robert F. Vickers Sr. Memorial Lecture. The event is sponsored by the University of Kansas School of Business.

Kasich's lecture, titled "Stand for Something: The Battle for America's Soul," will take place at 7 p.m. Tuesday, April 10, at the Lied Center. It is free and open to the public.

Kasich thinks Americans have lost their moral fiber, forgetting values such as honesty, integrity and personal responsibility. This, in his view, has directly contributed to a number of avoidable political and business scandals in recent years.

Kasich blazed an early entry into politics. At 26, he drove a successful campaign to serve in the Ohio state senate. Four years later, in 1982, Kasich was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, a position he held for 18 years. Kasich's achievements throughout his time in Congress were diverse and groundbreaking.

As chair of the House Budget Committee, Kasich balanced the federal budget for the first time since the late 1960s and provided for the largest government surplus the United States had ever witnessed. He also chaired the congressional committee that overhauled the welfare system. Kasich pushed to eliminate wasteful government and championed greater individual choice, power and freedom.

Today, Kasich is an investment banker on Wall Street. He maintains responsibilities across a range of industry groups including retail, power and utilities, technology, media and communications, industrial and financial institutions.

Newsweek magazine named Kasich one of its "100 people for the 21st century." George magazine featured him as "One of the Most Fascinating Men in Politics." He has been profiled on "60 Minutes" and has appeared on nearly every major network and cable news show.

The Vickers lecture began in 1969 through a gift from the Vickers family. J.A. Vickers helped pioneer the oil industry in Kansas and studied chemistry at KU from 1914 to 1916. His son, Robert F. Vickers, coordinated the Vickers lecture for more than two decades. After his death in 1995, Robert Vickers' name was added to the series.

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