The list of political heavy-hitters who have held conversations at the Law School got longer Wednesday afternoon with a presentation by Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett.

The mayor spoke for around 30 minutes on what he sees as the big three issues facing the city – public safety, education and jobs – to about 70 students and faculty.

Barrett said one of the biggest challenges facing Milwaukee is that the city doesn't promote itself.

"We have to put more of an emphasis on talking about the good things about Milwaukee," Barrett said. "I think we have to do a better job of selling ourselves."

Crime

Barrett said it is important to keep Milwaukee's crime rate in perspective. He said that in 1990 the city had 160 homicides but last year there were only 103 homicides.

"We have a very aggressive police department," Barrett said.

Barrett said this year's budget allots for an additional 50 officers on the police force and that he plans on adding 50 more officers next year.

Barrett mentioned a Sunday Chicago Tribune article, "Milwaukee fights wave of violence." Barrett said in reality, Chicago was ranked higher than Milwaukee in the list of unsafe cities.

"It's important that we keep things in perspective. But again, I want to make this clear, it is the No. 1 issue I deal with," Barrett said. "I deal with crime as an issue more than any other issue."

Barrett said that while his strong relationships with Police Chief Nannette Hegerty, District Attorney John Chisholm and U.S.

Attorney Steve Biskupic are important, what Milwaukee really needs is proactive policing. Barrett said he would like to see this quality in the new police chief, who has yet to be chosen but will begin in November when Hegerty retires.

"We're sending the message to bad guys, 'We're coming after you, we're coming after you, we're coming after you,'" he said. "I frankly don't think that the message of 'Everything is going to hell in a handbasket' is particularly true."

Jobs

Barrett addressed the problem, called "brain drain," of talented college graduates leaving Milwaukee for other cities with better jobs.

Barrett said Milwaukee is behind the times in having enough places for graduates.

"We have not done a good job updating the economy so those people have a job," he said.

But Barrett also said Milwaukee should maintain its tradition of manufacturing but recognize that the global economy is moving in another direction.

"It's a challenge for this community . to recognize how dramatically different the world economy is," Barrett said.

Barrett said the way to develop and attract first-class jobs is with a first-class public school system.

Education

"The schools are a challenge and a problem, I think many people would say," Barrett said. "But they are dealing with challenges that you and I and the people in this room aren't dealing with in our daily lives."

Barrett said the Milwaukee Public Schools are slowly reaching stability. Prior to current MPS Superintendent William Andrekopolous' term, MPS had six different superintendents in nine years.

Barrett credited Andrekopolous for sticking with his job and the school board with extending Andrekopolous' contract. This is his fourth year on the job.

"I think we have turned a corner on stability and leadership in the school system," Barrett said.

Gousha to credit for top-notch speakers

In recent months, Mike Gousha, distinguished fellow in law and public policy at the Law School, has held forums with Gov. Jim Doyle, former Gov. Tommy Thompson, state Supreme Court candidates and a panel of Milwaukee School Board candidates.

"We think it's important because it gives students and faculty the chance to interact with people who make decisions," Gousha said. "We believe it's an important function for the Law School to undertake."

Gousha said the fit between lawyers, who write and interpret the law, and policy shapers and makers is a good one.

Law School Dean Joseph Kearney credited Gousha, a former local television personality, with bringing in important speakers.

"When we first spoke with Mike about the possibility of coming to Marquette Law School, we wanted to make clear that we didn't regard this as end of his career in terms of interviewing prominent individuals," Kearney said.

As for future speakers, Gousha said he has many more ideas for who to call in. On April 28, he will be moderating the Second Blog Summit, which will look at the impact of bloggers on politics.

"Once we catch our breath at the end of semester, we're going to sort out what we might do during next year and future years," Kearney said. "I wouldn't want people to think that what we've done over past couple of months is the extent of our ambitions."