Lucy Arendt to be the next ‘Last Lecture’ series speaker

GREEN BAY – Associate Dean Lucy Arendt is the fourth speaker in the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay’s “Last Lecture Series” line-up, and the first this semester. Arendt will present, “Made to Serve: The Tragic Corruption of America’s Founding Values,” at 7 p.m. Wednesday, February 17.

The Last Lecture Series is part of the celebration of UWGB’s 50th Anniversary. Each month of the fall and spring semesters, a UW-Green Bay faculty member is chosen to give a public presentation on a topic of his or her choice. They are to convey what lecture they would give if it were to be their last. The monthly lectures take place in the University Union’s Christie Theatre, at 2420 Nicolet Drive, Green Bay. The lectures are free and open to the public.

“I think it has become an untested assumption that individual people should give up their rights in order to be employed, and I view this as a serious threat to our nation and to the health and well-being of all individuals,” Arendt said regarding her reason for choosing this topic. “I think that organizations have steadily eroded our collective sense of individualism and responsibility through their relentless focus on bureaucratization. I believe that universities have a special obligation to reverse this disturbing trend. What we need is a shared understanding of this threat and a call to action by faculty, staff, and students — all of whom should and must have a strong sense of ownership and voice in what universities and their communities do.”

Lucy Arendt

Arendt has been a professor at UW-Green Bay for 10 years. She received both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at UW-Green Bay, and a Ph.D. from UW-Milwaukee. She teaches courses in the Business Administration and the Sustainable Management programs. The published author has articles in the Journal of Academy of Business and Economics, Earthquake SPECTRA, and Journal of Leadership and Organization Studies, among others. She has also co-authored books about natural disasters and recovery.

The following are the remaining “Last Lectures:”

• March 23 – Steve Meyer, Associate Professor, Natural and Applied Sciences, “Forget the Three T’s: Focus on the Six C’s”
• April 13 – Phil Clampitt, Professor, Information and Computing Science, “The Magical Connection between Uncertainty, Innovation, and the Human Spirit.”

16-14