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Distinguished Lecture Series

In partnership with the Institute for Advancing American Values, the Honors College sponsors Boise State University’s Distinguished Lecture Series. Twice a year, the series brings eminent speakers to Boise State from the realm of politics, academics, and humanitarian activism to promote the discussion of important issues.

Spring 2023 Speaker – Arthur Brooks

Date: March 2, 2023

Arthur C. Brooks is the William Henry Bloomberg Professor of the Practice of Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School, and Professor of Management Practice at the Harvard Business School, where he teaches courses on leadership and happiness. He is also a columnist at The Atlantic, where he writes the popular “How to Build a Life” column.

Brooks is the author of 12 books, including the 2022 #1 New York Times bestseller From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life. He speaks to audiences all around the world about human happiness and works to raise well-being within private companies, universities, public agencies, and community organizations.

 

Past Speakers

  • Anthony Appiah: NYU professor and author of “The Ethicist” column for The New York Times
  • Danielle Allen: James Bryant Conant University professor at Harvard University
  • Jason Riley: Wall Street Journal columnist
  • H. R. McMaster: H. R. McMaster was the 26th Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. He served as a commissioned officer in the United States Army for thirty-four years before retiring as a Lieutenant General in June 2018.
  • Ta-Nehisi Coates: Best-selling author, recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship, and writer in residence at NYU’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute
  • Nikole Hannah-Jones: American investigative journalist known for her coverage of civil rights in the United States
  • Antony J. Blinken: Former Deputy Secretary of State
  • Werner Herzog: Award-winning screenwriter, film director, author, and actor
  • Sarah Lewis: Bestselling Author and Assistant Professor at Harvard University
  • Carl Wieman: Nobel Prize-Winning Physicist and Professor of the Graduate School of Education at Stanford University
  • Julia Gillard: Former Prime Minister of Australia, Minister for Education, Employment and Workplace Relations and Social Inclusion, public speaker, and member of the United Nations Security Council
  • Margaret Atwood: Literary influence, Booker Prize winner, and distinguished author of poetry, children’s literature, fiction, and non-fiction
  • Sir Salman Rushdie: Distinguished author, public intellectual, and free-speech proponent
  • Richard Heinzl: Founder of the first North American chapter of Doctors Without Borders
  • Jonathan Spence: Respected Historian and China Expert
  • Louis Menand: Pulitzer Prize-winning author and scholar of American studies
  • Steven Pinker: Cognitive scientist one of the world’s foremost writers on language, mind and human nature