THOUGHTS ON EXCELLENCE –JOHN W. GARDNER

Jeremy L. McLaughlinLIBR 282-11 Fall 2014San Jose State University iSchool

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John W. Gardner – An exceptional life

Born:1912

1964 – Presidential Medal of Freedom

1966 – Public Welfare Medal (National Academy of Sciences)

1935 – B.S. Stanford1936 – M.S. Stanford1938 – PhD Berkeley

1965-1968 – Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (Johnson) (Great Society)

1970 – Founded Common Cause

2000 – John W. Gardner Center for Youth and Their Communities established at Stanford

1984 – Stanford University Degree of Uncommon Man

1985 – Establishment of The John Gardner Fellowship Program at Stanford and Berkeley

Died:2002

WWII – U.S. Marine Corps Captain, early part of war with the Latin American section of the Foreign Broadcast Intelligence Service

1955 – President – Carnegie Corp of New York and Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching

1980 – Founded Independent Sector

1973 – S. Roger Horchow Award for Greatest Public Service by a Private Citizen

1976 – Distinguished Achievement Medal of the Stanford Athletic Board

1978 – Commission on White House Fellows

Books Published

Excellence: Can We Be Equal and Excellent Too? (1961)

To Turn the Tide (1962)

Self-Renewal: The Individual and Innovative Society (1964)

No Easy Victories (1968)

The Recovery of Confidence (1970)

In Common Cause (1972)

Morale (1978)

Quotations of Wit and Wisdom (1980)

Toward a Pluralistic But Coherent Society (1980)

Cooperation and Conflict: The Public and Private Sectors in

Higher Education (1985)

On Leadership (1990)

Living, Leading, and the American Dream (2003 Anthology)

Excellence: Can We Be Equal and Excellent Too?

The big questions (written 1961):- Does every young American have a “right”

to a college education?-Is it possible to achieve excellence

if you don’t believe in anything?- Have Americans lost a sense of purpose

and the drive to achieve excellence?

Strive for both equality and excellence at all levels of society – be good at the common good.

The importance of youth development, the cultivation of citizen leaders, and the conditions under which excellence is possible.

Being free does not mean being complacent….nothing could be more hazardous to freedom. On the other hand, this does not mean excellence is owed to anyone or should be easy. On the contrary, it should be sought by every free person for the betterment of ourselves, our organizations, and our society.

Excellence: Can We Be Equal and Excellent Too?

“the kinds of equality that can and must be honored, and the kinds that cannot be forced.” (p. xi).

“the difficult, puzzling, delicate, and important business of toning up a whole society, of bringing a whole people to that fine edge of morale and conviction and zest that makes for greatness” (xiii).

“We don't even know what skills may be needed in the years ahead. That is why we must train our young people in the fundamental fields of knowledge, and equip them to understand and cope with change. That is why we must give them the critical qualities of mind and durable qualities of character that will serve them in circumstances we cannot now even predict” (p. 35).

Gardner’s 6 Qualities of Leaders

Think longer term

Grasp relationship to larger realities (larger context)

Reach and influence constituents beyond jurisdiction

Intangibles of vision, value, motivation/Non-rational and unconscious aspects of leader-constituent interaction

Can cope with multiple constituencies

Think in terms of renewal – the next generations

How John W. Gardner Inspires a New Generation of Leaders - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tbvh8yCOaI

His Legacy – Words to lead by

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His Legacy – Words to laugh by

"If you set as your goal the unmasking of hypocrites, you will be ladling up the ocean with a teaspoon. Perhaps you have something more productive to work on." --Personal Journals

"If a journalist had been present at the Sermon on the Mount, the caption in the morning papers would have read, 'Cleric Sees Take-over By Meek.'" --Personal Journals

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His Legacy – Words to live by

References and Meme/Image Sources

Gardner, J. W. (1961). Excellence: Can we be equal and excellent too?. WW Norton & Company.

PBS. (2001). John Gardner: Uncommon American. Companion website. Accessed October 7, 2014. http://www.pbs.org/johngardner/index.html

Stanford University. (2012). How John Gardner Inspires a New Generation of Leaders. YouTube. Accessed October 8, 2014. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tbvh8yCOaI

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