Center for Business Ethics
The center's mission has evolved throughout the school's history, beginning as the International Center for Ethics in Business in 1991 with a focus on research about the international dimensions of business ethics.
Today the Center for Business Ethics aims to identify relevant and critical business topics and offer programming that promotes ethical conduct and integrity to actively engage KU School of Business students as they prepare for their careers.
Walter S. Sutton Lecture Series
The Walter S. Sutton Lecture Series is produced by the Center for Business Ethics. The series began in 1993 and was made possible by Betsey G. Sutton in memory of her husband, Walter Sutton, a 1939 School of Business alumnus, in honor of his lifelong dedication to ethical business practices.
Each year this lecture series highlights the importance of ethics and value systems in business.
Since the first lecture in 1993, the Sutton Lecture Series has brought the following distinguished individuals to the University of Kansas:
1993 – William S. Kanaga, Chairman, Center for International Private Enterprise
1994 – Hal T. Hansen, Chairman, Cargill Investor Services; chairman, National Futures Association
1997 – James Buchanan, Nobel Laureate in economic sciences
1998 – Michael Novak, Director of Social and Political Studies, American Enterprise Institute
1999 – John Brooks Slaughter, President, Occidental College; chairman, National Science Foundation
2001 – Albert M. Erisman, Director of Mathematics and Computing Technology, Phantom Works, The Boeing Company
2002– Mary Faith Marshall, Professor of Medicine and Bioethics, University of Kansas Medical Center
2003 – Terence E. Downer, retired international executive, Johnson & Johnson
2004 – James Webb, Secretary of the Navy
2005 – Klaus M. Leisinger, President and CEO Novartis Foundation for Sustainable Development
2006 – Robert Herndon, Special agent, Federal Bureau of Investigation
2007 – Peter Eigen, Founder and chairman of the Advisory Council for Transparency International
2008 – Ray Anderson, leading environmental entrepreneur
2009 – Daniel Arneman, Asheen Phansey, Kevin Stack, panel of experts who delivered presentation entitled "Sustainable Business: Innovation and Design Inspired by Nature"
2010 – Kathleen Edmond, Best Buy Chief Ethics Officer
2011 – Carol Hallquist, Vice President, Hallmark Cards
2012 – Patricia Werhane, Philosophy Professor, DePaul University
2013 – Roger W. Ferguson Jr., President and CEO, TIAA-CREF
2014 – Harry Markopolos, Bernie Madoff whistleblower
2016 – Gen. David G. Perkins, U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command
2018 – Keith Darcy, Independent Senior Advisor, Deloitte & Touche LLP’s Enterprise Compliance Services practice
2019 – Jessica Li, Associate Professor of Marketing, KU School of Business