The University of Lynchburg is launching a new speaker series highlighting professors and their research.
The University Lecture Series, marking the institution’s growth to university status, will feature two lectures each semester. The events are free and open to the public.
Dr. Price Blair and Dr. Lori Mize, professors in the Doctor of Physical Therapy program, will kick off the series with “The Art of Healing: Enriching the Health Sciences through Art Analysis” on October 24 at 7 p.m. in Memorial Ballroom. In May, they took about 30 students to Italy to study the intersection of Renaissance art and the study of anatomy.
Art education has been shown to help medical students with communication, empathy, and other skills helpful in patient interactions. “That’s something we try to emphasize here — looking at the whole patient and the entire situation,” Dr. Mize said while reflecting on the study abroad program. “Bringing in these evidence-based principles of art analysis helps to elevate that even more.”
The lecture series will continue with Dr. Lindsay Pieper presenting “Sprites do the Salto: The Feminization of Women’s Gymnastics” on November 29 at 7 p.m. in Memorial Ballroom. As a sport management professor, her research focuses on gender issues in sports, and she is renowned for her work on the history and implications of sex testing in women’s sports.
The series will include two more speakers in the Spring 2019 semester.
English professor Dr. Robin Bates will present “Sixteenth Century Mapping and Shakespeare’s Imagined England” on February 5 at 7 p.m. in Memorial Ballroom.
Physics professor Dr. Eric Goff will present “How Sports Physics at the University of Lynchburg Went Global” on April 15 at 7 p.m. in Memorial Ballroom.
“At the University of Lynchburg, our faculty are teacher-scholars who are deeply committed to inquiry in their fields as well as student learning,” said Dr. Sally Selden, provost and vice president for academic affairs. “The University Lecture Series celebrates their roles as educators, mentors, and researchers who make an impact on our campus and beyond. We invite our entire campus community as well as the general public to come and learn from their fascinating insights.”
