Lawrence reappointed to Judicial Conduct Board

Gov. Tom Wolf on Wednesday appointed a Temple administrator to a higher position on a state ethics body.

Ken Lawrence, Temple’s vice president for government, community and public affairs, was named vice chair of the Judicial Conduct Board, Chief Counsel Robert Graci said in a press release dated Feb. 11. Lawrence had previously served as secretary of the board. Former Gov. Tom Corbett appointed him to the board in September 2013.

“I am honored by the opportunity to serve and grateful for the confidence of the Board,” Lawrence told The Temple News via email.

As vice chair, Lawrence will fill in for the chair on occasion, he said.

The Judicial Conduct Board hears ethics complaints from the public and conducts investigations of judges in various roles throughout the state. It has the authority to investigate complaints of misconduct against those who serve on the Supreme, Superior, Commonwealth and Common Pleas courts, as well as Philadelphia Municipal and Traffic Court judges and Magisterial District judges.

Lawrence is Temple’s chief political lobbyist. He also is the supervisor for the office of Community Relations, which plans events for and holds meetings with the neighborhoods around Main Campus.

“I could be in Harrisburg one day, meeting with state legislators, talking about our appropriation, I could be in Washington D.C. the next day talking about research funding with our congressional delegation or I could be in City Council meeting with council members and talking about new buildings,” Lawrence said in an interview prior to the news of the announcement. “And then there’s the community aspect of it too, going out to neighborhood meetings and things like that.”

As a lobbyist, he said he stresses the university’s research and international appeal in talks with politicians.

“A lot of what we do is share the success stories of Temple,” he said.

Lawrence holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Temple and a master’s degree in Governmental Administration from the University of Pennsylvania. As a student, Temple political science professor Robin Kolodny said Lawrence was ambitious.

“Nearly every class period, [Lawrence] stayed after to ask a follow-up question and I could also count on him to participate in class,” Kolodny said in an email. “Then, as now, [Lawrence] was focused on his goals and worked hard to achieve them.”

He’s also active on social media and has made a select few hashtags his trademark, including #owlgladiatorinasuit and #themindofken.

“I try to educate through my Twitter account, I try to share information,” Lawrence said. “But I do try to have fun with it.”

Vsevolod Leskin and Joe Brandt can be reached at news@temple-news.com, 215.204.7419 or on Twitter @TheTempleNews