Former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland will discuss “Restoring the American Dream and Securing a Stable American Democratic Society” at 3 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 30 in Alden Library 319.

His presentation will serve as the kickoff event for Ohio University’s Wealth and Poverty Week on Urban Challenges.

Governor Strickland has spent the past few months at OHIO and has interacted with students, faculty and staff as part of the University’s Wealth and Poverty Theme within the College of Arts and Sciences.

“I love Ohio University. I believe Ohio University and Athens played a significant role in my political life as a result of the support I’ve received from this area,” said Gov. Strickland. “I like the mission of this university. I’m glad it’s in the middle of Appalachia because I believe that education is the answer to many of the problems that we are facing in this region.”

Since early September, Strickland has lived on OHIO’s campus and visited dozens of classes, including courses in political science, education, criminology, sociology and more.

“I get energy from the students, interacting with them,” Gov. Strickland said. “I’m having a great time.”

Strickland noted that OHIO’s College of Arts & Sciences Dean, Dr. Robert Frank, introduced him to the concept of “themes” at OHIO, and the Wealth and Poverty theme in particular.

“For me (themes) was a new kind of concept,” Gov. Strickland said. “He (Dr. Frank) mentioned Wealth and Poverty, and I found that really compatible with my own personal interests.”

“Ted Strickland is exactly the kind of person we want to have on our campus so our students can benefit from his life experiences,” Dr. Frank said. “We’re so pleased to have him here this semester.”

Dr. Yeong Kim, associate professor of Geography and the Wealth and Poverty theme coordinator, echoed Dean Frank’s sentiments and said that she is very grateful for the opportunity for faculty and students to work with Gov. Strickland and to learn from his expertise on socio-economic development in Ohio.

“Wealth and Poverty members are extremely excited about the governor’s involvement in various theme events,” said Dr. Kim.

Strickland stated that he has already made plans to return to campus next Spring Semester to lead a Wealth & Poverty field trip to various Southeastern Ohio towns. He’ll be taking students to Portsmouth, OH, which is near Lucasville, OH, where Strickland was born.

The Wealth and Poverty Theme is also planning to host a library exhibit on “Wealth of Ohio” during the approaching Spring Semester.