Centennial Alumni Lectures

The Centennial Lectures will showcase the diversity and quality of the intellectual legacy of the University’s graduates. Over 60 graduate programs will host a Centennial Lecture delivered by graduate alumni in October 2012.

Upcoming Lectures
Program Date and Time Location Speaker Lecture Title
Applied & Interdisciplinary Mathematics Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 4:00 PM 1360 East Hall Jason Kutch, Assistant Professor, Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy, USC Is math the cause of or cure for chronic pain?: New approaches to the perplexing problem of pain
Genetic Counseling Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 10:30 AM 5920 Buhl Amy Curry Sturm, Assistant Professor, Clinical Internal Medicine, Wexner Medical Center at the Ohio State University
Health Services Organization & Policy Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 4:00 PM SPH II, M1020 Julio Frenk, Dean and Professor at Harvard School of Public Health Higher Education in an Interdependent World: Transforming Learning in the Health Sciences
Health Behavior & Health Education Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 1:30 PM SPH I, Room 1755 Jesus Ramirez-Valles, Associate Professor, Community Health Sciences, University of Illnois at Chicago
Health Behavior & Health Education Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 1:30 PM SPH I, Room 1755 Karen Glanz, George A. Weiss Univesity Professor, Professor of Epidemiology and Nursing Director, Center for Health Behavior Research, University of Pennsylvania
Health Behavior & Health Education Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 1:30 PM SPH I, Room 1755 Carla Stokes, Ph.D., M.P.H., Founder, Helping our Teen Girls in Real Life Situations, Inc., (HOTGIRLS) Women's and girls' empowerment advocate, teen health and behavior expert, speaker and life coach
Health Behavior & Health Education Tuesday, October 02, 2012, 1:30 PM SPH I, Room 1755 Brenda Henry, Ph.D., M.P.H.,, Senior Program Officer, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Reflections and Legacy of HBHE Graduates
Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Thursday, October 04, 2012, 4:00 PM 1210 Chem Nancy Moran , Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Yale Genone dynamics in symbionts of insects and consequences for host ecology
Microbiology & Immunology Thursday, October 04, 2012, 12:00 PM BSRB Auditorium Julie Pfieffer, Associate Professor of Microbiology at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas How Gut Microbes Enhance Enteric Virus Infections
Statistics Friday, October 05, 2012, 11:30 AM 411 West Hall Roshan Joseph Vengashiyi, Associate Professor at the School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, Georgia Tech
Dental Hygiene Monday, October 08, 2012, 12:00 PM Palmer Commons Forum Phyllis L. Beemsterboer, Associate Dean at Oregon Health Sciences University
Macromolecular Science & Engineering Friday, October 5, 2012, 3:30 PM 1670 Beyster Building Mohamad Shalati, Managing Director of Technology for US Polymers in St. Louis, Missouri Controlled Molecular Structure Polymers for the Coatings Industry
Social Work & Social Science Wednesday, October 10, 2012, 4:00 PM Educational Conference Center, SSW 1st floo Irwin Garfinkel, Mitchell I. Ginsberg Professor of Contemporary Urban Problems, School of Social Work, Columbia Wealth and Welfare States: Myth and Measurement
Biostatistics Thursday, October 11, 2012, 3:30 PM Rm. 1690, SPH I Joel Greenhouse, Professor of Statistics at Carnegie Mellon University and Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry and Epidemiology at the University of Pittsburgh On Becoming a Bayesian: Early Correspondences Between J Cornfield and LJ Savage
Chemistry Thursday, October 11, 2012, 4:00 PM 1640 Chem Michael Stern, Senior Science Fellow and Director of Technology, Agricultural Chemistry, Monsanto
Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Thursday, October 11, 2012, 4:00 PM 1210 Chem Sandra Steingraber, Scholar in Residence, Division of Interdisciplinary and International Studies at Ithaca College From Food to Fracking -- Human Health and the Environment
Educational Studies Thursday, October 11, 2012, 4:00 PM SEB1309/1315 Zalman Usiskin, Professor of Education at the Harris School of Public Policy at The University of Chicago Comparison Studies of Textbooks in a Digital Age
Center for Southeast Asian Studies Friday, October 12, 2012, 4:00 PM Rackham Amphitheatre Michael Dunne, President of Dunne & Company, a Hong Kong based investment advisory company in Asia's automotive industry A Road Less Traveled: What Happens When You Go to Asia Straight After Graduating from the University of Michigan
Higher Education Friday, October 12, 2012, 4:00 PM Whitney Room (1309/1315) SEB Laura Perna, Professor, Higher Education Management, University of Pennsylvania Understanding the role of public policy in improving higher education performance: Insights from a state policy review project
Industrial & Operations Engineering Friday, October 12, 2012, 3:30 PM 1680 IOE Building, 1205 Beal Avenue Chakor Doshi, Chairman, Walchandnagar Industries, Ltd. Indian Industry: An Emerging Force to Reckon With
Linguistics Friday, October 12, 2012, 4:10 PM 4448 East Hall Loraine K. Obler, Distinguished Professor of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences, City University of New York Graduate Center
Pharmacology Friday, October 12, 2012, 4:00 PM 2736 MSII Francis Lee, Professor and Vice Chair for Research, Dept. of Psychiatry; Professor, Dept. of Pharmacology; Attending Physician, New York Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical College Role of Neurotrophins in Neuropsychiatric Disorders
Applied Physics Monday, October 15, 2012, 3:00 PM Rackham Amphitheatre Peter Cabauy, CEO, City Labs, Inc. Entrepreneurial Physics
Astronomy Thursday, October 18, 2012, 4:00 PM 807 Dennison Catherine Espaillat , NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellow, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Astronomy Thursday, October 18, 2012, 4:00 PM 807 Dennison Matthew Walker , Hubble Fellow, Center for Astrophysics, Harvard
Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Thursday, October 18, 2012, 4:00 PM 1210 Chem Richard O. Prum, William Robertson Coe Professor of Ornithology, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale The Evolution of Beauty
History Thursday, October 18, 2012, 4:00 PM 1014 Tisch Hall Joel Beinin, Professor of History and Professor of Middle East History at Stanford Arab Workers and the Popular Uprisings of 2011
Interdepartmental Program in Classical Art & Archeology Thursday, October 18, 2012, 5:30 PM Kelsey Museum Lea Stirling, Canada Research Chair in Roman Archaeology at the University of Manitoba On the Menu at the Graveside: Interdisciplinary Approaches to Funerary Offerings in the Cemeteries of Leptiminus
Political Science Thursday, October 18, 2012, 12:00 PM Michigan Room, Michigan League Michael Lewis-Beck, Professor Emeritus and the F. Wendell Miller Distinguished Professor of Political Science at the University of Iowa Panel Discussion: What to Expect in the Presidential Election
Political Science Friday, October 19, 2012, 11:30 AM Eldersveld Room, 5670 Haven Hall Michael Lewis-Beck, Professor Emeritus and the F. Wendell Miller Distinguished Professor of Political Science at the University of Iowa Economics and Elections Revisited
Women's Studies & Psychology Thursday, October 18, 2012, 4:00 PM MI Union, Pendleton Rm Breanne Fahs, Associate Professor of Women and Gender Studies, Arizona State University On "Liberated Sex" and Other Myths
American Culture Friday, October 26, 2012, 10:00 AM 3512 Haven Hall Zaragosa Vargas, Kenan Distinguished Professor of History, U of North Carolina--Chapel Hill Seeking a New Vision of America: The Early Mexican Struggle for Social Justice and Equality
Biomedical Engineering Friday, October 19, 2012, 3:00 PM Johnson Rms ABC, Lurie Engineering Ctr William Heetderks, Director of Extramural Science programs at the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering at NIH Engineering the Health Care of the 21st Century
Ford School of Public Policy Friday, October 19, 2012, 4:00 PM Michigan Room, MI League Angel Harris , Associate Professor of Sociology and African Studies at Princeton
Molecular Cellular & Developmental Biology Friday, October 19, 2012, 12:15 PM 1640 Chem Jerry Workman, Investigator at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research
Civil & Environmental Engineering Wednesday, October 24, 2012, 4:00 PM Johnson Rms ABC, Lurie Engineering Ctr Paul L. Freedman, Co-Founder and President, Limno-Tech Moving from Crisis to Sustainability: The Global Water Challenge
Ecology & Evolutionary Biology Thursday, October 25, 2012, 4:00 PM 1210 Chem G. David Tilman, Regents Professor and McKnight President Chair in Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, Institute on the Environment at the University of Minnesota Biodiversity: From Evolutionary Origins to System Functioning
Information Thursday, October 25, 2012, 4:30 PM Anderson ABCD MI Union, U-Club reception Lou Rosenfeld, Founder and publisher of Rosenfeld Media and information architecture consultant
Natural Resources & Environment Thursday, October 25, 2012, 5:00 PM 1040 Dana William C. Sullivan, Professor, Dept. of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois
Romance Languages & Literatures Thursday, October 25, 2012, 6:30 PM RLL Commons, 4th fl MLB Luis Martin-Cabrera, Associate Professor of Literature at University of California/San Diego Against the Idolatry of Economic Growth: Elements for a Cultural Critique of Environmental Destruction
Dance Friday, October 26, 2012, 10:00 AM Studio A, Dance Bldg Janet Lilly, Professor and Head of Dance at UNC-Greensboro
English Language & Literature Friday, October 26, 2012, 1:30 PM 3222 Angell Deborah Geis, Associate Professor and Chair of the English Department, DePauw University Six (Graduate) Degrees of Separation: Plays and Pathways After Ann Arbor
English & Education Friday, October 26, 2012, 4:00 PM 3222 Angell Sarah Robbins, The Lorraine Sherley Professor of Literature at Texas Christian University Learning Legacies: Cross-Cultural Teaching Narratives in American Education
Human Genetics Monday, October 29, 2012, 4:00 PM South Lecture Hall, Med Sci II Gretchen Darlington, Professor of Molecular and Human Genetics at Baylor College of Medicine Molecular Mechanisms of Extended Longevity in GH/IGF-1 Deficient Mice
Urban & Regional Planning Tuesday, October 30, 2012, 6:00 PM 2104 Art and Architecture Building Kristina Ford, Professor of Professional Practice in International and Public Affairs, Columbia University
Center for Russian, East European & Eurasian Studies Wednesday, October 31, 2012, 12:00 PM 1636 Intl Inst Cynthia Buckley, Professor of Sociology, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; senior consultant, Social Science Research Council; co-chair, US-Russia CSPP Bilateral Committee on Migration Estimating Unregistered Migration into the Russian Federation: Insights from the United States
Sociology Thursday, November 01, 2012, 4:00 PM Annenberg Auditorium (Rm 1120), Weill Hall Lawrence Bobo, W.E.B. DuBois Professor of the Social Sciences at Harvard An American Delusion: The Myth of Postracialism
Bioinformatics Wednesday, October 31, 2012, 3:30 PM Forum Hall, Palmer Commons Chad Creighton, Associate Professor of Medicine, Baylor College of Medicine Integrated Genomic Analyses from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA0
Comparative Literature Tuesday, October 9,2012, 4:00 PM The Gallery, Hatcher Graduate Library Luise von Flotow, Director, School of Translation and Interpretation, University of Ottawa Translating Women: Talking about Women in Translation Studies
Computer Science & Engineering Wednesday, October 24, 2012, 3:00 PM 1109 FXB Kunle Olukotun, Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Stanford Making Parallelism Easy: A 25-Year Odyssey
Economics Thursday, October 19, 2012, 4:00 PM TBA Marc Melitz, Professor of Economics at Harvard Recent Developments in International Trade Research
Education & Psychology Friday, October 5, 2012, 12N 1322 SEB (Tribute Room) Barbara Hofer, Professor and Chair, Department of Psychology, Middlebury College Epistemology as a Psychological Construct with Educational Significance: An Interdisciplinary Journey
Endodontics TBD TBD Calvin Torneck, Professor Emeritus, Faculty of Dentistry, Univ of Toronto
Electrical Engineering Thursday, October 25, 2012, 12:00 Noon 1005 EECS Curtis Ling, Co-Founder and CTO, MaxLinear Founding to post-IPO: One Perspective on Technology Entrepreneurship and Fabless Design
Electrical Engineering: Systems Thursday, October 11, 2012, 12:00 Noon 1005 EECS Cahit Akin, Co-Founder and CEO of Mushroom Networks A Venture Capitalist/Entrepreneur Talks about Starting and Growing Technology Companies
Medicinal Chemistry Thursday, October 4, 2012, 4:00 PM 2548 CC Little Building Victor E. Marquez, Scientist Emeritus, Chemical Biology Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research, NCI-Frederick Conformationally Locked Nucleosides as Tools to Unlock Nature's Secrets
Near Eastern Studies Thursday, October 18, 2012, 7:00 PM Rackham Amphitheatre April DeConick, Isla Carroll and Percy E. Turner Professor of Biblical Studies at Rice University The Ancient New Age: How Gnostic Spirituality Revolutionized Religion in Antiquity
Nursing Thursday, October 18, 2012, 3:00 PM Ford Auditorium (UMHS 2nd floor) Joanne Disch, Clinical Professor; Chair, Population Health and Systems Cooperative Unit; Director, Katharine J. Densford International Center for Nursing Leadership; University of Minnesota; President, American Academy of Nursing
Oral Health Sciences Thursday, October 4, 2012, Noon Dentistry G550 Jacques Nor, University of Michigan School of Dentistry
Oral Health Sciences Thursday, October 11, 2012, Noon Dentistry G550 Hong-Jiao Ouyang, University of Michigan School of Dentistry A novel role of ER stress signaling IRE1 alpha/XBT1s in multiple myeloma bone disease
Oral Health Sciences Thursday, October 18, 2012, Noon Dentistry G550 Bradley Henson, Western University of Health Sciences at Pomona, CA The role of RhoC in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma metastasis
Oral Health Sciences Thursday, October 25, 2012, Noon Dentistry G550 Yong-Hee Chun, University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio Is ameloblastin important for enamel formation? A path to oral health sciences
Classical Studies Thursday, October 18, 2012, 4:00 PM 2175 Angell Hall Clifford Ando, Professor of Classics, History and Law and Co-Director, Center for the Study of Ancient Religions, University of Chicago, and Research Fellow, Department of Classics and World Languages, University of South Africa Cognition: An Inquiry into the Role of Metonymy and Analogy in Roman Political and Legal Thought