Renowned Woodrow Wilson Fellow to speak

Renowned Woodrow Wilson Fellow to speak

Waynesburg University will host John Walters, former director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and foreign domestic policy expert, Monday, Oct. 25 through Friday, Oct. 29, through the Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellows Program.

The Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellows Program brings prominent artists, diplomats, journalists and business leaders to college and university campuses to help increase understanding and make new connections between the academic and non-academic worlds.

In addition to his time with Waynesburg University students and faculty, Walters will present two public lectures. “The Drug Problem Today: Past, Present and Future Trends” will be held Monday, Oct. 25 at 7:30 p.m. in Alumni Hall. “Drugs and Terror: The Cases of Colombia, Afghanistan and Mexico” will be held Thursday, Oct. 28 at 7:30 p.m. in Alumni Hall.

“Mr. Walters’ experiences are many, and we are excited that he will be here to share his knowledge with our community,” said Waynesburg University Provost Dr. Robert Graham. “Not only will he be on campus as the Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellow, but Mr. Walters will also be the Stover Visiting Constitutional Fellow in association with our Stover Center for Constitutional Studies and Moral Leadership.”

Walters currently serves as the executive vice president at the Hudson Institute, a non-partisan research organization. From December 2001 to January 2009, Walters served as the director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy and a cabinet member during the Bush Administration. In this role, Walters guided all aspects of federal drug policy and programs — supporting efforts that decreased teen drug use 25 percent, increased substance abuse treatment and screening in the healthcare system and dramatically dropped the availability of cocaine and methamphetamine in the United States.