John W. Gardner IntroductionJohn W. Gardner, born 1912, had a varied and productive career as an educator, public servant, and political reformer. Gardner's belief in society's potential was his guiding force, but he was wary of the dangers of complacency and inaction. Perhaps best known as the founder of the Common Cause lobby, he was the author of numerous best-selling books on the topics of achieving personal and social excellence. Biography Gardner's public career began with his employment in 1946 as a staff member at the Carnegie Corporation, a foundation dedicated to the advancement and dissemination of knowledge. In 1955 he became president of the foundation. In 1958 he oversaw the preparation of a major report published by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund, "The Pursuit of Excellence: Education and America's Future." While president of Carnegie, Gardner frequently served as a consultant to federal agencies. In early 1964, he was appointed by President Johnson to chair a White House task force on education. The committee reported in favor of federal aid to public schools to standardize education in areas of poverty and to encourage quality improvements and innovations in local communities. In late 1979 it aimed to ensure "the survival of the nonprofit sector" in the face of federal encroachment. That same year he was appointed by President Carter to be a member of the Commission on a National Agenda, whose job was to offer recommendations to address the likely issues of the 1980s. In 1981 Gardner was appointed to another presidential committee by Ronald Reagan, the Task Force on Private Sector Initiatives, designed to find ways to offset cuts to federal programs. The biography continues….Pg. 2 Contributions to political theory In August 1965 Gardner became Johnson's secretary of health, education and welfare, remaining in that position until early 1968. He consolidated many of his social rehabilitation agencies and administered many of the programs of the Great Society just issued. After leaving government, he became president of the National Urban Coalition, a lobby group that works to stop the deterioration of urban centers. Frustrated by the opposition the NUC encountered from organized special interests, Gardner decided that a broader-based organization was needed to help bring about reform in an increasingly unresponsive political system. So in 1970 he launched Common Cause, a "public interest" lobby, concerned with a wide range of issues including the Vietnam War, social welfare and environmentalism. By the mid-1970s the common cause had become closely identified with government reform in general, including limits on campaign finance and disclosure laws, lowering the voting age, and reform of the seniority system to Congress..