{"id":2042,"date":"2025-08-24T22:56:07","date_gmt":"2025-08-24T22:56:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/?page_id=2042"},"modified":"2025-10-01T14:32:49","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T14:32:49","slug":"koten-distinguished-lecture","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/?page_id=2042","title":{"rendered":"Koten Distinguished Lecture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-cover alignfull\" style=\"min-height:485px;aspect-ratio:unset;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"2560\" height=\"1439\" class=\"wp-block-cover__image-background wp-image-2043 size-full\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-scaled.jpg\" style=\"object-position:25% 0%\" data-object-fit=\"cover\" data-object-position=\"25% 0%\" srcset=\"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-2048x1152.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-TEDx-Omaha-800x450.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 2560px) 100vw, 2560px\" \/><span aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-cover__background has-background-dim\" style=\"background-color:#154560\"><\/span><div class=\"wp-block-cover__inner-container is-layout-constrained wp-block-cover-is-layout-constrained\">\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading alignwide has-text-align-right has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color has-large-font-size wp-elements-10f749e1dbb19555347928556585e7b8\" style=\"text-transform:uppercase\">Koten Distinguished Lecture<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading alignwide has-text-align-right has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-dbebcf7b892e37256cb87523c5a587dd\">Fearless Leadership: Embracing Discomfort and Accountability To Achieve Greatness<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading alignwide has-text-align-right has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color has-small-font-size wp-elements-bd424253f426362dc7a2b44822e24098\" style=\"font-style:normal;font-weight:300\">given by Cy Wakeman<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:80px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading alignwide has-text-align-right has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-1ed76fe73d8b916168497a125ed8b325\" style=\"font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:500\">Pop-Up Locations in:<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<h6 class=\"wp-block-heading alignwide has-text-align-right has-white-color has-text-color has-link-color wp-elements-d316af4ff0794fc4e2e0f6988598244b\" style=\"font-size:14px\">Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Dallas, Elon, Gainesville, Milwaukee, New York, Syracuse, Washington D.C.<\/h6>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons alignwide is-content-justification-right is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-e6df00e8 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button is-style-fill\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-background has-text-align-center wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eventbrite.com\/e\/1626585483969?aff=oddtdtcreator\" style=\"background-color:#0095a9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Attend On-site<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link has-background has-text-align-center wp-element-button\" href=\"https:\/\/www.eventbrite.com\/cc\/2025-koten-distinguished-lecture-pop-up-locations-4580763?utm-campaign=social&amp;utm-content=attendeeshare&amp;utm-medium=discovery&amp;utm-term=odclsxcollection&amp;utm-source=cp&amp;aff=odclsxcollection\" style=\"background-color:#0095a9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Attend a Pop-Up Location Near You<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:30px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-rounded\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-medium is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"213\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Koten-Photo57-213x300.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2116\" style=\"aspect-ratio:3\/4;object-fit:cover;width:190px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Koten-Photo57-213x300.png 213w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Koten-Photo57-728x1024.png 728w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Koten-Photo57-768x1080.png 768w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Koten-Photo57-1092x1536.png 1092w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Koten-Photo57.png 1416w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 213px) 100vw, 213px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Who Is Jack Koten?<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p>John &#8220;Jack&#8221; Koten was a pioneering leader in corporate communications and a founding member of The Plank Center&#8217;s Board of Advisors. Throughout his career with AT&amp;T, Illinois Bell and Ameritech, he championed ethical leadership, corporate social responsibility and the role of public relations in building trust. He helped establish the Arthur W. Page Society, the Arthur W. Page Center for Integrity in Public Communication and supported education and the arts through board service and philanthropy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Koten Distinguished Lecture Series honors his legacy by inspiring future communicators to lead with integrity and purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-center\">2025 Speaker<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:10px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-rounded\">\n<figure class=\"alignleft size-medium\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-Wakeman-Headshot-2024-200x300.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-2055\" srcset=\"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-Wakeman-Headshot-2024-200x300.jpeg 200w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-Wakeman-Headshot-2024-683x1024.jpeg 683w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-Wakeman-Headshot-2024-768x1152.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Cy-Wakeman-Headshot-2024.jpeg 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\">Cy Wakeman<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading has-text-align-left\">President &amp; Founder of Reality-Based Leadership<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-left\">Cy Wakeman is a New York Times best-selling author, Hall of Fame Speaker and the 2023 World&#8217;s #1 Leadership Guru, celebrated for her transformative Reality-Based Leadership philosophy. With over 25 years of experience guiding top organizations including Google, NASA, Pfizer and Stanford Medicine, Cy helps leaders and teams achieve exceptional results by eliminating workplace drama and fostering accountability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Her modern approach to leadership has earned her a global following of over 250,000 and recognition as one of the top 3% of speakers worldwide. Cy is a Certified Speaking Professional and a recipient of the prestigious Council of Peers Award of Excellence, honoring her impact and excellence on stage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cy is the author of four best-selling books, including Life&#8217;s Messy, Live Happy (2022), and hosts the popular Reality-Based Leadership podcast. Her work continues to inspire leaders to embrace reality, lead with clarity and create cultures of engagement and resilience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"height:60px\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"wp-block-spacer\"><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Who Is Jack Koten? John &#8220;Jack&#8221; Koten was a pioneering leader in corporate communications and a founding member of The Plank Center&#8217;s Board of Advisors. Throughout his career with AT&amp;T, Illinois Bell and Ameritech, he championed ethical leadership, corporate social responsibility and the role of public relations in building trust. He helped establish the Arthur [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ocean_post_layout":"","ocean_both_sidebars_style":"","ocean_both_sidebars_content_width":0,"ocean_both_sidebars_sidebars_width":0,"ocean_sidebar":"","ocean_second_sidebar":"","ocean_disable_margins":"enable","ocean_add_body_class":"","ocean_shortcode_before_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_after_top_bar":"","ocean_shortcode_before_header":"","ocean_shortcode_after_header":"","ocean_has_shortcode":"","ocean_shortcode_after_title":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_widgets":"","ocean_shortcode_before_footer_bottom":"","ocean_shortcode_after_footer_bottom":"","ocean_display_top_bar":"default","ocean_display_header":"default","ocean_header_style":"","ocean_center_header_left_menu":"","ocean_custom_header_template":"","ocean_custom_logo":0,"ocean_custom_retina_logo":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_width":0,"ocean_custom_logo_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_tablet_max_height":0,"ocean_custom_logo_mobile_max_height":0,"ocean_header_custom_menu":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_family":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_subset":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_size":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_font_size_unit":"px","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_font_weight_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_tablet":"","ocean_menu_typo_transform_mobile":"","ocean_menu_typo_line_height":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_line_height_unit":"","ocean_menu_typo_spacing":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_tablet":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_mobile":0,"ocean_menu_typo_spacing_unit":"","ocean_menu_link_color":"","ocean_menu_link_color_hover":"","ocean_menu_link_color_active":"","ocean_menu_link_background":"","ocean_menu_link_hover_background":"","ocean_menu_link_active_background":"","ocean_menu_social_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_bg":"","ocean_menu_social_links_color":"","ocean_menu_social_hover_links_color":"","ocean_disable_title":"default","ocean_disable_heading":"default","ocean_post_title":"","ocean_post_subheading":"","ocean_post_title_style":"","ocean_post_title_background_color":"","ocean_post_title_background":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_image_position":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_attachment":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_repeat":"","ocean_post_title_bg_image_size":"","ocean_post_title_height":0,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay":0.5,"ocean_post_title_bg_overlay_color":"","ocean_disable_breadcrumbs":"default","ocean_breadcrumbs_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_separator_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_color":"","ocean_breadcrumbs_links_hover_color":"","ocean_display_footer_widgets":"default","ocean_display_footer_bottom":"default","ocean_custom_footer_template":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2042","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2042","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2042"}],"version-history":[{"count":71,"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2042\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2173,"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2042\/revisions\/2173"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/plankcenter.ua.edu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}