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Vivyan Adair recently presented a brown-bag lunch discussion about the history of welfare, contemporary welfare legislation, and the effect such legislation has had on people in the United States and at Hamilton College. Adair serves as the Elihu Root Peace Fund Associate Professor of Women's Studies and the director of the ACCESS project. Sharon Gormley, the coordinator of the ACCESS project, assisted with the lecture, which was sponsored by HAVOC and Think Tank.

James Townsend, a commissioner of the Adirondack Park Agency, presented a lecture titled "Six Million Acres, Six Million Stories," on the history of conflicting interests in the Park, addressing the problems within the park and possible solutions for solving those problems. The November 8 lecture was presented by the Environmental Studies department and in conjunction with the Adirondack Sophomore Seminar.

Government Professor Robert Martin was the featured guest at a Hamilton Think Tank in November, where he discussed "Presidents and Enemy Combatants: 1798 and 2001."

The Hamilton science department held a poster session expo on Friday, October 29 in the Events Barn to help kick off Family Weekend. The poster session allowed students who participated in Hamilton’s summer science research program to show off their findings and posters to family, friends, and community members in an interactive forum. Although not all students were able to present, as many juniors who participated in the research program are abroad, the majority of students were there, eager to explain their conclusions.

Geoffrey Cohen, assistant professor of psychology at Yale University, presented a lecture titled “Stereotype Threat and the Academic Achievement of Underrepresented Students” in KJ Auditorium on October 20.

Joe Lewis, a 1974 graduate of Hamilton and the current dean of the School of Art and Design at Alfred University, presented a lecture titled “Community, Diversity and Patience: Art as a Verb,” on October 19 in the Kirner-Johnson Auditorium. The lecture was the first sponsored by the newly independent art department and the Office for Multicultural Affairs.

Celeste Friend, visiting assistant professor of philosophy, presented her paper, “Rawls, Abortion, and the Liberal Problem of Personhood,” at a Kirkland Project  lunch talk on October 20. Friend, presented (not endorsed) an argument against abortion rights that could be derived from Rawls’s argument in his renowned book, A Theory of Justice. Friend admitted that his argument may seem “counter-intuitive,” as Rawls is considered to have a rather liberal conception of society. The lecture was sponsored by the Kirkland Project.

Frank Deford, renowned sports commentator and writer, presented the keynote speech for Hamilton College’s Fallcoming Alumni Weekend on October 10 in the Chapel.  Introduced by Professor Bob Simon as one of the world’s greatest sports writers, Deford presented his lectured titled “Sports: The Hype and the Hoopla,” a humorous account of some of the most serious issues plaguing sports in America today and the wonderful “soul” of sporting competition.

Award-winning biographer Ron Chernow spoke in the Hamilton College Chapel on Sept. 30, delivering a lively lecture titled "Alexander Hamilton: The Man Who Imagined America." Chernow discussed the academic, personal and professional life of the first secretary of the treasury.  

Jonathan Kozol, renowned author, activist, and educator, led an open discussion workshop about education in America on September 17 in the Events Barn. The event was open to the public and well attended by Hamilton students and faculty members, as well as educators from the local community. The workshop was held in conjunction with Kozol’s lecture, “Savage Inequalities: Class, Race and Social Justice in the U.S. Public Schools.”