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Northwest Missouri State University

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Schedule of Events (2008-09 Season)

All Distinguished Lecturers appear in the Mary Linn Auditorium at the Performing Arts Center. There is no admissions charge for the lectures.

Jay Carney

Jay Carney

Jay Carney
Washington Bureau Chief for Time Magazine
Date: Thursday, October 2
Time: 8 p.m.

Jay Carney has been writing about politics for TIME magazine since 1993 as a White House, congressional, and general political correspondent. He returned to the White House beat in 2001 to cover the Bush presidency and has written extensively about the administration’s response to the September 11th terrorist attacks, a faltering economy, and the 2004 elections. Carney was named Washington bureau chief for TIME magazine in 2005.

As one of a handful of journalists who were on Air Force One with President Bush on September 11, 2001, and one who has gained unprecedented access to Vice President Cheney and most other senior advisors, Carney can succinctly discuss every facet of the Bush presidency.

Carney has an extensive career with TIME, and previously served as Deputy Washington Bureau Chief, a correspondent in the Moscow bureau, and as the Miami bureau chief.

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Eugene Jarecki

Eugene Jarecki

Eugene Jarecki
Award-Winning Dramatic andDocumentary Filmmaker
Date: Monday, November 17
Time: 8 p.m.

Eugene Jarecki is an award-winning dramatic and documentary filmmaker and visiting senior fellow at Brown University's Watson Institute. After training at Princeton as a stage director, Jarecki turned to film in 1992, and his first short film, Season of the Litterbees, premiered at the 1993 Sundance Film Festival before winning both a Student Academy Award and the Time Warner Grand Prize at the Aspen Film Festival.  His most recent film, Why We Fight, won the 2005 Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival. He also directed the award-winning film The Trials of Henry Kissinger, 2001's dramatic feature The Opponent, and Quest of the Carib Canoe.

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Arun Gandhi

Arun Gandhi

Arun Gandhi
Socio-Political Activist, Grandson of Mahatma Gandhi
Date: Thursday, January 29
Time: 8 p.m.

Arun Gandhi is the founder of the M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence and the grandson of the legendary peace fighter and spiritual leader, Mohandas Gandhi. Born and raised in apartheid-era South Africa, Gandhi was sent to India when he was 12 to live with his grandfather, where he observed firsthand the profound national campaign for liberation through nonviolent means.

Following his visit to India, Gandhi went on to lead successful economic and social reforms in India. He then came to the United States, where he and his wife Sunanda founded the M.K. Gandhi Institute for Nonviolence. The Institute's goals are to further the study and practice of non-violence while also providing a unique source of information about his grandfather and his work. By continuing his grandfather's legacy, Gandhi has been able to provide insight into one of history's most influential leaders and has continued to stress the importance of nonviolence.

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John Bul Dau

John Bul Dau

John Bul Dau
Director of the Sudan Project at Direct Change
Date: Thursday, March 16
Time: 8 p.m.

John Bul Dau is one of the featured men in Christopher Quinn's documentary, God Grew Tired of Us, and he has experienced journeys in life that most people never imagine. Born in war-torn Sudan, Dau is one of 27,000 Lost Boys forced to flee their villages when the northern government began attacking the south.  Forced to walk to refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya, he faced starvation, disease, and violence, during trips over hundreds of miles. Finally, in 2001, Dau was one of many Lost Boys sponsored to live in the United States.

Following his initial culture shock, he took on two jobs and has made a successful life. He is currently studying public policy at Syracuse University, and is a part of many efforts to save Darfur and Sudan from conflict. He has helped raise over $35,000 for books and medical expenses for Lost Boys in the United States, and he has helped raise over $150,000 for the American Care for Sudan Foundation, which is building a medical clinic in southern Sudan. He hopes to have a lasting impact on the future of his native country, saying, "I want Sudan to become a place where people are welcome and hope is restored."

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