Contact: Maridith Geuder
Former Gov. William F. Winter will speak Thursday [March 6] at Mississippi State University.
The 3 p.m. public presentation in the John Grisham Room of Mitchell Memorial Library is part of the W.H. "Bill" Collins Lecture Series.
Winter, who led the state 1980-84, has one of the most storied public careers in modern Mississippi history. In addition to having earlier been elected to the offices of lieutenant governor, treasurer and tax collector, he has held key leadership roles with the Appalachian Regional Commission, Southern Regional Education Board and Southern Growth Policies Board.
He also is among the most knowledgeable authorities on Mississippi history, having authored three books--"History of Mississippi," "Yesterday's Constitution Today" and "Mississippi Heroes"--and numerous magazine and journal articles on his native state.
While governor, Winter entered history books by leading a highly organized and, ultimately successful, effort to enact public education reform.
Because of significant strides in equal opportunities for all races made during his administration, he was one of seven members appointed by President Bill Clinton in the late 1990s to serve on a national Race Initiative Advisory Board. Last week, the University of Mississippi, Winter's alma mater, expanded his honors in this area by renaming its Institute for Racial Reconciliation for the Grenada native.
A partner in the Jackson law firm of Watkins Ludlum Winter & Stennis, he specializes in legislative and governmental relations, as well as state and local government finance.
MSU's Collins Lectures are jointly sponsored throughout each school year by the John C. Stennis Institute of Government, the library's Congressional and Political Research Center and the student John Stennis-G.V. "Sonny" Montgomery Association.
For more information about Winter's program or the ongoing Collins Speakers Series, telephone (662) 325-0812 or 325-3328.