27^th York Distinguished Lecturer Series
Tuesday, April 3, 2012 • 2:00pm

Senator Bob Graham
Two-term Florida Governor
US Senator from Florida for 18 years

Lecture Title:
"What Would E.T. York Do?: How will land-grant institutions navigate the next 150 years?"

The Morrill Act signed by Abraham Lincoln in 1862 enabled the creation of land- grant universities, making higher education more widely available to Americans and paving the way for some of the country’s finest institutions. As Florida’s 1862 land-grant university, we are proud to be among that illustrious group and celebrate the act’s 150th anniversary. We are dedicated to vigorously honor the objectives of the Morrill Act through our own mission to teach, research and provide service to the state of Florida, the nation and the world.

President’s Room
Emerson Alumni Hall
1938 West University Avenue
University of Florida, Gainesville

Lecture is free and open to the public

Senator Bob Graham is the former two–term governor of Florida and served for 18 years in the United States Senate. This is combined with 12 years in the Florida legislature for a total of 38 years of public service. As Governor and Senator, Bob Graham was a centrist, committed to bringing his colleagues together behind programs that served the broadest public interest. He was recognized by the people of Florida when he received an 83% approval ranking as he concluded eight years as Governor. Bob Graham retired from public service in January 2005, following his Presidential campaign in 2004.

Bob Graham is recognized for his leadership on issues ranging from education, economic development, health care and environmental preservation to his ten years of service on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence — including eighteen months as chairman in 2001–2002. Following the release of the Joint Inquiry’s final report in July 2003, Senator Graham steadfastly advocated reform of the intelligence community and sponsored legislation to bring about needed changes. In the fall of 2004 Senator Graham authored “Intelligence Matters” based upon his experiences gleaned during the joint inquiry and his analysis of the run up to the Iraq war.

After retiring from public life, Senator Graham served for a year as a senior fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government where he lectured to undergraduate, graduate and executive management students. His primary focus was on civic education and intelligence issues, which continue to be of great importance to him.

Senator Graham was appointed in May of 2010 by the President to serve as Co-Chair of the National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling. The Commission’s task was to examine the root causes of the oil disaster and to develop recommendations for guarding against, and mitigating the impact of, future oil spills associated with offshore drilling. The Commission delivered its final report to the President on January 11, 2011.

Senator Graham also served as a Commissioner on the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, established by Congress to examine the global and domestic causes of the recent financial crisis. The Commission provided its findings and conclusions in a final report to Congress on January 27, 2011.

Senator Graham served as the Chairman of the Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism whose mandate was to build on the work of the 9/11 Commission and complete a critical task: to assess the nation’s progress in preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and terrorism, and to provide a roadmap to greater security with concrete recommendations for improvement. The Commission’s report, “World At Risk,” was published in the fall of 2008. Currently he serves as chairman of the WMD Center a 501c3 not for profit research organization which continues the work of the Commission.

In addition to his commission related activities, Senator Graham also serves as a member of the CIA External Advisory Board. As a member, Senator Graham serves an informal advisor to the Director and other senior leaders of the Agency.
Graham is a member of the board of directors of the Graham Companies, agricultural and real estate companies; Well Care, a Florida based health care firm; as a public member on the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants; and ACT, a national testing firm.
Senator Graham is also the author of a book published in 2009 about civic participation, entitled “America: The Owner’s Manual.” The goal of the book is to provide ordinary people with the means and motivation to go out and influence decision makers in order to achieve positive change in their neighborhoods, communities, state and nation.

Senator Graham has also been a regular contributor to National Public Radio’s Morning Edition, a frequent guest on CNN, Fox and MSNBC news, and has authored numerous opinion editorials for newspapers. Since retirement, his commentaries have appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, The Financial Times, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, Atlanta Journal Constitution, Charlotte Observer, Washington Times, Miami Herald, Orlando Sentinel, St. Petersburg Times, South Florida Sun Sentinel, Sarasota Herald Tribune, Gainesville Sun, Palm Beach Post, Tallahassee Democrat and the Tampa Tribune.

Senator Graham serves as the chair of the Board of Overseers of the Graham Center for Public Service. The Center, with its home at the University of Florida, was formally established in March of 2008 with public and civic leadership as its primary programs. Through the Joint Center on Citizenship in conjunction with the Lew Frey Institute at the University of Central Florida he is enhancing the teaching of civics in the elementary and secondary schools of Florida.

In June, 2011, Graham’s first novel, “Keys to the Kingdom,” was published. This novel of suspense draws upon his background in government and intelligence.

Since his retirement, Senator Graham has been recognized by national and Florida organizations for his public service. These include:

• The Woodrow Wilson Institute award for Public Service

• The National Park Trust Public Service award

• The Everglades Coalition Hall of Fame

• The Florida Homebuilders Hall of Fame

• The largest bridge in Florida, constructed while he was Governor, was renamed the Bob Graham Sunshine Skyway Bridge

• LeRoy Collins Lifetime Leadership Award from Leadership Florida

• An honorary doctorate of public service from his alma mater, the University of Florida.

• Honorary doctorate from Pomona College

• Honorary doctorate from Nova Southeastern University

• Honorary member of the American Society of Landscape Architects

• In 2011 he was designated a Great Floridian by the state of Florida

Bob and Adele have returned to their home in Miami Lakes, Florida, and are enjoying more time with their four daughters and eleven grandchildren.