Professor Bobbi Wolfe will discuss what we are learning regarding how poverty influences a child’s brain, the tools used and the potential for informing policy.  She will discuss her own research and the emerging research in neuroscience and poverty more broadly.  The goal of this research is to inform public policy to improve opportunities for children in low-income families. With funding from the Herb Kohl Public Service Research Competition, Wolfe and colleague, Professor Seth Pollak, brought 15 national leaders in neuroscience, poverty, and public policy to Milwaukee in September 2017. Bobbi Wolfe is the Richard A. Easterlin Professor of Economics, Population Health Sciences, and Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She is also an affiliate of UW-Madison's Institute for Research on Poverty.

Join us for a joint program with the Milwaukee Press Club to hear Governor Scott Walker. Walker, who is seeking re-election for a third term on November 6th, will share his vision on how Wisconsin is working and will outline his agenda for the future so that Wisconsin keeps moving forward.The Rotary office is also working on scheduling Tony Evers to speak at an upcoming luncheon, so please stay tuned for more details.

The Navy The Nation Needs — Rear Admiral Gabrielson will give an overview of how our Navy is organized and operates, and touch on various ways the Navy’s mission impacts the lives of all Americans, especially those away from fleet concentration areas. “The Navy The Nation Needs” gives some history of the Navy, operational updates from across the fleet, as well has how the Navy is working to address future challenges. The presentation provides civic leaders with insights on the Navy’s importance to cities such as Milwaukee, and provides a chance to interact with a service branch that doesn’t have a significant footprint in Milwaukee.  Rear Admiral Gabrielson was the Commanding Officer when the USS Freedom was commissioned in Milwaukee.

The contest to land the 2020 Democratic National Convention is down to the final three cities – Miami, Houston and Milwaukee. Alex Lasry, Senior Vice President of the Milwaukee Bucks, along with the City of Milwaukee has been spearheading the effort to bring the DNC Convention to Milwaukee for the last year. The DNC Convention is widely considered one of the largest events any American city can host every four years. Alex will give an update on what landing the DNC Convention will mean for Milwaukee and how the entire community will need to be involved in the bid during the coming months.

We will partner with the Milwaukee Press Club to host Milwaukee Brewers executives Rick Schlesinger, chief operating officer and David Stearns, general manager. The program will feature an on-the-record discussion between Schlesinger and Stearns and a panel of journalists, followed by Q&A with the audience.

Amelia Kegel, co-owner of Wheel & Sprocket and daughter of founder Chris Kegel–a legend in the biking industry– will discuss How Bikes Build Milwaukee and Wisconsin Communities. Founded in 1973 in Hales Corners, Wisconsin, Wheel & Sprocket began as a small, local bike shop with big dreams. After 44 years of growing Wheel & Sprocket has become one of the most successful bike shops in the country. Chris Kegel passed away, but left behind quite a legacy. Today, the Wheel & Sprocket brand has extended its reach to four stores in the Metro-Milwaukee area, two in the Fox Valley, and two in the Chicago, IL. suburbs of Evanston and Oak Park.