THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, February 3, 1996 TAG: 9602030330
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY PHILIP WALZER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
Kay Coles James, the new dean of Regent University's Robertson School of Government, won a rousing welcome from students and staff members at a news conference Friday.
More than 300, gathered in the lobby of the Robertson Building, gave James a buoyant 30-second ovation after Pat Robertson, the university's founder, introduced her. She got another after she spoke.
Robertson then said: ``Your selection is met by overwhelming approval from those gathered here today.''
To reinforce the point, one student told James as she milled through the crowd afterward: ``We were praying that you would come here.''
James, 46, offered enthusiasm, but few details, about her plans for her new job, which will start March 1. ``There's not an agenda I'm going to bring in,'' she said. ``I am going on a listening tour with administrators, faculty and students, and together we will set the course.''
James, a leading light in the national conservative movement, resigned in December from her job as state secretary of health and human resources. She also had served in President George Bush's administration.
She said academia offers as much opportunity as politics to improve the world. ``In order to have good government, we need to have leaders who are people of high character and integrity. Regent offers a unique opportunity to rise up to that leadership.''
In her speech, she quoted one of her role models, William Wilberforce, a deeply religious British politician, who helped end Britain's role in the slave trade: ``Boldly, I must confess, the national difficulties we face result from the decline in religion and morality among us.''
In an interview, she brushed aside persistent rumors that she was destined for a higher political calling. ``Everybody has that as a design for my life,'' she said. ``I think people think I'm a natural candidate. But I've never had the desire to seek elected office.''
Robertson said James would help push the government school into the ranks of Harvard University's influential John F. Kennedy School of Government. ``With her leadership,'' he said, ``we will find the school a place of political foment, instruction and a place where distinguished scholars and government leaders will be coming on a regular basis.'' The school has 160 students.
Candice Zouhary, a government student, said she admires James because she stands by her beliefs. ``She shows that you can succeed in government by the power of your principles rather than political expediency.''
James said last year that she left her position under Gov. George F. Allen to spend more time with her family. She said Friday that they would move to the area.
Those priorities also make her a valuable role model, said Lynne Marie Kohm, an assistant professor of law at Regent. ``It's refreshing to find a woman who is succeeding in her career who isn't sacrificing her family,'' Kohm said. ``Her career has excelled because she made those choices.'' ILLUSTRATION: [Color Photo]
CHRISTOPHER REDDICK
The Virginian-Pilot
Pat Robertson and Kay Coles James were greeted by more than 300
students and staff members at Regent University on Friday.
by CNB