OXFORD — Miami University officials are gearing up for a visit from the nation's first black secretary of state.

Retired Gen. Colin Powell will speak from 7 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Millett Hall. The former secretary of state under George W. Bush from 2001-2005 will deliver a lecture entitled "Diplomacy: Persuasion, Trust and Values" and afterward answer questions from the audience.

The event, free and open to the public, is part of the Jack R. Anderson Distinguished Lecture Series.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for students to reflect on ideas and decisions that have effected the course of society and public policy, and to expose the broader community to that type of thought process," said Alan Oak, assistant dean of external relations in the Richard T. Farmer School of Business.

During the day, Powell, 70, will meet with members of the Navy/Marine and Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps and a small group of students who represent the different academic divisions of the university, Oak said.

Powell's last visit to the campus was in 2000, when he was the inaugural speaker for the Anderson series. Anderson's endowment has paid for several other speakers, including former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, Queen Noor of Jordan and former Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev.