The Gordy Honors College’s Forum Series opens Thursday, Jan. 22 at 6 p.m. at Nissan Auditorium in Parkinson Hall on the Mississippi University for Women campus. The Forum Series continues through April presenting lectures, film and undergraduate and faculty research. Dr. Thomas G. Velek, director of the Gordy Honors College, noted that the Forum Series continues to be one of the premier lecture series in the Southeast.
All talks are free and open to the MUW campus and the community. Presentations are in Nissan Auditorium unless noted otherwise.
Faculty member of the year
The series opens with the annual Faculty Member of the Year Lecture. Mary Jo Kirkpatrick, director of the Associate of Science in Nursing program and 2014 Faculty Member of the Year, will be honored. She will present on her life, career and interests.
“This is the second annual FOY lecture,” explained Velek. “The concept was inspired by the Last Lecture Series at Carnegie Mellon University. We want our outstanding faculty to have a chance to talk about what motivates them, their hopes, dreams and aspirations.”
Civil rights
On Feb. 5 the series begins a two-part examination of the civil rights movement in Mississippi with a screening of the critically acclaimed documentary “Spies of Mississippi.” On Feb. 19 the series welcomes Dawn Porter to Columbus. Porter is the producer and director of “Spies of Mississippi.” The filmmaker’s other notable work includes the film “Gideon’s Army.” The title of her presentation will be: “Spies of Mississippi; the Campaign to Stop the Civil Rights Movement.”
Blood and guts
March 5 will bring Dr. Velek to the stage to present “Blood and Guts but Little Glory; When Military Leadership Fails the Soldiers.” Part of a year-long World War I Symposium, the lecture examines how military leadership in World War I failed to keep pace with the changing technology of warfare.
“This is an important topic not only for understanding why World War I unfolded as it did but also as a cautionary study in the modern climate of rapidly changing military technology,” explained Velek.
Global Muslims
On March 26 the Forum Series presents the third annual Nell Peel Wolfe Lecture. The lecture entitled “Islamic Pacifism; Global Muslims in the Post-Osama Era” will be presented by special guest Arsalan Iftikhar. Iftikhar, a well-known human rights attorney, is author of “Islamic Pacifism,” founder of Muslimguy.com, and senior editor of the “The Islamic Monthly.” His speaking engagements include Harvard, the Rockefeller Center, Georgetown University and the Doha Debates presented by the BBC. He has served as a commentator for CNN, Fox News and National Public Radio.
Velek describes his coming to MUW as “an extraordinary opportunity and very timely.” The presentation will be held in Poindexter Hall.
Research symposiums
The Forum Series concludes with three presentations devoted to research done at MUW. On April 9 the New Faculty Research Symposium will be held. April 23 and 30 will feature the Spring Honors Research Symposium (parts I and II). The events showcase undergraduate research of MUW seniors working on honors research projects. Poster sessions will be presented by students midway through projects and final research presentations will be made. “It is exciting that we have so many students doing undergraduate research and that the quality of the work done at MUW is so high, by both faculty and students” noted Velek.
Speakers are available after talks to meet and greet members of the audience. For further information or to reserve group seating, contact Velek at [email protected] or 662-241-6850, or visit muw.edu/honors/forum.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 36 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.