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Former Wisconsin Congressmen Tom Petri (R) and Dave Obey (D) will be at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Tuesday, Oct. 27 for the Wisconsin Civic Participation Tour at 6:30 p.m. in Sage Hall, room 1216.

Petri and Obey are committed to sharing their knowledge and experience via speaking engagements throughout the state. The focus of the Wisconsin Civic Participation Tour is to underscore the importance of civic participation and bipartisan discussion as healthy aspects of a representative democracy.

About the tour

The focus of the tour is the meaning and purpose of public service. It will include observations and reflections on the experiences gained while serving in the community and as a member of Congress. Some questions to consider:

  • What is the meaning of Civic Participation or Civic Engagement?
  • Why is Civic Participation/Engagement important for our democracy?
  • How can citizens become involved or engaged in public service?
  • Why should citizens get involved?

 

Congressman Dave Obey, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1969 to 2011, is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in political science. He represented Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District in the House of Representatives for 42 years. The longest serving member of Congress in Wisconsin history, Obey was a key leader in Congressional reform efforts and chaired the committee that wrote a new code of ethics for the House. Throughout his career, he has been a leader of progressive forces on issues including worker rights, education, health care, medical research, environmental protection and international relations.

Congressman Obey currently serves as a senior fellow at the Wisconsin Institute for Public Policy and Service and on the Board of the National Alliance for Behavioral Health.

Congressman Tom Petri, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1979 to 2015, represented Wisconsin’s 6th Congressional District from 1979 to 2015 and before that was a Wisconsin State Senator from 1973 to 1979. After earning degrees from Harvard College and Harvard Law School, Petri was clerk to a federal judge, served as a Peace Corps volunteer and worked for the U.S. Agency for International Development before taking up a law practice in Fond du Lac. In Congress, Petri served on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (and chaired the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit of the Transportation), the Committee on Education and the Workforce and the House Ethics Committee, among many other assignments. Important Petri legislative initiatives have included student loan reform, the federal highway program, cost-sharing for federal water projects, tax and welfare reform, banking reform, campaign finance reform and healthcare reform.

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