Banks opens Trine Distinguished Speaker Series

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ANGOLA (09/04/2018) U.S. Congressman Jim Banks will open Trine University's 2018-2019 Distinguished Speaker Series at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, in the Ryan Concert Hall of the T. Furth Center for Performing Arts.

The event will include a remembrance of those who lost their lives in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. All Distinguished Speaker Series events are free and open to the public.

Banks, who represents Indiana's Third Congressional District, served in the U.S. Navy Reserve as a supply corps officer and took a leave of absence from the Indiana State Senate in 2014 and 2015 to deploy to Afghanistan during Operations Enduring Freedom and Freedom's Sentinel. He received the Defense Meritorious Service Medal for his military leadership in Afghanistan.

Born and raised in Columbia City, Banks earned an undergraduate degree from Indiana University and a Master of Business Administration from Grace College. Prior to his election to Congress, he worked in the commercial construction and real estate industries in Fort Wayne.

He served in the Indiana State Senate from 2010 to 2016, where he chaired the Senate Veteran Affairs and the Military Committee.

In 2008, Banks was named to Northeast Indiana's "Future 40 Leaders under 40," and in 2011, he was recognized as one of the top rising Republican legislators by Governing Magazine. Ivy Tech Community College awarded Banks the Distinguished Public Official Award in 2013, and he received the American Legion's Distinguished Public Service Award in 2013, 2014 and 2016 for his work on behalf of Hoosier veterans.

On Jan. 3, 2017, Banks began representing the Third District in the U.S. House of Representatives. He serves on the House Armed Services, Veterans Affairs and Education and the Workforce committees.

Banks still lives in Columbia City with his wife, Amanda, and their three daughters, Lillian, Elizabeth and Joann.

Designed to give educational enrichment that complements other learning experiences, Trine University's Distinguished Speaker Series brings experts in various fields to campus throughout the school year. All Distinguished Speaker Series events are free and open to the public.

For more information, contact Gretchen Miller at millerg@trine.edu or (260) 665-4312.