President Sullivan to Address ‘The Way Forward’ at Miller Center

University of Virginia President Teresa A. Sullivan will kick off a new season of Miller Center forums on Sept. 12 at 11 a.m.

In remarks titled “The Way Forward,” Sullivan will discuss how the controversial events that unfolded at U.Va. this past summer – her resignation and then reinstatement by the Board of Visitors – are indicative of larger trends and challenges facing all of American higher education. She will describe how the University plans to meet these challenges, and how U.Va. can create a model for public universities that will survive and even thrive in this era of rapid change.

“The Miller Center is honored to welcome President Sullivan to launch our new forum season,” said Gerald Baliles, director and CEO of the center and a former Virginia governor. “After this past summer’s events, I know many people are interested in hearing more about her vision for U.Va. and the direction of higher education.

“We’re especially pleased to provide her a forum for reaching those in the University and Charlottesville communities as well as PBS viewers nationwide.”

Following her remarks, Sullivan will take questions. Those unable to attend in person can email questions to cl4zx@virginia.edu, tweet them to @Miller_Center or post them at facebook.com/millercenter.

Miller Center forums are streamed live at millercenter.org.

Sullivan is only one of the many notables speaking at the Miller Center this fall. Many speakers will focus on the people and issues of the 2012 election, as the center continues its “Lessons for 2012” initiative, providing historical insight into the current presidential campaign. Others will focus on historical figures and events, including the Cuban Missile Crisis which took place 50 years ago this October.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright will address the forum on Oct. 29 at 5:30 pm., discussing her recent book, “Prague Winter: A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948.” A book signing will follow her forum.

Other upcoming speakers include:

• Sept. 17, 11 a.m. – Brian Lamb, C-SPAN chairman, on how C-SPAN has changed democracy
• Sept. 24, 11 a.m. – David Maraniss, Pulitzer Prize-winning Washington Post associate editor and author of “Barack Obama: The Story”
• Sept. 27, 11 a.m. – Michele Dunne, director of the Atlantic Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, on the crisis in Syria
• Oct. 1, 11 a.m. – Rachel L. Swarns, New York Times correspondent and author of “American Tapestry: The Story of the Black, White, and Multiracial Ancestors of Michelle Obama”
• Oct. 8, 11 a.m. – E.J. Dionne, Washington Post columnist and author of “Our Divided Political Heart”
• Oct. 11, 11 a.m. – Amanda Bennett, Pulitzer Prize-winning executive editor for projects and investigations at Bloomberg News and author of “The Cost of Hope: A Memoir,” on the health care crisis
• Oct. 15, 11 a.m. – Stephen Knott, author of “Rush to Judgment: George W. Bush, the War on Terror, and His Critics”
• Nov. 14, 11 a.m. – Joseph Crespino, author of “Strom Thurmond’s America”
• Nov. 19, 11 a.m. – John Lewis Gaddis, author of “George F. Kennan: An American Life”
• Nov. 29. 5:30 pm – Time magazine’s Michael Duffy and Nancy Gibbs, authors of “The Presidents Club: Inside the World’s Most Exclusive Fraternity”

For more information and scheduling updates, visit the Miller Center website.

Forums are hosted by Douglas Blackmon, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “Slavery by Another Name: The Re-Enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II.”

Miller Center forums are free and open to the public. The center is located at 2201 Old Ivy Road in Charlottesville.

Miller Center forums also air on PBS stations across the country. Check your local listings for airtimes.