Colorado College Notable Lectures & Performances

Dr. Vitolo is both a penmanship historian and a calligrapher. He has dedicated considerable effort to rediscovering and documenting the history of American penmen/calligraphers from �The Golden Age of Ornamental Penmanship�. This lecture will explore that rich history and bring to light some of the now forgotten artists from the period. Recorded November 6, 2009.

Dr. Bernard Amadei, founder of the organization "Engineers Without Borders", presents an informative and passionate program with a slide show of the small engineering projects in third world countries that have improved the lives of the people living there. Recorded October 20, 2009.

William Weida addresses the economic, political and health impacts of Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs), how and why we have deviated from conventional farming, and how we can reclaim American agriculture. Weida is the first speaker of the 2009-2010 State of the Rockies Speaker Series: "Food and Agriculture in the Rockies." Recorded September 7, 2009.

Colorado College presents �A Conversation With Sen. George S. McGovern,� the 1972 Democratic presidential nominee, three-term U.S. senator and two-term congressman, food and agriculture ambassador to the United Nations, and decorated B-24 pilot in the Second World War. McGovern will discuss his latest book, "Abraham Lincoln," as well as current topics ranging from Afghanistan and Iraq to health care and world hunger. Recorded September 15, 2009.

If, as many believe, the people of this world do little to address climate change and the average temperature of the world keeps rising, what will happen to our oceans, our weather, ecosystems and food supply? Cole Wilbur, Trustee and Past President of the David and Lucille Packard Foundation has been involved in Venture Philanthropy for over 33 years. He will discuss why the Packard and Hewlett Foundations have pledged $1 billion and hope to have that matched to keep the Earths temperature from rising no more than 2 degrees C by 2030. Recorded September 15, 2009.

Marc Acito, a 1990 graduate of Colorado College, novelist, former syndicated humor columnist and former professional opera singer, was the keynote speaker at Opening Convocation. Recorded August 31, 2009.

This year marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Abraham Lincoln. James M. McPherson is the George Henry Davis '86 Professor of History at Princeton University, the 2000 Jefferson Lecturer in Humanities, and was 2003 president of the American Historical Association. America's leading historian of the Civil War, he won the 1989 Pulitzer Prize for "Battle Cry of Freedom," which was a New York Times best seller. Recorded April 1, 2009.

Revered Tibetan Buddhist monk and scholar Khen Rinpoche Lobzang Tsetan, from Ladakh, India, will present Buddhist perspectives on love, compassion and forgiveness in conversation with Prof. David Gardiner of the Colorado College Religion department. Recorded March 27, 2009.

One of America�s most beloved and delightful poets, X.J. Kennedy is author of "In a Prominent Bar in Secaucus" and "Peeping Tom�s Cabin." Kennedy (his given name was Joseph Kennedy; he later stuck an X. in front of it and has been stuck with it ever since has received the Lamont Award of the Academy of American Poets (for his first book, "Nude Descending a Staircase"), the Los Angeles Book Award for poetry (for "Cross Ties: Selected Poems") and the Aiken-Taylor Award for Modern American Poetry, presented by the University of the South and The Sewanee Review). Recorded March 26, 2009.

Laurence Maslon is the co-creator of "Make 'Em Laugh: The Funny Business of America," a six-part series broadcast nationally by PBS in January. "Make 'Em Laugh" is the first documentary of its kind to give context to nearly 100 years of American comedy on stage, film, radio, television, and stand-up and to honor the geniuses who created our country's unique form of performance humor. Recorded March 9, 2009.

Edward C. Prescott discusses the advantages and disadvantages of economic integration among sovereign states with respect to economic growth, involving more generally an analysis of globalization. Professor Prescott is a senior monetary advisor at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis and is a major figure in macroeconomics, especially the theories of business cycles and general equilibrium. In his "Rules Rather Than Discretion: The Inconsistency of Optimal Plans," published in 1977 with Finn E. Kydland, he analyzed whether central banks should have strict numerical targets or be allowed to use their discretion in setting monetary policy. He also is well known for his work on the Hodrick-Prescott Filter, used to smooth fluctuations in a time series. Recorded March 2, 2009.

Amy McNamara, the National Parks program director for the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, will deliver the final lecture in the Fall/Winter State of the Rockies Speaker Series. The talk is titled "Bison in Yellowstone: Pests or National Icons?" McNamara has worked with the Greater Yellowstone Coalition since 2004 in their shared mission of protecting the lands, waters and wildlife of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, now and for future generations. Recorded February 23, 2009.

Richard Schechner, the leading voice of performance studies in America and the founder of New York University's Performance Studies Program, delivers this year's keynote address for the Cornerstone Arts Initiative. The lecture will examine how the arts scene in the United States has developed since 9/11, and the transmutative effects that have altered our perceptions of art, performance and the avant-garde. Recorded February 4, 2009.

This homecoming panel is part of the college's Sondermann Series: Elections 2008. Panelists include Chuck Buxton '68, senior editor at the Santa Rosa Press Democrat; Eric Sondermann '76, president of SE2 Associates in Denver; and CC political science professors Timothy Fuller and Bob Loevy. Recorded October 10, 2008.

Betty Bright is a Minneapolis-based curator and critic of the book arts. In this slide-illustrated talk, she will explore the role of The Press at Colorado College on the national book arts scene. Bright's discussion will focus on the work of James Trissel at The Press between 1978 and 1998. Her lecture is the final event in Pressfest 2008, a celebration of the work of The Press at Colorado College, now in its 30th year. Recorded October 6, 2008.