Yesterday we were delighted to have the Honorable David M. Abshire and his team Matt Purushotham and Max Angerholzer on the campus. David Abshire is the President and CEO of the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Co-Founder of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. In his distinguished career, he has served as the Assistant Secretary of State and Ambassador to NATO. His most recent work has focused on the theme of Civility and Inclusive Leadership. He takes the view that we should not simply worry about the decisions that we are making but also the process by which these decisions are made: we need a world in which we learn afresh the importance of listening and learning from each other.

As a campus we are deeply committed to the conversation. We live together with our differences and disagreements. We recognize the importance of civility in our life together. And as we do so we provide an important witness to the world that this is how we should live together.

It was a rich conversation and we look forward to a continuing partnership and conversation with the Center for the Study of the Presidency.

The Very Rev Ian Markham
Dean and President