ANN ARBOR—Arthur Levitt Jr., former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission and proponent of tougher corporate accounting standards, will address America’s financial future and recent business scandals in a town hall meeting 6-8 p.m. Feb. 4 at the University of Michigan Business School’s Hale Auditorium. Levitt, self-described champion of shareholders and author of the best-selling book “Take on the Street: What Wall Street and Corporate America Don’t Want You to Know,” also will listen to concerns of investors and provide advice on how Americans can take control of their finances and participate safely and wisely in the stock market. During his tenure as the SEC’s longest-serving chairman (1993-2001), Levitt’s plan to strengthen enforcement of securities laws and require far greater disclosure from companies drew the ire of the accounting industry and corporate America, as well as stubborn resistance from lawmakers who viewed him as alarmist. Investor protection was Levitt’s top priority at the SEC. He created the Office of Investor Education and Assistance and established a Web site (www.sec.gov) that allows the public free and easy access to corporate filings and investor education materials. Other hallmarks of Levitt’s SEC tenure included improving the quality of the financial reporting process; maintaining the independence of auditors; saving investors billions of dollars by reducing spreads in the Nasdaq market; promoting the use of plain English in investment literature and public company and SEC communications; requiring that important information be released to all investors simultaneously; fighting Internet fraud; and cleaning up the municipal bond market. Before joining the SEC, Levitt was chairman of the American Stock Exchange (1978-89), served as chairman of the New York City Economic Development Corporation (1989-93) and owned Roll Call, a newspaper that covers Capitol Hill. His talk at the U-M Business School is sponsored by the Executive MBA Program. For more information, call (734) 615-9700.