Open Visions Forum Will Continue

Its Tenth Anniversary Season

FAIRFIELD — Open Visions Forum, a lecture series of University College at Fairfield University, will continue its tenth anniversary season by showcasing topical subjects and inspiring speakers. Civil rights educator Mary Frances Berry, writer Gore Vidal, and Metropolitan Museum of Art Director Philippe de Montebello are among the featured speakers in 2007.

Philip Eliasoph, PhD, is the director and moderator of Open Visions Forum.

“From the beginning, Open Visions Forum has been about celebrating the life of the mind. It is designed to enlighten and challenge the public who seek thought-provoking analysis and intelligent dialogue from stimulating speakers. This lecture series is truly an avenue for checking the pulse of the nation today,” said Dr Eliasoph.

Edna Wilson, PhD, dean of University College, agreed. “We are proud to present this distinguished group of speakers who will undoubtedly appeal to the community and the university-based audience. Open Visions Forum is essentially a dynamic classroom. It is about our commitment to lifelong education.”

The lecture series takes place at Fairfield University’s Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts. The Quick Center now offers patrons the convenience of online ticketing for all Quick Center events. Visit www.QuickCenter.com, or call the box office at 203-254-4010 or toll free at 877-ARTS-396 (877-278-7396).

On Thursday, February 22, at 8 pm, Mary Frances Berry, PhD, past chairperson of the US Civil Rights Commission, will speak. Dr Berry, now a professor of American social thought and history at the University of Pennsylvania, is the author of seven books on American justice, women’s rights, child care, racism, and other provocative issues.

MTV New correspondent Gideon Yago will take the stage on Thursday, March 1, at 8 pm. He is a key contributor to the music network’s Choose or Lose Campaign, an initiative to make young people aware of the importance of voting and getting informed about political candidates.

In his six years with MTV, Mr Yago has interviewed presidential candidates and other political leaders and has produced and hosted award-winning MTV specials on the war in Iraq, AIDS, drugs, national disasters, and hate crimes.

On Wednesday, March 21, at 8 pm, writer Gore Vidal will take the stage. Versatile and prolific as a novelist, essayist, and playwright, Mr Vidal published his first novel, Williwaw, in 1946 and continues to produce notable works of nonfiction and thoughtful fiction from Myra Breckinridge to the National Book Award winner United States.

James P. Moore, Jr, will be the guest on Wednesday, April 18, at 8 pm. He is the founder of Ameritrade, the groundbreaking Internet brokerage firm. Mr Moore is also the author of One Nation Under God: The History of Prayer in America, which will soon be a PBS special.

His speech will be the annual University College Ignatian Lecture. The lecture series is named for the founder of the Jesuits, St Ignatius Loyola, who advocated a method of reflection on one’s actions to recognize one’s true vocation. Guided by its Jesuit and Catholic mission, University College offers this annual lecture integrating Jesuit values while exploring ethics, morality, integrity, and the engendering of the human spirit in service to others.

The Tenth Anniversary Lecture is with Philippe de Montebello, director The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the longest serving director in the museum’s history. The Metropolitan Museum is approached in size only by the Louvre in Paris.

Mr de Montebello was the very first Open Visions speaker, and will appear on Sunday, April 22, at 3 pm. (The event was previously scheduled for January 21.) He will celebrate his 30th year as the Met’s director in 2007.

Under his leadership, the museum, the largest in the western hemisphere, has nearly doubled in size, acquired significant collections and masterpieces, and created wide-ranging educational programs.