2015-2016 Schedule
Friday, October 9, 2015
Kate Frost — student success coordinator
“Mindset, Motivation and Mastery: Using Current Success Theory to Improve Your Life at Any Stage”
Friday, November 13, 2015
Peter Peregrine — professor of anthropology
“Lawrence Interment Discovery Service: We See Dead People”
Friday, February 12, 2016
Copeland Woodruff — director of opera studies and associate professor of music
“The Forgotten Member of the Cast: The Audience”
Friday, March 11, 2016
Hillary Caruthers — assistant professor of economics
“Global Poverty in the 21st Century: How do more than 1 billion humans survive on less than a dollar a day?”
Friday, April 8, 2016
Deanna Donohoue — assistant professor of chemistry
“It’s Not All CO2: Gases in the Atmosphere and What They Tells us About the Environment”
Friday, May 20, 2016
Mark Jenike — associate professor of anthropology
“Nobel Conference 2015 — The Science and Experience of Addiction”
2014-2015 Schedule
Friday, October 10, 2014
Carl Rath ’75
Instructor, Conservatory of Music
“How Sgt. Pepper Taught the World to Play”
Friday, November 21, 2014
Helen Boyd Kramer
Lecturer of gender studies
“How Marriage Changed: Gay Rights and Same Sex Marriage”
Friday, February 13, 2015
Samantha George
Associate professor of music
"A Lawrence Conservatory Treasure: The Andrea Guarneri Violin"
Friday, March 20, 2015
Matt Ansfield
Associate professor of psychology
“Living the ‘Good Life’: The Psychology of Happiness and Well-being”
Friday, April 10, 2015
Peter Thomas
Associate professor of Russian Studies
“Pushkin, Putin, and Pussy Riot: Observations on the Idea of Freedom in Russian Culture”
Friday, May 8, 2015
Beth Zinsli ’02
Curator and director of the Wriston Art Center Galleries
“Havana Through the Lens: Abelardo Morell’s ‘Camera Obscura’ Photographs”
2013-2014 Schedule
Friday, October 4, 2013
Karen Bruno
Director of the Academy of Music
“iPlay Unplugged: The Importance of Music-Making in the 21st Century”
Friday, November 8, 2013
Rosa Tapia
Associate professor of Spanish
“Globalization in Latin American Cinema: Old Borders, New Spaces”
Friday, February 14, 2014
Mark Burstein
President of Lawrence University
“The Economy, MOOCs, and Yale-NUS College: The Future of Lawrence in a Changing World”
Friday, March 14, 2014
Judith Humphries
Assistant professor of biology
"This Wormy World: Can't Live With Them, Can't Live Without Them"
Friday, April 11, 2014
Garth Bond
Associate professor of English
“Shakespeare on the Big Screen: Much Ado About Nothing?”
Friday, May 9, 2014
Ken Anselment
Dean of admissions and financial aid
“From Hilbert to Hong Kong: Where (and How) Does Lawrence Get All Those Students?”
2012-2013 Schedule
Friday, October 12, 2012
Catherine Kautsky
Professor of Music
"Clowns, Colonies and Cakewalks: An audio-visual tour of Debussy’s Paris, c. 1900"
Friday, November 9, 2012
Jake Frederick
Associate Professor of History
"Surviving the Apocalypse: 2012 and the Maya End of Days"
Friday, February 8, 2013
Lori Hilt
Assistant Professor of Psychology
"The Psychology of Mindfulness Meditation"
Friday, March 8, 2013
Douglas Martin
Assistant Professor of Physics
"The Higgs Boson: Without You, We Can’t Have Mass"
Friday, April 12, 2013
Adam Galambos
Assistant Professor of Economics
"The Science of Strategy: From Auctions to Kidney Exchanges"
Friday, May 10, 2013
Julie Lindemann and John Shimon
Associate Professors of Art
"The Wisconsin Project: Examining Wisconsin Through Postcard Views Made and Found"
2011-2012 Schedule
Friday, October 21, 2011
Brenda Jenike
Associate Professor of Anthropology
“From ‘Warm Contact’ to Robotic Grandchildren: Transitions in Late Life and Elder Care in Japan”
Friday, November 11, 2011
Benjamin Rinehart
Assistant Professor of Art
“4D: Artist Books as a Time-based Media”
Friday, February 10, 2012
Julie McQuinn
Associate Professor of Music
“‘They get some turnout for this stuff, huh?’: Listening to Opera in the Movies”
Friday, March 09, 2012
Catherine Tatge ’72
Artist-in-Residence
“Diary of a Documentary Filmmaker”
Friday, April 13, 2012
Andrew Knudsen
Associate Professor of Geology
“Dirty Dirt: The Legacy of Soil-Lead Contamination”
Friday, May 11, 2012
Claudena Skran
Professor of Government
“Global Trends That are Shaping Our World: The Challenge for Wisconsin”
2010-2011 Schedule
Friday, October 8, 2010
Dominica Chang
Assistant Professor of French
“Je t’aime... moi non plus: Franco-American Love-Hate Stories.”
Friday, November 19, 2010
David Gerard
Associate Professor of Economics
“Juggling the Purple Balls: Ranking Mortality Risks in the U.S. and Europe.”
Friday, February 11, 2011
Mark Breseman ’78
Associate Vice President of Alumni and Constituency Engagement
“Lawrence’s Hidden Gem: A Historical Hike along the Trails of Björklunden.”
Friday, March 11, 2011
Kimberly Dickson
Assistant Professor of Biology
“Stolen Cells and Heretical Hypotheses: Technology, Conflict and Drama at the Forefront of Modern Cancer Research.”
Friday, April 8, 2011
David McGlynn
Assistant Professor of English
“Flirting with Disaster: Turning Personal Obsession into Fiction.”
Friday, May 13, 2011
Andy Mast
Assistant Professor of Music and Director of Bands
“Band is Not a Four Letter Word”
2009-2010 Schedule
Friday, Oct. 9, 2009
Greg Griffin
Director of the Warch Campus Center
Rethinking the Student Union: It's Not Your Parents' College Anymore
Friday, Nov. 13, 2009
Julia Stringfellow
University Archivist
If These Walls Could Talk: A Look at the History of Lawrence Buildings Through Paper and Oral Records
Friday, Feb. 12, 2010
Jason Brozek
Assistant Professor of Government and Stephen Edward Scarff Professor of International Affairs
The Rationality of Terrorism
Friday, March 12, 2010
Sonja Downing
Postdoctoral Fellow in the Conservatory of Music
Bringing World Music Home: The role of Balinese Gamelan at Lawrence University
Friday, April 9, 2010
Jerald Podair
Professor of History
How the Milwaukee Braves Changed American History
Friday, May 21, 2010
Ron Peck
Assistant Professor of Biology
What can E. coli tell us about E.T.?
2008-2009 Schedule
Friday, November 14, 2008
Brian Pertl
Dean of the Conservatory of Music
“Didjeri-Dude: Personal Reflection on a Termite-Hollowed Log”
Friday, January 9, 2009
Mark Jenike
Associate Professor of Anthropology
“Eat your Vegetables! Observations on Nutrition Among Appleton High School Students”
Friday, February 13, 2009
Merton Finkler
Professor of Economics and John R. Kimberly Distinguished Professor in the American Economic System
“Water: Priceless Resource?”
Friday, March 13, 2009
Elizabeth Carlson
Assistant Professor of Art History
“1st floor – dresses, 2nd floor – Picasso: Milwaukee’s Introduction to Modern Art”
Friday, April 10, 2009
Martyn Smith
Assistant Professor of Religious Studies
“Islam in the American Landscape: The Case of Dearborn, Michigan”
Friday, May 8, 2008
Jeffrey Clark
Associate Professor of Geology
“Moving Towards Sustainability: The Greening of Lawrence University”
2007-2008
Friday, November 16, 2007
Marcia Bjørnerud
Professor of Geology and Walter Schober Professor of Environmental Studies
“The Geologic Future: Why an Understanding of Deep Time Matters”
Friday, January 11, 2008
Valerie Zimany
Lawrence Postdoctoral Fellow in Art and Art History
“Porcelain Seduction: Seven Years of Ceramic Work in Japan”
Friday, February 15, 2008
Alan Parks
Professor of Mathematics and Pieper Family Professor of Servant-Leadership
“What is Community Engaged Learning?”
Friday, March 14, 2008
Megan Pickett
Associate Professor of Physics
“A Sky Full of Jupiters: Extrasolar Planets and What They Tell Us About Our Own Solar System.”
Friday, April 11, 2008
Fred Sturm
Director of Jazz Studies and Improvisational Music and Kimberly-Clark Professor of Music
“Perfect Pitch: The Music of Baseball”
Friday, May 9, 2008
Arnold Shober
Assistant Professor of Government
“The Revenge of Richard J. Daley: How U.S. Primary Elections Have Become the Main Event”
2006-2007 Schedule
October 6, 2006
"'Why Can't They Be Like We Were, Perfect in Every Way?' Getting to Know Today's College Student"
Nancy Truesdell
Dean of Students
November 17, 2006
“Alcohol and the Brain: Discoveries in Neuroscience”
Bruce Hetzler
Professor of Psychology
January 12, 2007
“A Plague Upon Our House? Viruses in the 21st Century”
David Hall
Assistant Professor of Chemistry
February 16, 2007
"Living La Dolce Vita? The Sweet and Not So Sweet Life of an American Scholar in Italy"
Daniel Taylor
Hiram A. Jones Professor of Classics
March 9, 2007
“Artificial Intelligence: Oxymoron or New Frontier?”
Kurt Krebsbach
Associate Professor of Computer Science
April 13, 2007
“The Composer's Muse: How Do You Know When the Notes Are Right?”
Joanne Metcalf
Assistant Professor of Music
May 11, 2007
“Health Tourism: Sun, Sea, and Operations”
Amy Speier
Lawrence Fellow in Anthropology
2005-2006 Schedule
October 14, 2005
"Bioethics after Terri Schiavo"
Patrick Boleyn-Fitzgerald
Assistant Professor of Philosophy
November 11, 2005
"Telling It Like It Was? Travel Writing Through the Ages"
Monica Rico
Assistant Professor of History
January 13, 2006
"Good Ear For Language: Relation of Musical Training to Learning Chinese Tones"
Terry Gottfried
Professor of Psychology
February 10, 2006
"Star in a Jar: The Prospects for Fusion Power in the 21st Century"
Matthew Stoneking
Associate Professor of Physics
March 10, 2006
"Shaking Hands with Hitler: France's Dark Years, 1940-1944"
Judith Sarnecki
Professor of French
April 7, 2006
"Human Evolution: Recent Discoveries and What They Mean"
Mark Jenike
Associate Professor of Anthropology
May 19, 2006
"Balancing the Public and the Art in Public Art"
Rob Neilson
Assistant Professor of Art
2004-2005 Schedule
October 22, 2004
"Health Care Reform: The Tradeoffs Before Us"
Merton Finkler
Professor of Economics
November 12, 2004
"University - K-12 Partnerships in the Arts: The ArtsBridge America Model"
Jill Beck
Lawrence University President
January 14, 2005
"Backfire and Backlash: How Requiring Managers to be Nurturers Can Reinforce Discrimination Against Women"
Peter Glick
Professor of Psychology
February 11, 2005
"'Once Upon a Time...and Once Again': Fairy Tale Voices, Fairy Tale Visions"
Julie McQuinn
Assistant Professor of Music
March 11, 2005
"Spy vs. Spy: Cold War Espionage and the Collapse of the Soviet Union"
Peter Blitstein
Assistant Professor of History
April 15, 2005
"Invasion of the Species: How the Zebra Mussel Threatens the Fox and Wolf River Basins"
Bart De Stasio
Associate Professor of Biology
May 13, 2005
"'Hearing the Battle': Reading the Civil War Through the Lens of American Poetry"
Faith Barrett
Assistant Professor of English
2003-2004 Schedule
October 10, 2003
"Jazz: What To Listen For"
Fred Sturm
Professor of Music and Director of Jazz and Improvisational Music
November 14, 2003
"A Fragile Peace: The Changing Dynamics of East Asian Security and Stability"
Franklin Doeringer
Nathan M. Pusey Professor of East Asian Studies and Professor of History
January 16, 2004
"Going Batty: What Flying Mammals Can Teach Us Humans"
Jodi Sedlock
Assistant Professor of Biology
February 13, 2004
"From Sauerkraut and Sausages to Döner and Falafel: How Germany is Changing"
Brent Peterson
Associate Professor of German
March 12, 2004
"Iraq, One Year Later: A Retrospective and Look Ahead"
Claudena Skran
Associate Professor of Government
April 16, 2004
"Corps of Discovery/Core of the Matter: The Lewis and Clark Expedition, 1803-1806"
Rex Myers
Lecturer in History and Freshman Studies
May 14, 2004
"Forecasting the 2004 Elections: Can Outcomes be Predicted Before Even a Single Vote is Cast?"
Christian Grose
Assistant Professor of Government
2002-2003 Schedule
October 11, 2002
"Wisconsin's Environment: Getting Better or Worse? The Challenges We Face"
George Meyer
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor in Government
November 8, 2002
"The Art Object in the World of Ideas"
Frank Lewis
Director of Exhibitions and Curator of the Wriston Art Center Galleries
January 10, 2003
"Film as History, History as Film"
Paul Cohen
Professor of History
February 14, 2003
"Unveiling the Secrets of the Nanoworld: The Big Promise of Small Science"
Karen Nordell
Assistant Professor of Chemistry
March 14, 2003
"What Did Your Great-Grandmother Do? Women's Work in the Late Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Centuries"
Susan Richards
University Librarian
April 11, 2003
"Nationality and Musical Identity: The Czech Composers"
Derek Katz
Assistant Professor of Music
May 9, 2003
"Deregulating Corporate America: Was It a Mistake or Not?"
Dan Alger
Associate Professor of Economics
2001-2002 Schedule
September 28, 2001
"Envisioning the Future: The Changing Face of the Lawrence Campus"
Richard Warch
Lawrence University President
November 9, 2001
"Bucks on Broadway: Who has 'Em and Why it Matters"
Katherine Privatt
Assistant Professor of Theatre and Drama
January 11, 2002
"U.S. Relations with the Developing World: Defining our Role in an Era of Change"
Charles Ahlgren
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor in Government
February 15, 2002
"Up the Creek: How Urban Sprawl is Affecting our Water Resources"
Jeffrey Clark
Assistant Professor of Geology
March 15, 2002
"Death and Dinners: Entertainment in Ancient Rome"
Randall McNeill
Assistant Professor of Classics
April 12, 2002
"Lessons from Abroad: A Cellist's Insights from Teaching and Performing in Haiti, Argentina, and China"
Janet Anthony
Professor of Music
May 10, 2002
"Straddling the Himalayas: Challenges for the U.S. in the Growing Rivalry between India and China"
Mark Frazier
Assistant Professor of Government
2000-2001 Schedule
October 13, 2000
"Japan Faces the New Century: Challenges and Opportunities for Japan as a Society and Nation"
Ambassador Takakazu Kuriyama
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor of Government and former Japanese ambassador to the United States
November 10, 2000
"Don't Let the Numbers Fool You: The Use and Abuse of Statistics in Our Daily Lives"
Joy Jordan
Assistant Professor of Statistics
January 12, 2001
"The Post-Soviet Decade: Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?"
Rebecca Epstein Matveyev
Assistant Professor of Russian
March 9, 2001
"The Sixties: How They Changed America"
Jerald E. Podair
Assistant Professor of History
April 6, 2001
"Islam in America"
Kathryn M. Kueny
Assistant Professor of Religious Studies
May 11, 2001
"Folklore Meets Science: Discovering the Microbes in the Foods We Eat"
William J. Perreault
Professor of Biology
June 1, 2001
"Bridging the Avenue: Con Meets College — Do We Do More Than Coexist?
Kathleen M. Murray
Professor of Music and Dean of the Conservatory of Music
1999-2000 Schedule
October 8, 1999
“Relics, Ritual, and Reverence: The Art of the Altar in the Middle Ages”
Michael T. Orr
Associate Professor of Art History
November 12, 1999
“Chastity, Vegetarianism, and Non-Violence: Gandhi's Thoughts on God"
Dirck Vorenkamp
Assistant Professor of Religious Studies
January 14, 2000
"Changing Attitudes, Changing Behaviors: A Psychologist's Approach to Working With Controversial and Emotion-Laden Subject Matter"
Hazel Spears
Assistant Professor of Psychology
February 11, 2000
“Anonymity or Musical Immortality: The Composer’s Lot”
James H. DeCorsey
Associate Professor of Music
March 10, 2000
“How the Irish – And the Italians! – Saved Civilization”
Daniel J. Taylor
Hiram A. Jones Professor of Classics
April 14, 2000
"Poverty, Upward Mobility, and Welfare Reform"
Corry Azzi
Edwin N. and Ruth Z. West Professor of Economics
May 12, 2000
"Can't Live With Them, Can't Live Without Them: Man's Relationship With the Insect World"
Bradford G. Rence
Professor of Biology
1998-1999 Schedule
October 9, 1998
"Magnetic North: The Challenges of Conducting Geologic Research in Arctic Norway"
Marcia Bjornerud
Associate Professor of Geology
November 13, 1998
"More than Meets the Eye or Ear: Recognizing the Subtle Distinctions Among Theatre, Opera, and Musicals"
Timothy X. Troy
Assistant Professor of Theatre and Drama
January 8, 1999
"Freaks: Modern Representations of the Extraordinary Body"
Brian C. Rosenberg
Dean of the Faculty and Professor of English
February 1, 1999
"Berlin Witness: A Firsthand Account of the Fall of Communism and Lessons for Building a New Europe"
G. Jonathan Greenwald
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor of Diplomacy and Foreign Policy
March 12, 1999
"Witchcraft and Witch-Hunting: Confronting Popular Myths"
Edmund M. Kern
Associate Professor of History
April 9, 1999
"The Changing Face of China: Impressions From The Lawrence China Internship Program"
Jane Parish Yang
Associate Professor of East Asian Languages and Cultures
May 14, 1999
"The Traditional and the Novel in Undergraduate Science Instruction"
David M. Cook
Professor of Physics and the Philetus E. Sawyer Professor of Science
1997-1998 Schedule
October 10, 1997
"When to Say Yes, When to Say No: Improving the Quality of Life Support Decisions"
John Stanley
Professor of Religious Studies and the Edward F. Mielke Professor of Ethics in Medicine, Science, and Society
November 14, 1997
"Sic Transit Gloria: The Passing of Historical Reputations"
Richard Harrison
Dean of Faculty and Professor of History
January 16, 1998
"Musings: An Artist Examines Her Sources"
Helen Klebesadel
Associate Professor of Art
February 13, 1998
"The Changing Character of Intelligence and Diplomacy in a Post-Cold War World: Why America Still Needs Diplomats and Spies"
Ambassador David Swartz
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor of Diplomacy and Foreign Policy
March 13, 1998
"Youth at Risk: Are We Making Progress?"
The Honorable Robert Hawley, '71
Winnebago County Circuit Judge
April 10, 1998
"From Egg to Organism: Insights into Biological Development"
Nancy Wall
Assistant Professor of Biology
May 8, 1998
"Turning Music into a Competitive Sport: What Lies Ahead for the Talented Young Musician?"
Michael Kim
Assistant Professor of Music
1996-1997 Schedule
October 4, 1996
"Education and Display: The Role of the University Art Collection"
Nadine Wasserman
Wriston Art Galleries Curator
November 8, 1996
"Jane Austen at the Multiplex"
Timothy Spurgin
Associate Professor of English
January 10, 1997
"Russia: The Untested Transition"
J. Michael Hittle
Professor of History
February 14, 1997
"Archaeology in Syria"
Peter Peregrine
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
March 14, 1997
"Gender Studies: At Home in the Liberal Arts"
Eilene Hoft-March
Associate Professor of French
April 11, 1997
"Rags to Riches Bel Canto Style: Cinderella, An Opera by Rossini"
Patrice Michaels
Assistant Professor of Music
May 9, 1997
"The Politics of Compassion"
William Sloane Coffin
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor of Religious Studies
1995-1996 Schedule
October 13, 1995
"The Legacy of African-American Composers"
Dominique-Rene de Lerma
Visiting Professor of Music
November 10, 1995
"The Playwright and His Audience"
Frederick Gaines
Professor of Theatre and Drama
January 12, 1996
"Protestant Pentecostalism in Catholic Italy"
George Saunders
Professor of Anthropology
February 9, 1996
"The Geology and The Ecology of Lake Winnebago"
George Smith
Assistant Professor Geology, and
Bart De Stasio
Assistant Professor of Biology
March 8, 1996
"Health in the Andes: The Case for Tradition Medicines"
Lynn Sikkink
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
April 12, 1996
"The Cultural Roots of Brazilian Drumming"
Dane Richeson
Associate Professor of Music
May 10, 1996
William Sloane Coffin
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor of Religious Studies
1994-1995 Schedule
October 14, 1994
"Oxford Then and Now"
William Chaney
George McKendree Steele Professor of History
November 11, 1994
"Destination Senegal: Breaking New Ground in Francophone Africa
Judy Sarnecki
Assistant Professor of French
January 13, 1995
"The Fate of Music in the Modern World"
Robert Dodson
Dean of the Conservatory of Music
February 10, 1995
"Fertility Decline in Africa and the Future of World Population"
Candice Bradley
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
March 10, 1995
"Ancient Coins: Portraits as Propaganda"
Carol Lawton
Associate Professor of Art History
April 21, 1995
"A New Infrared Sensor for Use in Laser Surgery"
Susanne Lee
Assistant Professor of Physics
May 12, 1995
"The Federal Reserve System's Economic Policy Role"
Karl Scheld
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor of Economics
1993-1994 Schedule
October 8, 1993
"State of the Liberal Arts; State of the College"
Richard Warch
Lawrence University President
November 12, 1993
"Ethical Issues in Bio-Engineering"
Elizabeth De Stasio
Assistant Professor of Biology
January 14, 1994
"A Season Wrap-Up and a Look Ahead"
Rick Coles
Lawrence University Head Football Coach
February 11, 1994
"The Role of Music in Education"
Bridget-Michaele Reischl
Assistant Professor of Music
March 11, 1994
"Refugee Policies Today"
Claudena Skran
Assistant Professor of Government
April 8, 1994
"America and the Persian Gulf"
Donald Leidel
Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor of Government
May 13, 1994
"Issues in Education Policy: School Reform in the 1990s and Beyond"
Stewart Purkey
Associate Professor of Education