The University of Miami Student Government’s “What Matters to U” speaker series continues this semester with John R. Kasich, the two-term former Ohio governor, who will visit the Coral Gables campus on Tuesday, Feb. 4, at 5 p.m. in the Shalala Student Center. The event will be moderated by Keegan Gibson, a senior majoring in biomedical engineering, and Judge Ellen Venzer, a Miami law school adjunct professor.
The series, hosted in part by the Office of the President and the Division of Student Affairs, brings to campus speakers who have made significant contributions to national or global issues that are relevant to students. Specifically, the Student Government invites speakers who can spark new conversations on campus and introduce students to a variety of worldviews and perspectives.
Student Government invited Kasich, who competed to be the Republican nominee for president in the 2016 election, partly because of the upcoming 2020 presidential election primaries.
“It would be a missed opportunity not to bring a political leader to campus to discuss the importance of enacting positive social change,” said James Lai, a junior and chair of the Student Government’s Student Engagement Planning Agency, the group responsible for coordinating the “What Matters to U” series. “I sincerely hope that through Gov. Kasich, students will understand the importance of listening to understand, instead of listening to respond.”
Kasich is vocal in his support for bipartisan solutions to health care reform, immigration, and international trade. As governor, Kasich is credited with creating an improved business climate that led to the creation of 500,000 new jobs in Ohio, all while strengthening the state’s financial reserves without raising taxes.
Prior to serving as governor, Kasich worked as a managing director in the Investment Banking Division of Lehman Brothers from 2001 to 2009. He also represented Ohio’s 12th district in the House of Representatives from 1983 to 2001. In addition to his political life, Kasich is a New York Times best-selling author, a former Fox television host, and a senior political commentator for CNN.
Tickets to the event are available for undergraduate, graduate, medical, and law students and can be claimed beginning Monday, Jan. 27. Tickets are required to attend, however, a ticket does not guarantee admission as seating is filled on a first-come, first-served basis. Full event details, including ticketing information, are available at sg.miami.edu/wmtu.
