General David Petraeus, former director of the Central Intelligence Agency, will visit NSU on Feb. 6 as the latest guest in the Farquhar College of Arts and Sciences’ Distinguished Speakers Series.
Beginning at 7 p.m., Petraeus will speak to approximately 1,000 NSU students, faculty and staff and other members of the general public, in the Don Taft University Center Arena. His speech will address Farquhar’s 2013-2014 academic theme of “Good and Evil.”
Petraeus was nominated to the CIA directorship in April 2011 by President Barack Obama before being unanimously confirmed by the Senate and sworn in by Vice President Joe Biden in October. He resigned in November 2012, following reports of an extramarital affair.
Farquhar College Dean Don Rosenblum sees the controversy surrounding Petraeus as one of the biggest draws for the event, allowing students the opportunity to hear from the man himself.
“He has been a critical figure in international matters and in U.S. foreign policy,” said Rosenblum. “History is always the final judge of whether someone’s actions were in the right direction or the wrong direction, but we now have the opportunity to have our students hear directly from him on his take on what he’s done.”
As with all Distinguished Speakers, Rosenblum said that Petraeus was asked to visit NSU after faculty, administrators and the Board of Trustees thoroughly considered the decision.
“We heard that General Petraus was going to be available and we were intrigued about the opportunities,” said Rosenblum. “[President George Hanbury] and The Board of Trustees have been champions of the open exploration of ideas that might be controversial, that might be challenging. And we’ve had controversies at different times. Different speakers have done that.”
Rosenblum explained that the format of each Distinguished Speaker event varies depending upon the speaker’s preferences. Petraeus will begin with a brief speech that
Rosenblum described as “a more formal, standard presentation,” and follow with a “moderated conversation” with the audience, moderated by Gary Gershman, professor of history in Farquhar’s Division of Humanities. Petraeus will then take questions from the audience.
“So what we’ll have is a very open and direct dialogue,” said Rosenblum.
Anyone interesting in asking Petraeus a question needs to simply attend the event; questions don’t need to submitted beforehand. Microphones will be placed at stations throughout the arena, where participants will line up to ask questions. Because the event will end around 8:30 p.m., everyone wanting to ask a question may not have a chance to do so, but Rosenblum said that faculty will be near the microphones to help keep the questions moving along quickly.
“Many, many people are intrigued by Petraeus because of things they don’t know, things they don’t understand,” he said. “So, as with every Distinguished Speaker, we look to use this as a teaching opportunity.”
Petraeus chairs the newly created KKR Global Institute, part of the private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, headquartered in New York. He is also a visiting professor of public policy at Macaulay Honors College at CUNY and an honorary professor at the University of South California, in addition to serving on the advisory boards of several military and veteran organizations.
Before serving as the head of the CIA, Petraeus’ military career spanned 37 years. He was Commander of the United States Central Command, through which he oversaw U.S. forces in the Middle East and Central and South Asia from October 2008 until June 2010. The following month, he became Commander of the International Security Assistance Force, a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan, until July 2011.
He’s also served in Cold War Europe, Central America, Haiti, Bosnia, Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan. Following the Sept. 11 attacks, he was deployed for nearly seven years, culminating his career with six straight commands, five of which were in combat.
Rosenblum encourages students to consider attending the event, no matter their academic interests, their opinion on Petraeus or their amount of prior knowledge of him.
“I think that every student at every level in every program is affected by what this man has done, in positive ways, in critical ways,” Rosenblum said. “There may be personal connections, such as a family member or friend who has served in Iraq or Afghanistan. I also think Petraeus brings a unique perspective, whether people are in agreement or in disagreement about the role that he played.”
The next guest of the Distinguished Speaker Series will be science fiction writer Rebecca Skloot, whose first book “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” was published in 2010 and spent over two years on the New York Times Bestseller List. Skloot will speak on March 20.
Tickets for Petraeus’ speech are free for students, faculty and staff. As of Feb. 2, a limited number were still available. Two tickets are allowed per person and a SharkCard is required to get them. Pick up tickets at the Office of the Dean, located on the second floor of the Mailman-Hollywood Building. For more information, call the Office of the Dean at 954-262-8236.
