Public Lectures and Addresses

Read the full 2013 State of the University address online: http://www.unl.edu/ucomm/chancllr/sua2013/

Chancellor Harvey Perlman delivered his 12th State of the University annual address to faculty, staff, students and interested visitors at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on Sept. 1, 2011.

Update on developments at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln on April 17, 2009

2012 State of the University Address at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Delivered September 11, 2012 by Chancellor Harvey Perlman. Read the full text of this address at the Chancellor's website.

On July 1, 2011, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is officially a member of the Big Ten Conference! Our new conference affiliation brings much to look forward to, as well as elevate our alumni association, university, city and state to unprecedented new heights

In the late 19th century, the U.S. and Australian governments established boarding schools to assimilate American Indian and aboriginal children into dominant culture. This practice forced tens of thousands of children to leave their families and abandon their customs, which has had lasting consequences on individuals and native cultures. During the spring Nebraska Lecture April 14, University of Nebraska-Lincoln history professor Margaret D. Jacobs examined the origins, consequences and legacies of indigenous child removal in the United States and Australia. The public lecture, "A Battle for the Children: Indigenous Child Removal in the United States and Australia from 1880-1940," was held in the Nebraska Union auditorium, 14th and R streets. The presentation is part of The Nebraska Lectures: Chancellor's Distinguished Lecture Series. "Officials and reformers in both countries touted their efforts as compassionate policies designed to give these children greater opportunities, but they often resorted to brutal methods to remove indigenous children from their families," said Jacobs, who also directs UNL's Women's and Gender Studies Program. Jacobs' lecture builds on her book, "White Mother to a Dark Race: Settler Colonialism, Maternalism, and the Removal of Indigenous Children in the American West and Australia, 1880-1940," for which she received the 2010 Bancroft Prize. Awarded by Columbia University, the prize is one of the highest honors for American history writing. The University of Nebraska Press published the award-winning book. The Nebraska Lectures, which feature distinguished UNL faculty, are designed for general audiences and provide insights about some of the university's leading research, scholarly and creative activity. Jacobs' lecture is sponsored by the Office of the Chancellor, UNL Research Council, Office of Research and Economic Development and Nebraska Humanities Council.

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Harvey Perlman delivered his annual State of the University address on Sept. 9 at the Lied Center for Performing Arts. Perlman reviewed the successes of the past year and described the challenges and opportunities offered by the 2010-11 academic year.

Jeff Raikes leads the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation's efforts to promote equity for all people around the world. Before joining the foundation, Raikes was a member of the Microsoft Corp.'s senior leadership team, setting strategy and direction for the company. Raikes was president of the Microsoft Business Division. He previously served as group vice president of the Worldwide Sales and Support Group, where he was responsible for providing strategic leadership for Microsoft's sales, marketing, and service initiatives. Before that, he served as senior vice president of Microsoft North America. Jeff Raikes joined Microsoft in 1981 as a product manager and was instrumental in driving Microsoft's applications marketing strategy. Promoted to director of applications marketing in 1984, Raikes was the chief strategist behind the company's success in graphical applications for the Apple Macintosh and the Microsoft Windows operating system and the creation of the Microsoft Office suite of productivity applications. Before joining Microsoft, he was a software development manager at Apple Computer Inc.

A well-known scholar of the scrolls, Crawford is part of an international Dead Sea Scrolls publication team and has edited 14 manuscripts from the collection. She has written extensively on various aspects of the scrolls, including the rewritten Bible texts and the role of women in the Qumran community.

Prior to being named President Obama's senior adviser, Axelrod was senior adviser to the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition and Senior Strategist to Barack Obama's campaign for the presidency. Since 1988, Axelrod has been Senior Partner at the consulting firm AKP&D Message and Media in Chicago. In that capacity, he managed media strategy and communications for more than 150 local, state, and national campaigns, with a focus on progressive candidates and causes.

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Harvey Perlman delivered his annual State of the University address on September 10. He reviewed the successes of the past year and described the challenges and opportunities offered by the 2009-10 academic year.

A special update on happenings, successes and challenges at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will be the focus for an address for Husker Spiritfest by Chancellor Harvey Perlman. Perlman's address will highlight the progress toward development of Innovation Campus, report on his recent trip to India and the continuing connections with other international partners like Xian Jiaotong University in China, outline new efforts to recruit and retain students, update on external reviews of life sciences and the Durham School, and highlight new construction happening on campus such as the Gaughan Multicultural Center, the physics building, and the new residence hall.

University of Nebraska-Lincoln Chancellor Harvey Perlman delivered his annual State of the University address on Sept. 4, reviewing the successes of the past year and describing the challenges and opportunities offered by the 2008-09 academic year.

John Gottschalk, former Omaha World-Herald publisher, speaks to the 2008 UNL graduating class.

James Hewitt, Attorney and Adjunct Professor of History at Nebraska Wesleyan University delivers a lecture titled, "Taking the Court Public."

Robert Oglesby, Professor of Climate Modeling, Department of Geosciences and School of Natural Resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln delivers a lecture titled, "Causes of Drought in the Great Plains."

University of Nebraska-Lincoln textiles scientist Patricia Cox Crews will discuss how quilts reflect American culture and the lives of quilt makers during the spring Nebraska Lecture. The lecture, "Quilts: Reflections of Trade, Technology and Tradition," is part of The Nebraska Lectures: Chancellor's Distinguished Lecture Series.

Guy Reynolds, Professor of English and Director of the Cather Project at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln delivers a lecture titled, "Permanence and Transmission: Willa Cather's Entropology."

Ann Bleed , Director, Nebraska Department of Natural Resources delivers a lecture titled, "Formulating Policies for Future Water Use on the Great Plains."

Fritz, a Willa Cather professor of geosciences and biological sciences, will explain how her research on mud that accumulates in the bottom of lakes holds clues to the history of the lake as well as the surrounding land and climate. Fritz and her colleagues study lake mud and its contents to reconstruct the history of climate change and develop a long-term perspective on how humans impact their environment.

P. Stephen Baenziger, Eugene W. Price Distinguished Professor, Department of Agronomy and Horticulture at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln delivers a lecture titled, "Global Treasures: The Origins of Plants that Sustain Life."

Michael Tate, Professor of History and Native American Studies and the Charles and Mary Martin Chair of Western History at University of Nebraska at Omaha delivers a lecture titled, "From Cooperation to Conflict: Indian and Emigrant Relations Along the Overland Trails, 1840-1865." Tate was also the winner of the 2006 Great Plains Distinguished Book Prize.

Audio of annual speech by the chancellor of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, describing challenges and opportunities facing the university.

The world's population is expected to reach 9 billion people in less than 40 years. Brian Larkins, a leading plant scientist, will discuss the challenge of feeding this growing population (6.5 billion today) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln's spring Nebraska Lecture. The lecture is titled, "Feeding 9 Billion People and Other Challenges to Agriculture" and is part of the Chancellor's Distinguished Lecture Series and the fifth annual UNL Research Fair April 10-12 on campus.

In his presentation, "Genes, Behavior and Politics," John R. Hibbing, Foundation Regents University Professor of political science, outlines his research examining the role of genetics in shaping people's political temperaments. Hibbing joined Nebraska's faculty as an assistant professor in 1981 and was promoted to associate professor in 1985, professor in 1990, and was named a Foundation Regents University Professor in 2001. He earned his bachelor's degree from Dana College in Blair, and his master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Iowa. He has taught courses and written books and articles on biology and social behavior, American politics, legislative politics and public opinion.

Annual speech by the chancellor of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, describing challenges and opportunities facing the university. Chancellor Harvey Perlman delivers.

Annual speech by the chancellor of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, describing challenges and opportunities facing the university. Chancellor Harvey Perlman delivers.