W. David Baird Distinguished Lecture Series
Pepperdine University's Seaver College of Letters, Arts, and Sciences is proud to present the W. David Baird Distinguished Lecture Series. When available, videos of past events are available online in the archives below.
The Distinguished Lecture Series is made possible through the support of Melanie and Richard Flamminio, the Seaver College Board of Visitors, and the Seaver Parents Association.
Event Schedule 2024 - 2025
"The Healing Power of the Classical Tradition"
Dr. Anika Prather
Tuesday, October 1, 2024 | 5 PM | Elkins Auditorium
Dr. Prather's research centers on enhancing literacy among African American students through engagement with canonical literature. She is the author of Living in the Constellation of the Canon: The Lived Experiences of African American Students Reading Great Books Literature and the co-author of The Black Intellectual Tradition with Dr. Angel Parham. Dr. Prather has taught in Howard University's classics department as a full-time lecturer. Additionally, she previously served as the Director of High-Quality Curriculum and Instruction at the Johns Hopkins Institute for Education Policy until February 2024. She is the founder of The Living Water School, an accredited online Christian school grounded in Classical education and the Sudbury Model. Dr. Prather and her husband Damon reside in the DC area with their three children.
"Healing: Our Path from Mental Illness to Mental Health"
Dr. Thomas Insel
Wednesday, October 30, 2024 | 5 PM | Elkins Auditorium
Known for his research on oxytocin and vasopressin, Dr. Thomas Insel is the national leader in mental health research, policy and technology. Previously an advisor to the governor of California and director of the National Institute of Mental Health, he is currently the Chairman of the Board at Steinberg Institute. In his talks, Dr. Insel offers a comprehensive plan for our failing mental system and for families trying to discern the way forward.
"Refugia: Communal Vocation in a Climate-Changed World"
Dr. Debra Rienstra
Wednesday, March 12, 2025 | 5 PM | Elkins Auditorium
Dr. Rienstra is professor of English at Calvin University, where she has taught since 1996, specializing in creative nonfiction, early British literature, and environmental literature. Her most recent book is Refugia Faith: Seeking Hidden Shelters, Ordinary Wonders, and the Healing of the Earth (Fortress 2022), a book that combines theology, nature writing, and biological principles to consider how Christians must adapt our faith and practice for a climate-altered planet. In connection with her work on faith and climate change, Dr. Rienstra speaks frequently to church and faith groups, hosts the Refugia Podcast, and writes the Refugia Newsletter on Substack. Her essays also appear fortnightly at The Reformed Journal where she writes about spirituality, pop culture, the church, the arts, higher ed, and more. Dr. Rienstra is the author of three previous books—on motherhood, Christian spirituality, and worship—as well as numerous academic essays, literary essays, and poems.
“Life As We Know It (Can Be); Stories of People, Climate and Hope in a Changing World”
Bill Weir
Thursday, April 3, 2025 | 5 PM | Elkins Auditorium
Joint event with Seaver Dean's Office & Climate Calling
Bill Weir is a veteran anchor, writer, producer, and host who came to CNN in 2013 after a decade of award-winning journalism at ABC News. In 2019, he was named the network’s first Chief Climate Correspondent, drawing on his experience creating and hosting the primetime CNN Original Series “The Wonder List with Bill Weir,” now streaming on Max. With his distinctive storytelling style, lush photography and a focus on our connected planet, Weir and his team produced four seasons of the show across 28 countries, highlighting wondrous people, places, cultures, and creatures on the brink of seismic change. In 2022, Weir earned a News & Documentary Emmy® Award for his CNN Special Report: Eating Planet Earth: The Future of Your Food, and Columbia Journalism Review called his 2020 CNN Special Report: The Road to Change “one of the very best pieces of climate journalism ever run by a mainstream US news organization.” His first book, Life As We Know It (Can Be) will be published by Chronicle Prism in April 2024.