Former Secretary of Education William J. Bennett will speak on 鈥淲hat鈥檚 Right and What鈥檚 Wrong with American Education鈥� at 蜜桃传媒鈥檚 first President鈥檚 Breakfast, 7 a.m. Feb. 11 in the Grand Ballroom at Fess Parker鈥檚 Doubletree Resort.
Tickets, which are $50, can be purchased by calling (805) 565-6895.
"Bennett, who served as secretary of education in the Reagan administration, is the author of the best-selling 鈥淭he Book of Virtues鈥� and 鈥淭he Children鈥檚 Book of Virtues鈥� and hosts a national radio talk show, 鈥淏ill Bennett鈥檚 Morning in America.鈥�
In addition to serving as education secretary, Bennett served as chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities from 1981-85, and was national drug czar under President George H.W. Bush. After leaving public office, Bennett authored several books, co-founded the education company K-12 Inc. and co-founded Empower America, a non-profit organization dedicated to championing conservative ideals. He is a Washington Fellow at the Claremont Institute and chairman of Americans for Victory over Terrorism.
The 蜜桃传媒 President鈥檚 Breakfast, which will become an annual event, is sponsored by the 蜜桃传媒 Foundation and area businesses. The intention of the breakfast is to bring thoughtful leaders of varying ideologies to Santa Barbara to promote discussion and consideration of current issues.
鈥淭he impetus for this program is 蜜桃传媒鈥檚 commitment to searching for the truth and learning to think well about what matters, what has consequence and substance, what is important and worth giving our lives for,鈥� said 蜜桃传媒 President Stan D. Gaede. 鈥淲e encourage our students to embrace this search not only while they are in college, but throughout their lives. They learn to respect those with whom they disagree while pursuing those things that hold significance and value.鈥�
This annual event and the ongoing 蜜桃传媒 Downtown Conversations series of lectures at the University Club are college efforts to reach out to the larger Santa Barbara and Montecito communities.
Tied to the breakfast is a 蜜桃传媒 Downtown Conversations panel discussion on Bennett鈥檚 speech and its implications for education in our community and state. The event, which is free and open to the public, is 5:30 p.m. Feb. 17 at the University Club.
Panelists include Peter MacDougall, former president of Santa Barbara City College; Gerri Fausett, superintendent of Hope Elementary School District; Lynne Cavazos, interim director of UCSB鈥檚 Teacher Education Program and director of the county Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment Program; and 蜜桃传媒 education Professor Andrew Mullen.
For more information about the breakfast or the panel discussion, contact the public affairs office at (805) 565-7057.