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Lecture series covers wide variety of topics
By: Kelli Bamforth, Staff Writer
Participants in Johnson County Community College’s Current U.S. Issues series will get a glimpse into the future of local news, the U.S economy and what the next president will face.
Current U.S. Issues kicks off Tuesday, Sept. 9 in the M.R. and Evelyn Hudson Auditorium of the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art on the JCCC campus, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park.
Lectures are free, open to the public and run from 1:30 to 3 p.m. each Tuesday through Oct. 28. Elliott Browar, regional commissioner at the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, will serve as moderator for each event.
Diann Handy, administrative assistant to the director of community services at JCCC, said Current U.S. Issues covers topics that garner the community’s – and country’s – interest.
“These topics are about what’s happening in the country and the community right now that people want to know more about,” Handy said. “We kind of let the speakers talk about their passion. It’s an open forum for them to speak on what is near and dear to them, and the community is very interested in these things.”
JCCC has sponsored Current U.S. Issues for years, Handy said. The college’s first community services director, Virginia Krebs, started the forum before her retirement in 1984.
In previous years, Current U.S. Issues took place at Prairie Baptist Church, 7416 Roe Ave., Prairie Village.
“We have a new museum on campus and a new auditorium within the museum,” Handy said. “It’s brand-new with all the bells and whistles when it comes to (audiovisual) equipment and can seat 190 people. Everyone can see everything and it’s very comfortable in there.”
Handy and Browar worked together to select the speakers, many of whom have been involved with the program for years, Handy said. Speakers will lecture for an hour, followed by a 30-minute question and answer session.
Sheldon Stahl, economist at Meara Welch Browne, Kansas City, Mo., returns this year as a guest speaker. His topic is “What are the 10 major issues that the new president will have to address?”
“I think there is really no monopoly on the choice of subject matter,” Stahl said. “One can look around at the state of the economy and understand quickly that one of the things the president will have to deal with is an economy in a borderline recession … the problem of terrorism is something the new president inherits, the consequences of globalization and the implications for American manufacturing jobs.”
Stahl said his affiliation with Current U.S. Issues and Great Decisions, a foreign policy forum that takes place each spring, goes back 20 to 25 years.
Great Decisions will also relocate from Prairie Baptist Church to the Hudson Auditorium. Past topics for that series have included U.S. defense and security policy, and U.S./China trade policy.
Handy said the programs’ moves will hopefully attract a more diverse audience. Traditionally, U.S. Current Issues has been a senior program.
“We hope by bringing them to the college (the program) will open up to college students and community members as well,” she said. “It’s a place to come and ask questions (about) things that have been on your mind, get the perspective from someone in the field working on these things.”
Stahl said he hopes U.S. Current Issues helps alert people to problems in an attempt to make them more informed and more intelligent citizens and voters.
Current U.S. Issues schedule for September
• Sept. 9: What Is the Future of Local News?; Kris Ketz, co-anchor, KMBC First News
• Sept. 16: The Electoral College; Frank Neff, League of Women Voters
• Sept. 23: What Are the 10 Major Issues that the New President Will Have to Address?; Sheldon Stahl, Ph.D., economist, Meara Welch Browne
• Sept. 30: Why Economists Appreciate Meteorologists: A Forecast of the U.S. Economy; Chris Kuehl, Ph.D., managing director, Armada Corporate Intelligence
For more information, contact Diann Handy at 469-8500, ext. 3919.
Contact Kelli Bamforth at 385-6024 or kellibamforth@sunpublications.com.
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Current U.S. Issues kicks off Tuesday, Sept. 9 in the M.R. and Evelyn Hudson Auditorium of the Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art on the JCCC campus, 12345 College Blvd., Overland Park.
Lectures are free, open to the public and run from 1:30 to 3 p.m. each Tuesday through Oct. 28. Elliott Browar, regional commissioner at the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, will serve as moderator for each event.
Diann Handy, administrative assistant to the director of community services at JCCC, said Current U.S. Issues covers topics that garner the community’s – and country’s – interest.
“These topics are about what’s happening in the country and the community right now that people want to know more about,” Handy said. “We kind of let the speakers talk about their passion. It’s an open forum for them to speak on what is near and dear to them, and the community is very interested in these things.”
JCCC has sponsored Current U.S. Issues for years, Handy said. The college’s first community services director, Virginia Krebs, started the forum before her retirement in 1984.
In previous years, Current U.S. Issues took place at Prairie Baptist Church, 7416 Roe Ave., Prairie Village.
“We have a new museum on campus and a new auditorium within the museum,” Handy said. “It’s brand-new with all the bells and whistles when it comes to (audiovisual) equipment and can seat 190 people. Everyone can see everything and it’s very comfortable in there.”
Handy and Browar worked together to select the speakers, many of whom have been involved with the program for years, Handy said. Speakers will lecture for an hour, followed by a 30-minute question and answer session.
Sheldon Stahl, economist at Meara Welch Browne, Kansas City, Mo., returns this year as a guest speaker. His topic is “What are the 10 major issues that the new president will have to address?”
“I think there is really no monopoly on the choice of subject matter,” Stahl said. “One can look around at the state of the economy and understand quickly that one of the things the president will have to deal with is an economy in a borderline recession … the problem of terrorism is something the new president inherits, the consequences of globalization and the implications for American manufacturing jobs.”
Stahl said his affiliation with Current U.S. Issues and Great Decisions, a foreign policy forum that takes place each spring, goes back 20 to 25 years.
Great Decisions will also relocate from Prairie Baptist Church to the Hudson Auditorium. Past topics for that series have included U.S. defense and security policy, and U.S./China trade policy.
Handy said the programs’ moves will hopefully attract a more diverse audience. Traditionally, U.S. Current Issues has been a senior program.
“We hope by bringing them to the college (the program) will open up to college students and community members as well,” she said. “It’s a place to come and ask questions (about) things that have been on your mind, get the perspective from someone in the field working on these things.”
Stahl said he hopes U.S. Current Issues helps alert people to problems in an attempt to make them more informed and more intelligent citizens and voters.
Current U.S. Issues schedule for September
• Sept. 9: What Is the Future of Local News?; Kris Ketz, co-anchor, KMBC First News
• Sept. 16: The Electoral College; Frank Neff, League of Women Voters
• Sept. 23: What Are the 10 Major Issues that the New President Will Have to Address?; Sheldon Stahl, Ph.D., economist, Meara Welch Browne
• Sept. 30: Why Economists Appreciate Meteorologists: A Forecast of the U.S. Economy; Chris Kuehl, Ph.D., managing director, Armada Corporate Intelligence
For more information, contact Diann Handy at 469-8500, ext. 3919.
Contact Kelli Bamforth at 385-6024 or kellibamforth@sunpublications.com.