Pub. 10 2019 Issue 4

www.wvbankers.org 16 West Virginia Banker Continued from page 15 excellent basic education and gives the young banker the foundation needed to begin a great career. The next level in the continuing education journey is a graduate school of banking. For over 70 years, the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University (GSBLSU) has educated banking leaders. Over 16,000 bankers have graduated from this program and have led their banks ethi- cally and profitably. The curriculum at GSBLSU changes with the needs of the industry. Through consultation with faculty, students, alum- ni, state association leaders and many others, the school identifies the courses needed for leaders in the dynamic banking industry. Ethical decision making has been identified as a major need. To accommodate this, we make courses and case studies with this emphasis integral to the curriculum. These courses and case studies focus on ethical leadership with a specific focus on the unique aspects of the banking industry. To further emphasize ethical leadership, the Keynote Speaker series is utilized to bring a nationally known expert in ethical leadership. This year’s keynote address will feature Colonel Arthur Athens, USMC (Ret.), former director of the Stock- dale Center for Ethical Leadership, and nationally acclaimed speaker. Colonel Athens explains that competence, courage, and compassion are the keys to leadership. Our faculty continue to teach courses that are foundational to the financial services industry. Some of these are capital and liquidity management, compliance and risk management, and, of course, lending and bank financial analysis. This year we are adding two courses that are very important to our industry. First, we must embrace technological change, so a new course titled “Banking on Innovation” has been added. Because communication skills are vital to be a strong leader, we are adding a communications course that will not only emphasize effective communication but also crisis man- agement communications. It is time to acknowledge the importance of the young banker to your organization. We must work to keep them engaged and informed. They deserve this attention and require it for retention in our organizations. Please consider sending them to your state association school or the Graduate School of Banking at Louisi- ana State University.  John is executive director of the Graduate School of Banking at Louisiana State University. He is the founder and former President and CEO of The Community Bank of East Tennessee. Since 1983, he has served on the faculty of the Graduate School of Banking at LSU, where he was given the 2007 President’s Award as outstanding faculty member.