Popular Two-Term Ohio Governor and 2016 Presidential Contender to Headline Public Event
Kasich, a Republican, has served as Ohio governor since January 2011 and officially completed his second term today with the swearing-in of his successor, Mike DeWine. (The state’s governors are limited to two successive terms.) Kasich’s priorities were focused on restoring fiscal stability to Ohio, driving economic growth and job creation, modernizing infrastructure, developing a model to fight drug abuse and addiction and seeking bipartisan solutions on key national issues such as health care.
Prior to serving as Ohio’s governor, he was a member of Congress for 18 years, where he served as chairman of the House Budget Committee and worked to balance the federal budget for the first time since man walked on the moon. Kasich also served as a member of the House Armed Services Committee.
He left Congress in 2001 and served as a managing director of Lehman Brothers, as well as a commentator for FOX News and a presidential fellow at The Ohio State University, from which he graduated in 1974 with a degree in political science.
Kasich, 66, has authored four New York Times best-selling books: Courage is Contagious; Stand for Something: The Battle for America’s Soul; Every Other Monday; and, in 2017, Two Paths: America Divided or United. He was born in McKees Rocks, Pa., a suburb of Pittsburgh, and lives in Westerville, Ohio, outside Columbus, with his wife and their twin daughters.
Amherst College prepares students to use ideas to make a difference in the world. Since its 1821 founding in Western Massachusetts, Amherst has demonstrated steadfast confidence in the value of the liberal arts and the importance of critical thinking. Today, its financial aid program is among the most substantial in the nation, and its student body is among the most diverse. Small classes, an open curriculum and a singular focus on undergraduate education ensure that leading scholars engage daily with talented, curious students, equipping them for leadership in an increasingly global and complex world.