Tanner Lecture Series on Ethics, Citizenship & Public Responsibility
What does it mean to be an ethical citizen? What do the needs for public responsibility demand from us, whether we work in the private or the public sectors, and whether we are entry-level employees or executive-level leaders? The Tanner Lecture Series provides a public forum for exploring these questions that we collectively face as citizens of nations and of the world.
Endowed by Dr. W. Lynn Tanner, the Tanner Lecture series invites leaders in their fields who have demonstrated—through their life and work—that generative efforts can enrich both our private and public lives. Collectively the lectures aim to stimulate audiences to re-envision their own responsibilities in different, and at times deliberately unsettling, ways, not merely to inform, but also to engage and provoke, and to leave a lasting impression that influences future behavior.
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Watch Previous Tanner Lectures
Constructive conversations about important issues
Citizenship in an Age of Perpetual Conflict
Phil Klay, United States Marine Corps Veteran and Author of "Redeployment" and "Missionaries", discussed the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, seemingly bringing a twenty-year war to an end, yet President Biden promised that we’d keep killing American enemies there. Klay continues that this created a strange situation for Americans, largely protected from the harsh consequences of war, and yet citizens of a country using lethal force across the globe. Americans generally find out about the extent of our involvement when U.S. soldiers die, leaving them to try and understand their citizenship and humanity, in relation to the killing done in our name. What does it mean to be a citizen of a country that is not at peace, but doesn’t seem to believe it’s at war?
Co-sponsored by the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) and SU Office of Veteran and Military Affairs (OVMA)
October 8, 2021
Reclaiming Trust in an Age of Misinformation
Marta Tellado, president and CEO of Consumer Reports, asks the question how do we, as consumers, tip back the scales of power and return the marketplace to one that is transparent, fair, just and safe and away from the monopolistic, opaque and biased direction currently trending?
March 24, 2021
Americans Who Tell the Truth: Models of Courageous Citizenship
Robert Shetterly began “Americans Who Tell the Truth” in the early 2000s. He says the portraits have given him an opportunity to speak with children and adults throughout the U.S. about how democracy cannot function if politicians don’t tell the truth, if the media don’t report it and if the people don’t demand it.
November 29, 2018
We Matter: Athletes and Activism
In this Tanner Lecture, Etan Thomas, a published poet, author and 11-year veteran of the NBA, shares his passion for mentoring, motivational speaking and civic engagement.
Thomas also discusses his book, "We Matter: Athletes and Activism," a collection of interviews of former NBA players who share their personal stories and opinions in an effort to encourage athletes to speak up.
February 26, 2018
Tanner Lecture on Ethics, Citizenship and Public Responsibility
Kenote Speaker
The Honorable Christine Todd Whitman, former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator and former New Jersey Governor
October 4, 2017
A Public Service Workforce for the Future
Panelists
- Andrew W. Cohen, Dr. Walter Montgomery and Marian Gruber Professor of History
- Andrew Maxwell, former director of Policy and Innovation, City of Syracuse
- Tina Nabatchi, professor of public administration and international affairs
- David Sulek, vice president for Booz Allen Hamilton
October 4, 2017
Governance Challenges and the Future of a New Public Service
Panelists
- Dustin Brown, U.S. Office of Management & Budget, Executive Office of the President
- Teresa Gerton, president and CEO, National Academy of Public Administration
- The Hon. Sean O’Keefe, University Professor, Phanstiel Chair in Strategic Management & Leadership
- The Hon. Christine Todd Whitman, former EPA Administrator, former New Jersey Governor
- David Van Slyke, dean and Louis A. Bantle Chair in Business and Government Policy
October 4, 2017
Closing Remarks
Max Stier, president and CEO for The Partnership for Public Service
October 4, 2017
The Athenian Oath and Political Leadership in America
Michael Nutter, former mayor of the City of Philadephia, speaks about how he came into public service and why the Athenian Oath is his guiding star for being a good public servant.
October 14, 2016
A Global Conversation
Madeleine Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, discusses her 40-year career in international affairs and the current threats and challenges to U.S. foreign policy.
April 5, 2016
Ethical Leadership in Higher Education: Who Wants This Job Anymore?
Donna Shalala, Maxwell alumna, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services and former president of the University of Miami, speaks about her path to higher education and public service.
October 23, 2015
Public Responsibility and the Federal-State Disconnect
With Richard Ravitch, former Lieutenant Governor of New York State and former co-chair, with former Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Paul A. Volcker, of the State Budget Crisis Task Force
October 10, 2014
Civility and Citizenship: Reinventing the Great Society
With Lincoln Chafee, former U.S. Senator and Governor of Rhode Island
April 24, 2014
Entrepreneurship as a Tool for Social Change
With Jessica Jackley, visiting practitioner at Stanford University and venture partner with the Collaborative Fund
March 18, 2014
Inaugural Tannner Lecture on Ethics, Citizenship and Public Responsibility
With Bill Bradley, former senator, presidential candidate, NBA Hall of Famer and author
April 10, 2012
Dr. W. Lynn Tanner
Dr. W. Lynn Tanner, founder and executive chairman of TEC Canada, a leadership development organization dedicated to accelerating the growth and development of outstanding twenty-first century leaders, received his Ph.D. from the Maxwell School in 1975, where his studies focused on organizational change and development in the public and private sectors.