Lecture Series Continues Nov. 16 with Billy Collins

Fairmont State University's and Pierpont Community & Technical College's Celebration of Ideas Lecture Series brings nationally prominent speakers of diverse viewpoints to campus each fall and spring.

"It is our goal to create a campus environment where open exchange of ideas is both promoted and celebrated," said Michael Belmear, Vice President for Student Affairs.

"We believe that the development of our student body must include exposure to a variety of ideas. Through this exposure, our students will be better prepared to operate in an increasingly complex society. We are very fortunate to be able to bring this diverse and talented group of speakers into the Fairmont community. The 2009-2010 Celebration of Ideas Lecture Series seeks to provide a variety of perspectives as they pertain to national and global issues."

Admission is free and open to the public for all of the events in the lecture series. Tickets are not required. For more information, call the Student Affairs Office at (304) 367-4215.

William "Billy" Collins
Nov. 16, 2009
7 p.m.
Colebank Hall Gym

William "Billy" Collins, born March 22, 1941, is an American poet. He served two terms as the Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001 to 2003. In his home state, Collins was recognized as a Literary Lion of the New York Public Library in 1992 and selected as the New York State Poet for 2004. He was recently appointed Claire Berman Artist in Residence at The Roxbury Latin School, in West Roxbury, Massachusetts. He is a distinguished professor at Lehman College of the City University of New York.

Collins received a B.A. degree from the College of the Holy Cross in 1963 and received his M.A. and Ph.D. in English from the University of California, Riverside. Collins joined the faculty of Lehman College in the Bronx in 1968 and has taught there for over thirty years. He is a founding Advisory Board member of the CUNY Institute for Irish-American Studies at Lehman College. He has taught and served as a visiting writer at Sarah Lawrence College in Yonkers, New York.

In 1997, he recorded "The Best Cigarette," a collection of 34 of his poems that would become a bestseller. In 2005, he recorded "Billy Collins Live: A Performance at the Peter Norton Symphony Space" in New York City.

Poetry Magazine has awarded him several prizes in recognition of poems they publish. The magazine selected him as "Poet of the Year" in 1994. In 2005 Collins was the first annual recipient of the Mark Twain Prize for Humor in Poetry, bestowed by the Poetry Foundation (Poetry Magazine). He has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, the John Simon Guggenheim Foundation in 1993 and the New York Foundation for the Arts.

Summer Rayne Oakes
Feb. 20, 2010
10 a.m.
Colebank Hall Gym

Growing up among Pennsylvania farmlands outside Scranton, Summer Rayne Oakes was a self-taught naturalist. In her community, she was the youngest board member of the Environmental Advisory Council.

Oakes is the keynote speaker for the Student Leadership Conference. Those who would like more information about the conference should call Jane Delbrook at (304) 367-4215. 

Oakes graduated from Cornell University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Natural Resources and Entomology. She began modeling while attending Cornell. Her first project brought attention to sustainable fashion and rainforest conservation with photographer John F. Cooper and stylist Peter Brown's Organic Portraits series. Oakes is an Udall Scholar and National Wildlife Federation Fellow.

At Cornell, Oakes was Vice President of the Educate for the Earth Club and a frequent artistic contributor to Ursus, the student environmental publication. She was a research assistant in the Cornell Waste Management Institute. She also worked in the Aquatics Laboratory of the Department of Entomology on stream water quality studies and studied rainforest regeneration in the Central Highlands of the Dominican Republic. Oakes was an environmental lobbyist for the Long Island Neighborhood Network against pesticide application.

Her work today as a model is tied to socio-environmental issues, sustainability, equitable trade and education. In 2008, Oakes was named spokesperson, resident expert, host and board adviser for Discovery Channel's Planet Green Channel, a 24-7 hour network devoted to the environment. She also previously co-hosted Eco 4 the World with Andrew Patterson created by Big Durian Productions in Singapore.

Michelle Singletary
March 29, 2010
7 p.m.
Turley Center Ballroom

Michelle Singletary is a nationally syndicated columnist for The Washington Post. Her award-winning column, "The Color of Money," is carried in about 120 newspapers across the country.

In 2003, she published her first book, "7 Money Mantras for a Richer Life: How to Live Well with the Money You Have" (Random House). The paperback was re-titled "Spend Well, Live Rich." Her second book, "Your Money and Your Man: How You and Prince Charming Can Spend Well and Live Rich" was released in 2006, also published by Random House. She is working on her third book, "The Power to Prosper: 21 Days to Financial Freedom," scheduled to be published in 2009 by Zondervan, a HarperCollins company.

Her book, "Your Money and Your Man" was a finalist in 2006 for "Books for a Better Life," which honors the best self-improvement books. The Washington Post nominated her column for a Pulitzer Prize. Most recently, her column won an award from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers.

In 2006, Singletary launched her first national television program "Singletary Says" on TV One. She has been a personal finance contributor for National Public Radio's afternoon program "Day To Day." She is frequently asked to appear on local and national radio programs. She has prepared personal finance segments for local and national news programs. In 2000, she was a regular contributor for financial segments for MSNBC. In 2008, she began writing a weekly Q&A column for host Tavis Smiley's PBS web site. She hosted her own radio call-in program on XM 169 The Power in 2007.