Burton Morgan lecturer to ­discuss liberal arts education

Financial planner and lawyer Richard K. Black '86 counts a liberal arts education among the finest investments.

Black will discuss "The Value of a Liberal Arts Education: Learning How to Think Leads to Knowing What to Do" as part of the Burton D. Morgan Foundation Lectureship Series on Thursday, February 19, at 11:10 a.m. in Hayes Hall 109.

Black is a founding partner and managing director of Altair Advisers, founded in Chicago in 2002 to provide investment counsel to wealthy individuals, families, and foundations. Black is engaged in client service, business development, and firm management. He also oversees the firm's legal and regulatory matters. Black worked previously at Arthur Andersen, the former accounting firm, which he joined in 1997 to help guide the growth of investment advisory services.

"The liberal arts in general should be judged on the preparation for a successful career defined over the long run," Black said. "My Kenyon education in political science helped to teach me how to think broadly, critically and, perhaps most importantly, collaboratively." The liberal arts education, characterized at Kenyon by small classes and dialogue "with intelligent peers guided by an excellent professor," creates an advantage in analysis and problem solving, he said.

Black was named a top wealth advisor for the second consecutive year by Worth magazine in 2008. He earned his law degree at Chicago-Kent College of Law.

The Burton D. Morgan Foundation is based in Hudson, Ohio, and is dedicated to encouraging the free enterprise system. The foundation is the generous supporter of a series of lectures on the Kenyon campus during the academic year.