Think Outside the Lunch Box Faculty Speaker Series

Held the first Thursday of each month in Old National Bank's Blue & Gold Room, UE's Think Outside the Lunch Box Faculty Speaker Series was created in 2010 to share the expertise of faculty members on the hot issues of the day. From dissecting political elections and issues to offering tips on avoiding holiday stress, the Think Outside the Lunch Box series aims to engage community members to talk about issues that hit close to home.

This Month's Event

"A 21st Century British Invasion: My Sweet Lord."
Rev. Dr. Leslie Griffiths
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Noon
Blue & Gold Room, Old National Bank

The Rev. Dr., the Lord Leslie Griffiths of Pembrey and Burry Port, is the Superintendent Minister of Wesley’s Chapel, the Cathedral of World Methodism in London, England and a member of the House of Lords, Labour Party, receiving a Life Peerage in 1994.

As a regular columnist and BBC broadcaster, Dr. Griffiths has spoken extensively on various educational and social subjects, including euthanasia, the church and civic society, the relationship between Christianity and other faiths, and international affairs, including the complex world of international finance. “The foundation of my awareness of, and involvement in, international affairs was laid in the period I lived in Haiti, 1970 – 1980,” he notes.

His story begins in real poverty in South Wales and leads him, via ordination, to Haiti to work with some of the poorest people on earth. He experienced Liberation Theology before it had been articulated and was the biographer of Jean-Bertrand Aristide, the Roman Catholic priest and Liberation Theologian who became Haiti’s President.

Dr. Griffiths became a local preacher in the Methodist Church of Great Britain in 1963 and completed a Master of Arts in Theology at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge in 1969. In 1987 Dr. Griffiths earned a Ph.D. from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. He has served as President of the Methodist Conference in Britain, 1994 - 1995 and has been the Superintendent Minister at Wesley’s Chapel since 1996. He is the current Chair of the College of Preachers. Dr. Griffiths has written numerous books on religious and historical themes. His riveting and intense autobiography, A View from the Edge has recently been published.

Some people continue to struggle with the link between religion and politics; its clarity shines through this book.Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top, Chief Whip of the House of Commons, 2001 – 2006

Dr. Griffiths and his wife, Margaret, have three grown children, Timothy, Jonathan, and Ruth and one grandchild

Save the Dates for the rest of the 2013 series!

All presentations will be at Old National Bank's Blue & Gold Room at 1 Main Street, Evansville. They are at 12:00 Noon on the first or second Thursday of the month.

• Thursday, February 14, 2013
• Thursday, March 7, 2013
• Thursday, April 4, 2013

Recent Events

"18 Ways to Make a Baby"
Dick Connolly, Ph.D.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Noon
Blue & Gold Room, Old National Bank

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 147,260 fertility treatments took place across the United States in 2010, and more than one percent of all infants born in the U.S. are conceived using assisted reproductive technology. While such treatments have given hope to couples struggling with infertility, they also have raised many ethical questions and concerns.

Dick Connolly, professor of philosophy at the University of Evansville, will examine these issues in the final Think Outside the Lunch Box Faculty Speaker Series event of the year. His presentation, “18 Ways to Make a Baby,” begins at noon on Thursday, December 6, in the Blue & Gold Room on the first floor of Old National Bank’s headquarters in Downtown Evansville. The event is free and open to the public.

“In an age of donated eggs, donated sperm, and surrogate mothers, what counts as a parent, and what counts as a family?” Connolly said. “I hope people will carry away from this talk not a fear of the future, but a recognition of the complexity of the ‘brave new world’ of assisted reproduction and the need to think carefully before we act.”

Connolly, a native of Mt. Kisco, New York, holds a Bachelor of Arts from Trinity College in Connecticut and a PhD in philosophy from Michigan State University. He has been a member of the UE faculty since 1971, having also served as a visiting professor at The University of Pittsburgh. He received the University’s Outstanding Teacher of the Year award in 1994 and the Sydney and Sadelle Berger Award for Service in 1998.

"Election 2012: The Final Countdown"
Thomas A. Kazee, Ph.D., and Robert L. Dion, Ph.D.
Thursday, November 1, 2012

Less than a week before Election Day, community members had the opportunity to spend their lunch break with two local political experts. November’s Think Outside the Lunch Box Faculty Speaker Series, sponsored by the University of Evansville, featured an election preview by UE president and political scientist Thomas A. Kazee and UE associate professor of political science Robert L. Dion.

Kazee and Dion presented "Election 2012: The Final Countdown" at noon on Thursday, November 1, in the Blue & Gold Room on the first floor of Old National Bank’s headquarters in Downtown Evansville.

Kazee served for 18 years on the faculty at Davidson College, including a decade as chair of the Department of Political Science, and four years as dean of the College at the University of the South (Sewanee). Prior to coming to UE, he served as provost and executive vice president at Furman University. He received a BA in political science from Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea, Ohio, in 1974, and a PhD in political science from Ohio State University in 1978. As the author of numerous journal articles and editor of Who Runs for Congress: Ambition, Context and Candidate Emergence, his work has been influential in shaping an understanding of American congressional election outcomes.

Dion came to the University of Evansville after teaching for several years at Syracuse University and Wabash College. His specialties are in the area of persuasive political communication and electoral behavior. While his main interests are focused on American politics, he has also studied and lectured on West European and Canadian politics. At UE, he teaches Introduction to American Government, Mass Media and American Politics, Parties and Elections, and Research Methods in Political Science, among other courses. In addition to his interest in the study of political behavior, Dion has a substantial personal background in political activity and issue advocacy. He has held staff positions in federal, state, and municipal campaigns and been elected several times to serve as a precinct committeeman and delegate to state party conventions. Local, state, and national media outlets often consult with Dion as an analyst on American politics, especially Indiana politics.

"The Flu and You: What to Know and How to Prepare"
Dr. Payal Patel-Dovlatabadi
Assistant Professor/Director of the UE Public Health Program

In 2009, when H1N1 (or swine flu) swept across the globe, the pandemic dominated news headlines, and public health authorities urged Americans to get vaccinated against the virus. While the flu receives much less attention in a typical year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that up to one in five Americans contract the flu each year, and more than 200,000 are hospitalized for flu-related complications.

The University of Evansville’s Think Outside the Lunch Box Faculty Speaker Series began the 2012-13 academic year with “The Flu and You: What to Know and How to Prepare,” a presentation by Payal Patel-Dovlatabadi, assistant professor and director of UE’s Public Health Program.