Challenge to make a difference

Former New Orleans mayor Marc Morial challenged students to make a difference.

About 50 students got a lecture on civic leadership yesterday from the Penn alumnus.

Morial, who served two four-year terms as mayor from 1994 to 2002, was one of the most popular and effective mayors in the city's history, leaving office with a 70 percent approval rating. He also served as the President of the United States Conference of Mayors in 2001 and 2002. He is the son of the late Ernest Morial, the first black mayor of New Orleans.

"We are proud to have him here, and it's a privilege to have him back here, as he is one of our most distinguished alum," said John DiIulio, Political Science professor and director of the Fox Leadership Program.

Morial discussed current national and international affairs and the leadership potential that currently exists.

"Today, we find ourselves in a period of uncertainty," Morial said. "We are involved in a war in Afghanistan and could be involved in another in Iraq. On top of that, we have a $200 billion deficit."

"But these are also the times when opportunities of new leadership are presented to help us confront the challenges we face today," he added.

Talking about differences between the challenges college students face and what he himself faced many years ago, Morial said, "On the positive side, you have an America that is much more educated, affluent and diverse. An America where we are going to live much longer and be productive much longer."

"On the negative side, there is an increasing gulf between the haves and the have-nots," he pointed out. "Twenty years ago, a person with a college education was expected to earn twice as much as someone without one. Now, it is four times as much."

Morial also told students that being a leader does not mean being the one making all the decisions.

"Leadership does not mean that you have to be the person in front making all the noise, or the CEO of an organization, or the person making all the decisions," he said. "To me, leadership means to have the principle and vision to guide an organization or a group of people."

Morial also talked about the problems facing American cities today, citing poverty, crime and drugs as some of the biggest challenges, and advocated massive investment in public education to dramatically change the reality.

He gave a detailed account of how he had cleaned up the system in New Orleans by focusing on reforming the police and combatting crime and drugs at the same time. After being elected as one of the youngest mayors of his city, crime dropped by 60 percent, a corrupt police department was reformed, new programs for youth were started and a stagnant economy was re-energized.

Morial had some advice for Penn students.

"The Fox Program has leadership courses which would provide Penn students an opportunity to learn about leadership and prepare themselves for leadership positions," he said after the talk.

Students said they were extremely impressed by the charismatic former mayor.

"I though the mayor was great and had a mastery of all issues on all levels," College freshman Justin Raphael said. "I think he is someone to look for in the future because he puts out a positive message that people would respond to and be galvanized by."

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