Chapter Q of the Encyclopedia of Northern Kentucky

Encyclopedia of Northern Kentucky in partnership with NKY.com Introduction | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | Y | Z | Index

Q

The Enquirer/Amie Dworecki

QUALLS, ROXANNE. Former Cincinnati Mayor Roxanne Qualls is the daughter of Eugene Van Lear and Kathryn Vetter Qualls. The family moved to Erlanger, Ky., in 1961... (cont’d on pg. 741)

The Encyclopedia of Northern Kentucky Contents Introduction, Foreword, Acknowledgments and Guide for Readers Chapters: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, Y, Z Index, Bibliography, Illustration Credits

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Print editions: Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data The Encyclopedia of northern Kentucky / edited by Paul A. Tenkotte and James C. Claypool. p. cm.

ISBN 978-0-8131-2565-7 (hardcover : acid-free paper) ISBN 978-0-8131-2585-5 (limited leather edition) 1. Kentucky, Northern— Encyclopedias. 2. Kentucky— Encyclopedias. I. Tenkotte, Paul A. II. Claypool, James C. F451.E55 2009 976.9'3003—dc22 2009027969

QUALLS, ROXANNE (b. March 3, 1953, Tacoma, Wash.). Former Cincinnati mayor Roxanne Qualls is the daughter of Eugene Van Lear and Kathryn Vetter Qualls. The family moved to Erlanger, Ky., in 1961. Roxanne began her education at St. Henry Elementary School in Erlanger and went on to Notre Dame Academy in Park Hills, graduating in 1971. She attended Thomas More College in Crestview Hills from 1971 to 1973 and the University of Cincinnati from 1973 to 1975.

Qualls served as director of the Northern Kentucky Rape Crisis Center and later as director of the Women Helping Women organization. She directed what is now known as the Cincinnati office of the Ohio Citizens Action group.

As an unknown contender for Cincinnati City Council in 1987, she came in 14th out of the 25 candidates vying for a seat. In 1991, on her third run for

city council, she was elected and served for two years. In 1993 Qualls became the first popularly elected mayor of the city. She proved to be well liked by the citizens, had a good relationship with council members, and worked well with the city’s business interests. She sought to improve the city by her Zero Tolerance Initiative, which targeted the city’s slum landlords. She also founded the Cincinnati Homeownership Partnership, consisting of 32 organizations, which encouraged and assisted citizens who were buying homes. Mayor Qualls was also instrumental in the redevelopment of the Cincinnati riverfront, which is now anchored by two new sports stadiums. She served as mayor from 1993 to 1999 and left office at that time because of term limits.

Qualls then became a fellow at the Institute of Politics in the Kennedy School of Government (KSG) at Harvard University. In the fall of 2001, she was named a Loeb Fellow in the Graduate School of Design at Harvard. She earned an MPA (master’s in public administration) degree from the KSG in 2002 and subsequently was a Malcolm Weiner Fellow at the KSG .

In January 2004 Qualls began serving as a visiting professor at Northern Kentucky University, where she teaches in public administration.

She is also director of the university’s Public Lead-

ership Initiative. She presently resides in downtown Cincinnati. Qualls is one of three Northern Kentuckians to serve as mayor of Cincinnati, the other two being Theodore M. Berry and David Mann. In fall 2007 she was named to the Cincinnati City Council to replace Jim Tarbell, who had resigned. In November 2007 she was reelected to the Cincinnati City Council.

CNN.com. “Candidate Profi le from Congressional Quarterly.” www.cnn.com (accessed February 8, 2007).

“Ex-Mayor Qualls to Teach at NKU,” KP, November 3, 2003, 7K. Maloney, Sharon. “Even the GOP Sees Roxanne Qualls as a Formidable Candidate.” www.cincypost .com (accessed February, 7, 1998).

Northern Kentucky University. “Former Mayor Was SOP Student.” www.nku.edu (accessed February 8, 2007).

“Notice Well Deserved,” KP, February 8, 1996, 4K. Qualls, Roxanne. E-mail to Paul A. Tenkotte, February 13, 2007.

———. Telephone interview by Jack Wessling, February 8, 2007, Alexandria, Ky. Trapp, Doug. “Roxanne Isn’t Done,” City Beat, January 3, 2002, www.citybeat.com (accessed February 7, 2007).

Jack Wessling