David Mathews, Ph.D.
Ford Administration, 1975-1977
David Mathews is president and chief executive officer of the Kettering Foundation. Before coming to the foundation in 1981, Dr. Mathews served as U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the Ford administration. From 1969 to 1980, he was president of The University of Alabama, where he also taught history for 15 years.
Dr. Mathews is a board member of the Academy for Education Development, the National Civic League, and Miles College. He is also chairman of the Council on Public Policy Education, a trustee of the Gerald R. Ford Foundation, and serves on the executive committee of Public Agenda. An author of books on education and political theory, Dr. Mathews has also written extensively on such subjects as southern history, public policy, and international problem solving. His most recent books are Why Public Schools? Whose Public Schools?, Is There a Public for Public Schools?, and Politics for People: Finding a Responsible Public Voice.
Dr. Mathews has received numerous awards including a citation as one of the Ten Most Outstanding Young Men in the nation (1969); the Nicholas Murray Butler Medal in Silver from Columbia University (1976); Alabama Administrator of the Year from the Alabama Conference of Black Mayors (1976); and the Brotherhood Award from the National Conference of Christians and Jews (1979). He is the recipient of 16 honorary degrees. He received his B.A. degree in history and classical Greek from The University of Alabama, and a Ph.D. in history from Columbia University.
The Kettering Foundation is an operating and research foundation established in 1927 by inventor Charles F. Kettering. Following in the footsteps of its founder, an engineer whose aim was always to understand "the problem behind the problem," the Kettering Foundation seeks to understand what underlies the workings of the body politic. Improving the quality of public life and strengthening the civic infrastructure are the goals common to all of Kettering 's work. Domestically, the foundation focuses on what citizens — the public — can do to make democracy work as it should. Among the practical results of its research are study guides, community workbooks, and other exercises citizens can use to act responsibly and effectively on public problems. The objective of the international work is to develop new kinds of nongovernmental diplomacy. Kettering works with organizations in other countries that are strengthening their civil societies.
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