Former Senator George Voinovich urged students to consider the importance of integrity in public service at a panel discussion today.
Other members of the panel included Ohio Supreme Court Justice Yvette McGee Brown, a 1982 Ohio University graduate; and Ohio House Speaker Jo Ann Davidson. David Wilhelm, a 1977 OU alumnus, moderated the discussion.
About 80 students and faculty attended the event, which was held in the Walter Hall Governance Room.
The panelists began by speaking for about five minutes each on the principles of leadership and its importance in public service. Voinovich discussed seven leadership attributes from the book Why Are We Bad At Picking Good Leaders? by Jeffrey Cohn and Jay Moran. He emphasized integrity and the importance of having a wide variety of experiences.
“So often, when we pick our leaders, we don’t look at the experience they have,” said Voinovich, who graduated from OU in 1958.
Davidson, chairwoman of the Ohio Casino Control Commission, also emphasized the importance of integrity in government.
“I think you can imagine what would be the No. 1 thing I look for when trying to find the leader for the casino regulatory agency, and that is integrity,” she said.
The panelists then took turns answering questions from students in the audience. The questions ranged from public service’s effect on family life and dealing with the public spotlight to what leadership styles are effective in government.
Joseph DiBenedetto, a senior studying electrical engineering, said he was encouraged to attend the panel by his class in the Robe Leadership Institute.
“We have a lot of people here at OU who are alumni that have done great things and taken the time to come back,” he said.
bv111010@ohiou.edu
