David Ambler plans to do some reminiscing this weekend.

Ambler, Kansas University’s retiring dean of student affairs, advised student body presidents and vice presidents on Mount Oread for 25 years. Many of them are returning Friday and Saturday for a conference to link former student leaders with current leaders. The conference is titled “Celebrating 25 Years of Student Leadership.”

“For me, it’s a wonderful opportunity to continue a relationship I’ve tried to maintain with almost all of them since they’ve left,” Ambler said. “The value to KU is to show how taking advantage of the opportunities you have as an undergraduate or graduate student in and out of the classroom can pay dividends throughout your career.”

The conference includes keynote speakers, group presentations and panel discussions on a variety of leadership topics, such as student activism and grass-roots planning. About 100 current students are scheduled to attend the event at the Kansas Union.

“We’ll see some of the changes of Student Senate over the years,” said Justin Mills, current student body president. “Some of the attitudes may be different, like the way they’re treated by the administration. Any time you get leaders together, you learn from it.”

Keynote speakers for the event:

 David Dillon, chief operating officer of Kroger Co., who was student body president from 1972-73.

l Tedde Tasheff, an officer with Citicorp in New York City, who was president from 1976-1977.

 Darren Fulcher, who was elected in 1991 but was later removed by Student Senate. He’s an attorney in Lee’s Summit, Mo.

 David Adkins, a Kansas state senator and candidate for attorney general, who was president from 1972-73.

Tasheff said she was looking forward to seeing fellow student leaders, but she’s especially looking forward to seeing Ambler. She was on the search committee that hired Ambler.

“All I can say is Dave was the right pick, obviously,” she said. “I think 25 years have proven that we couldn’t have done any better than Dave Ambler. He’s been a fantastic advocate for students.”