Mark Souder is staging a political comeback – in the classroom.
Trine University announced Wednesday that the former congressman will develop and teach curriculum for a master’s degree program in leadership offered by Trine’s School of Professional Studies.
“This is what I feel I’m supposed to do with my talents,” Souder said in an interview. “My goal is to build something that lasts long after me.”
Souder, a conservative Republican, was elected to the U.S. House in 1994 and won re-election seven times in his northeast Indiana district. He resigned from his 3rd District seat last May after admitting he’d had an affair with a woman on his staff.
Since then, “I needed to rebuild my family, which we have,” said Souder, who is married and has three grown children.
Souder, 60, has already begun developing a concentration of courses in political leadership and civic engagement for Trine.
“His travels, encounters with world leaders and work in Washington will be of great value and will broaden the horizons of our students,” Trine President Earl D. Brooks said in a written statement.
Trine is a private university in Angola with an enrollment of about 2,100 students and seven satellite locations, including one in Fort Wayne.
David Wood, dean of the School of Professional Studies, declined to disclose Souder’s salary. Asked whether the nature of Souder’s resignation from Congress was a factor in Trine’s decision to hire Souder, Wood said, “No, not at all.”
Souder plans to teach a course on political marketing and management. He said he will draw from his experience in both politics and business, including “war stories” from campaigns. He worked for his family’s furniture store in Grabill before becoming a congressional aide in the 1980s.
In either career, “you have to have an overall strategy and know your markets,” he said.
As for his political bent in the classroom, Souder said: “When you hire a conservative Republican, you get a conservative Republican. At the same time, the goal is to talk about good tactics. Obviously, I’m going to express my opinions.”
Trine’s Clifford Sponsel Library will house Souder’s congressional records – he said he has 250 boxes of printed, visual and audio materials – from his work on such matters as veterans’ health care, drugs, border security and national parks. All of the archives will be digitized.
Souder also will discuss community issues on a quarterly blog for Trine’s School of Professional Studies. And he will develop non-degree classes that will be available to the public.
“He will do a little bit of everything – online, on the main campus and on our branch campuses,” Wood said.
A graduate of IPFW, Souder has a master’s of business administration from the University of Notre Dame. He was on the House Education Committee in Congress.
He said he has wanted to teach since he was 30 and that he likes the flexibility afforded by Trine.
“I was very familiar with the Trine people and the board,” he said. “It’s small enough to be creative.
“The knowledge I have – what’s the best way to share it? I believe as a Christian that God gives you talent and knowledge so you can sort through the best you can.”
