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Northern Kentucky Forum

Get a quick overview of what the Northern Kentucky Forum is all about here!

UPCOMING EVENTS...

4th Congressional Candidate Debate at NKU

7 p.m. on April 30, 2012

The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and Northern Kentucky University will host two events to facilitate dialogue between congressional candidates vying for Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District. Incumbent Geoff Davis (R, KY-4), announced last fall that he would not seek re-election in 2012.

The Republican candidate event will be held on Monday, April 30th at Northern Kentucky University’s Student Union ballroom and will be moderated by Ryan Alessi from Insight’s Pure Politics. The event will begin at approximately 7:00 p.m. and is free to the public.  All seven Republican candidates have been contacted and all (Marc Carey, Thomas Massie, Gary Moore, Brian Oerther, Walt Schumm, Alecia Webb-Edgington and Tom Wurtz) have made verbal commitments to attend. The event will be a conversational program that will allow candidates to discuss their ideas and the audience to ask questions and offer feedback.

The Chamber will provide details regarding a Democratic Congressional Candidate event in the near future.

“In recent years, Northern Kentucky has been fortunate to have excellent representation at the congressional level. Congressman Geoff Davis has ensured that our region’s business and community priorities are heard and it is critical that we replace him with someone who understands our issues and needs,” said Steve Stevens, President and CEO of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce.

“Our country is at a crossroads and it is vital that the voice of Northern Kentucky be heard loud and clear in Washington, D.C. I look forward to hearing the thoughts and plans of the candidates for how they will move the country and Northern Kentucky forward,” said Steve Harper, Chair of Advocacy at the Northern Kentucky Chamber.

Submit any questions for the candidates and RSVP at engage@nku.edu.

RECENT EVENTS...

Everyone's Voice Counts: Lessons in Community Engagement

This event, on Feb. 29, engaged participants in dialogue to explore what can be learned from national research and from each other about bringing positive, lasting changes to our neighborhoods through focused resources and use of the community's collective voice. Dr. David Harris and Dr. Mark McPhail offered their insights and research they’ve conducted related to inner-city neighborhoods and the many issues such neighborhoods face, including educational and job opportunities, portrayal in the media, public safety, and housing.

Be InFORMed: 2012 Kentucky General Assembly and You

On Jan. 30, the forum hosted a forum event that enabled the public to interact with a panel of insiders who knew the ins and out of the Capitol's ways. Questions answered included: What are the key issues this season and what's the best way to track them? Since what happens in Frankfort impacts our daily lives, isn't it our civic duty to let our lawmakers hear from us? And if you want to have an impact on state policy, how do you do so?

PREPARING OUR CHILDREN FOR 21ST CENTURY CAREERS: The New Face of Manufacturing

On Thursday, December 1, the Forum will hosted an interactive discussion on ‘the new face of manufacturing’ in the Northern Kentucky Region, including the education and career pathways that exist beyond high school to support this industry. The dialogue will identified the motivational factors that students, parents, and educators use in deciding or directing education and career paths. Participants will heard from a current manufacturing employer, a current apprentice at a local manufacturing company, and a current post-secondary student pursuing a career in manufacturing as they share their perspectives on careers in manufacturing and how the field of manufacturing is increasingly becoming driven by technology and innovation.

IS THE STRUCTURE OF GOVERNMENT IN KENTON COUNTY IDEAL?

This public dialogue followed a dialogue held with public officials and candidates in April 2010, when the topic was "How local governments in Kenton County can work better together." At that event, the attendees (more than 60 people) reached five consensus points:

1. Local government is highly valued.
2. New models of government and governance bear exploration.
3. Should a new model of governance be devised, its exact form remains to be determined.
4. A city-county merger was neither embraced nor rejected.
5. Overall, this topic warrants continuing dialogue in Kenton County, including efforts to engage the public.

The complete report to the community can be found here.

The Oct. 11 Forum was a direct effort to follow up on these consensus points, particularly on the final point to keep the dialogue going and to engage the public.

About the FORUM

The Northern Kentucky Forum is a partnership of the Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement, Vision 2015 and Legacy -- three nonpartisan groups in Northern Kentucky dedicated to public engagement.

The Forum conducts several "public square" events each year around current events and public policy. Forum events are free, and intended for both the NKU campus community and the Northern Kentucky community as a whole.