Author and Scholar David Mindich Delivers Public Service Week Keynote Lecture
October 31, 2012
David Mindich, a media expert and author of "Tuned Out: Why Americans Under 40 Don't Follow the News," will give the keynote address at Old Dominion University's third-annual Public Service Week.
Mindich's talk "Living an Engaged Life: How Young People Can Assert Their Political Power and Take Control of Our Democracy," will be held Monday, Nov. 5 at 7 p.m. in the North Café of Webb Center. It's the signature event of a week of activities designed to engage the ODU campus community, events ranging from a blood drive, to a campus-wide volunteer event, to a career fair for students considering a career in public service.
Lectures in the "ODU Presents" series are free and open to the public. Seating is limited. Guests are encouraged to RSVP to (757) 683-3116 or www.odu.edu/univevents (event code DML12).
Developed by the Department of Urban Studies and Public Administration in the College of Business and Public Administration (CBPA), one goal of Public Service Week is to embrace Old Dominion's mission as a metropolitan university.
Public Service Week, launched as a response to President Barack Obama's 2009 "call to service," which he issued when taking office, involves many academic departments and organizations at ODU. Its goal is to shine a spotlight on the need for community engagement and the opportunities that exist to help improve our communities.
In that way, Mindich is the ideal keynote speaker for Public Service Week. A former CNN correspondent, Mindich is a professor of media studies, journalism and digital arts at Saint Michael's College in Colchester, Vt.
His highly-acclaimed book examines the growing indifference about news among young people. Inspired by the unimpressive results of a current events quiz he administered to one of his college classes, Mindich analyzed the problem of disengagement among young people, and offers solutions to the "dire situation" he believes such indifference breeds.
The week's activities, which are open to the entire campus and the Hampton Roads community, are intended to energize the ODU community, enhance the notion of citizenship and raise awareness of the importance of public service - and the university's role therein - in Hampton Roads
Other events and activities scheduled as part of Public Service Week 2012 include:
Saturday, Nov. 3 - Haul for Hunger. Volunteers are needed to help bag sweet potatoes for local food insecure families! ODU's 2nd Annual Haul for Hunger will be held from noon to 3pm on Kaufman Mall. A cookout will be provided for all volunteers and local soup kitchens/food pantries will be on hand to talk about their missions and volunteer opportunities. To sign up to volunteer as an individual, group, or family, please visit: http://studentaffairs.odu.edu/osal/community/haulforhunger.shtml.
Monday, Nov. 5 - Public Service Roundtable, 12-1 p.m. Hampton/Newport News Room, Webb Center. Panelists include Terry Jenkins, President, Together We Can Foundation; Rhonda Harris, Chief of Police, Old Dominion University; Karen Forget, Executive Director, Lynnhaven River Now; and CMDR Heather Kostecki, U.S. Coast Guard. The panel is moderated by Barbara Hamm Lee, Creative Services Officer, WHRO and Executive Producer/Host, Another View
Tuesday, Nov. 6 - Executive in Residence, 12:30 p.m.-1:20 p.m., Constant Hall, Room 1005 - Mary Kay Horoszewski, executive director, Virginia Beach Community Development Corp., will deliver the Public Service Week-themed Executive-in-Residence speech. The recipient of the 2012 CBPA Award for Achievement in Public Service has a 38-year career in public and nonprofit housing, as a community development planner, housing inspector and housing rehabilitation specialist. She received her MPA from Old Dominion University in 1998.
Wednesday, Nov. 7 - Public Service Career Explorium, 4-6 p.m., Webb Center. Employers offering careers in public service such as federal and state government agencies, the military and nonprofit organizations will be on hand to speak about the opportunities and rewards of a career in public service.
Thursday, Nov. 8 - Public Service Week Academic Speaker, 6:30-7:30 p.m., Pretlow Planetarium. Delivered by Donald Kettl, Dean of the School of Public Policy, University of Maryland and a nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Kettl is a student of public policy and public management and specializes in the management of public organizations.
Events and activities of Public Service Week are sponsored by the CBPA, the Department of Urban Studies and Public Administration, the Office of Community Engagement, the Center for Service and Civic Engagement, the Career Management Center, the Alumni Association, the Women's Center, ODU Athletics and the MPA Association.
For speaker bios and more event information, please visit: http://pswodu.wordpress.com or email publicservice@odu.edu.