Viv Ewing bids to Make History with Run for Nebraska Board of Regents
by Leo Adam Biga
Reflective of the Barack Obama and Black Lives Matter effect, the number of African-American candidates running for office in the 2020 primary election in Nebraska may be a record in the state. Viv Ewing of Omaha is among at least 18 black candidates, all Democrats, vying for seats ranging from the Nebraska legislature to the U.S. Senate in the May 12 primary.
Ewing, a veteran corporate and nonprofit manager, is attempting to become the first African American elected to the University of Nebraska Board of Regents. She is one of three candidates seeking to replace retiring NU Board of Regent Howard Hawks in representing District 2.
Her opponents are Jack Stark, a psychologist who worked with the University of Nebraska Athletic Department, and Mike Kennedy, a former Millard Public Schools and Metropolitan Community College board member.
The top two finishers in the primary will face-off in the November 3 general election.
After an 11-year middle-management career with Conagra Brands, Ewing held executive posts with Habitat for Humanity and Alzheimer’s Association Midlands Chapter. She’s served on various boards, including College of Saint Mary, University of Nebraska Medical Center and Siena Francis House. She is president of the National Council of Negro Women Incorporated.
Though this is her first public office bid, she’s no stranger to political life as her husband, John W. Ewing Jr., has served multiple terms as Douglas County Treasurer. He’s among her key advisors. along with veteran political strategist Preston Love Jr. Her campaign manager is Nebraska legislative staffer Dee Austin. A major financial contributor to Ewing’s campaign is NU Board of Regent and Omaha philanthropist Barbara Weitz.
Changing the complexion of institutional leadership
The prospect of diversifying the all-white board is a strong motivating factor in Ewing’s run.
“I do think it’s time to change the makeup of that board to make it more representative of the world we live in,” Ewing says. “For years, it’s always been very elite. I do think we need to have more diverse representation and bring broader views and new voices to the Board or Regents, and that’s something I bring – a new voice.”
Nebraska Democratic Party Black Caucus chair and finance director Precious McKesson notes “the large number” of African Americans candidates in this election cycle is more than she can recall. Preston Love Jr., second associate chair with the NDP, agrees the numbers may be historic and reflect “a trend of new faces and voices.” He adds, “We’ve got African Americans running for things we’ve been scared of before. We’re not scared anymore.”
Ewing recognizes she’s part of a wave of candidates going for posts outside the usual city council, county commissioner and school board lanes.
“We’re seeing a significant number of African Americans running for office across the whole spectrum. It’s a great thing. I do feel there is a movement in the state where African Americans are feeling more emboldened to do so.”
Being a candidate in the year of the novel coronavirus pandemic has meant scuttling traditional campaign efforts due to health directives restricting public gatherings.
“I had a lot of public events and door to door canvassing planned and all of that had to come to a screeching halt,” says Ewing, “because of precautions around face-to-face contact. It’s been an interesting time. We’ve had to retool our approach. We’ve been creative about reaching out to people – using Facebook Live as one way – and making a lot of phone calls and sending a lot of emails to touch constituents.”
Her grassroots approach is inspired by the “community organizing” tactics used by Barack Obama, whose presidential campaigns she volunteered with in Nebraska.
Bringing experience to the table
In her appeals to voters, many of them casting ballots by mail, she stresses her experience has steeled her for the oversight and policy duties of the regents board. She’s often asked what that body’s responsibilities are.
“It is the governing body that provides strategic leadership and direction to all the University of Nebraska campuses and colleges,” she says. “It advocates for the advancement of the university’s mission of education, research and outreach. It hires the president, approves the budget, sets tuition rates. It’s a very strategic, important roIe, and when I look at my record of community service I have a lot to offer because the leadership roles I’ve had all required me to be a strategic thinker. I’ve led at a very high level for a number of years. I would bring that experience to bear with the board in helping to look strategically at the future and knowing what issues are emerging.
“I’ve done a lot of things to make a difference in our community and in our state, and for me this was the next logical step. I have been planning to run for elected office a long time. I was waiting for the right opportunity and the right position, and this is the right time and the right position for me. Running for this position made sense. That’s why I got in the race. I know I can make a difference, I know I’m qualified – and I know I can win.”
She counts her familiarity with the NU system as a strong suit.
“My affiliation with the University of Nebraska goes back to when I received my bachelor’s and master’s degrees from UNO and my Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. I went from connected on the student side to being appointed to several boards and committees within the university system. I believe my experience has really heightened my awareness about the university and also prepared me to serve in this capacity.”
Her husband is also an NU system grad and, she says, “We both really support the University of Nebraska. We believe it offers a world class education. The challenge for the Board of Regents is to make sure others know it offers a world class education.”
Keeping students in-state
She believes the quality and value of that education needs to be promoted.
“A lot of times we lose our best and brightest because when they graduate from high school or college here they often feel going away is the answer or best route to take.”
Stemming the brain drain will be a priority if elected.
“We really need to get a handle on that if we’re going to be economically competitive as a state. It’s a discussion being held every single day by the business community and chambers of commerce. It needs to be a point of emphasis for the Board of Regents, too.
“One solution is having more partnerships with businesses so that as students graduate from the University of Nebraska they can walk into a good paying job. Often, the reason students leave is they feel they’re not being hired or can’t be hired here. We want to do a better job of assuring these graduates they can find positions here in Nebraska. A lot of companies already do those partnerships. We need to expand that.”
NU’s recent decision to make school tuition-free for resident students from households earning $60,000 or less is a start in the right direction, she feels, since higher education is outside the means of many families.
“I applaud the Board of Regents for putting that initiative forward. I think it’s brilliant. It will definitely make school more accessible and affordable for many families. I think the board needs to evaluate how the university system can expand that to other students.”
Ewing advocates using technology to provide greater access to higher education.
“I think we need to offer more online courses for business professionals already in a career and unable to set foot on a traditional college campus due to work-family time constraints. People need that access for professional advancement in their current career or to prepare for new careers. We also need to work with employers to offer the online classes they need for their workforce to be better prepared for the future.”
She’s traversed the state enough to know not all areas have equal access to reliable technology. Thus, she champions enhanced infrastructure and connectivity in western Nebraska to provide seamless wi-fi, broadband and 4g to make online university courses accessible and to support the needs of agribusiness and other business segments.
Leveraging the university in tough times
For Ewing, there’s no question a robust NU system is critical to the state’s economic health.
“It’s an economic engine in our state. It is a part of that infrastructure supporting various segments of the state–- education, research, science, medicine, technology, business.“
She notes that state government and the public university system were already hurting well before COVID-19 due to sluggish economic performance and budget shortfalls. NU has been taking cuts and will be taking more. Officials already project a $50 million loss from the pandemic’s impact.
“The educational system, schools and school districts have seen their budgets, educational delivery systems and student experiences affected,” she says. “I don’t think we know the full implications just yet. We’re going to see that in the days and weeks to come. However, what we can do is try to be prepared for our best guesstimate about what will happen.”