HBO Show Host and Daily Show Alum John Oliver to Speak at Drew University Forum

From the popular host of the HBO television show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, to the longest-serving police commissioner in the city of New York, Drew University is bringing a slate of distinguished speakers to its annual Drew Forum lecture series, which opens Oct. 28.

John Oliver, the sharp-witted host of the HBO show Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, will kick off the series with a talk at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 28, at the Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown, New Jersey.

Oliver is a former correspondent and guest host of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. His hit show presents a satirical look at the week in news, politics, and current events. Oliver is the winner of an Emmy Award and a Writer’s Guild Award.

Tickets for this event will be sold to the general public for $52 each or as part of the season subscription.
The second Forum speaker will be former New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, who will speak at the Concert Hall in the Dorothy Young Center for the Arts on Thursday, Nov. 20, at 8 p.m.

Kelly was the longest-serving police commissioner of the City of New York and served two nonconsecutive terms—from 2002 to 2013 under Mayor Michael Bloomberg and from 1992 to 1994 under Mayor David N. Dinkins. He created the first counterterrorism bureau of any municipal police department in the country and currently serves as president of Cushman & Wakefield’s Risk Management Services division.

Stephanie Cutter is a political consultant, who served as deputy campaign manager for President Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign and was chair of his inaugural committee, will speak on Tuesday, March 3, 2015, at 8 p.m. at the Concert Hall at the Dorothy Young Center for the Arts. Cutter also served in various advisory capacities for Michelle Obama, Bill Clinton, John Kerry, and Edward Kennedy.

The Forum’s fourth and final speaker will be Leon Panetta, the Thomas H. Kean Visiting Lecturer, who will speak on Thursday, April 30, 2015, at 8 p.m. at the Simon Forum. Panetta was the U.S. Secretary of Defense from 2011 to 2013 and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency from 2009 to 2011. He previously served as chief to staff to President Bill Clinton and is a former Congressman from California.

Known for his commitment to public service, Panetta co-directed the Leon & Sylvia Panetta Institute for Public Policy based at California State University, Monterey Bay. Individual tickets will be sold for this talk at a price of $32 each.
Tickets are $128 for all four events and may be purchased through the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey Box Office at 973-408-3917. Individual tickets will be sold for John Oliver at $52 each and for Leon Panetta at $32 each. For more information about The Drew Forum, please click here.

About the Drew Forum
The Drew Forum, established in 1994, is the region’s leading public lecture venue. Past speakers have included American statesmen, foreign heads of state, nationally known journalists, and noted historians.
The Drew Forum lecture series is presented through the generosity of the Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation. The Thomas H. Kean Visiting Lecturer is supported by an endowment created in honor of former New Jersey governor Thomas H. Kean, who was president of Drew University from 1990 to 2005.

About Drew University
Drew University is a private, liberal arts university located in Madison, New Jersey, in the New York City metro area. Ranked among the top liberal arts institutions nationwide by U.S. News & World Report, Forbes, and Washington Monthly, Drew is also listed in Princeton Review’s Best 379 Colleges.

The Drew promise—We Deliver Full-Impact Learning to the World—emphasizes the university’s commitment to borderless education that enables a student’s greatest success in a globally connected world.

Drew has a total student enrollment of more than 2,000 in three schools: the College of Liberal Arts, the Caspersen School of Graduate Studies, and the Drew Theological School. The undergraduate program offers degrees in 30 different disciplines, while Caspersen and the Theological School offer degrees at the master’s and doctoral levels.

Information and photo courtesy of Elizabeth Moore