Ethos Week at Eastern Michigan University

Originally submitted by: jadelay

During the week of March 10-14, 2008, we plan to have some forum posts on the 2nd Ethos Week sponsored by the College of Business at Eastern Michigan University. The week includes a series of events, ranging from talks featuring local business people; a keynote speech (capping the event) by a nationally syndicated writer and advocate of the principled life in business, called "The Ethics Guy;" to a dinner honoring a local business person or business for their "Best Practices" in the field of ethics. To begin with, though its name could be confused in some quarters with the "Greek Weeks" of fraternities at campuses across the country, Ethos Week's only Greek tie is its name, Ethos. According to the miniscule print of the Oxford English Dictionary, ethos derives from the Greek word for "character." Naming an entire week "Ethos" took some guts as far as I am concerned. It is not as if many people use this word in every day conversation. For example, I don't hear coaches saying to their athletes, "Sport builds ethos." Further, while some corporations may have mission statements that refer to an organizational ethos, I don't know many organizations who practice "the art of living" and character required by the ancient Greeks. To be sure, sometimes the CEO becomes excited about a book that touches on character and virtue, that in turn, he or she "suggests" that all employees read. These books often consist of inspirational and pithy sayings by the ancient Greek Stoics or Aristotle--all relevant and applicable to the business realm. We are all for bringing a little ethos back into business. After all, it was the Agora--the market place-- where many of the most famous philosophers, including the Stoics, met to talk about character, virtue and the art of living the moral life, in commercial Athens. For this reason, we look forward to learning about ethos, that is character, and its uses and abuses, during the EMU's unique Ethos Week in March. For more information on this event, search the Internet using the words, "Ethos Week." You should find it- the event is that unique.