Women’s Lecture Luncheon Series set for 2023-24 season

The Brazosport College Foundation’s Women’s Lecture Luncheon Series is preparing for a new season that will feature three unique and interesting guests to speak to the local community.

First up on this year’s schedule is the return of noted scholar, author and playwright Dr. Elliot Engel on October 19. Engel has previously appeared twice in the Lecture Luncheon Series, including a presentation in the Series’ first season in 2010. He also spoke three years later in 2013. On October 19, Engel will talk about the American classic, “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” and its author, L. Frank Baum.

Following Engel’s appearance will be award-winning newspaper columnist, Dave Lieber, with a presentation on February 15, 2024 titled, “If a New Yorker Can Make it in Texas, Imagine What You Can Do!”

Finally, the season closes on April 4, 2024, as professor, speaker and author Catherine Sanderson speaks on “The Science of Happiness” and offers ways to increase one’s psychological well-being.

This will be the first-ever Lecture Luncheon appearances for both Lieber and Sanderson. 

The Women’s Lecture Luncheon Series was created by the Brazosport College Foundation to promote cultural enrichment for women; however, everyone is welcome to become a member. The mission of the BC Foundation is to raise and administer funds for the enhancement of educational opportunities at Brazosport College.

The cost is $175 for membership and includes all three lectures with lunch. Please make series reservations by Sept. 15.

To learn more about Brazosport College’s Women’s Lecture Luncheon Series and its 2023-24 guests, contact the Brazosport College Foundation at (979) 230-3234 or visit Brazosport.edu/foundation. For media inquiries, call (979) 230-3273.

The following is more information about this season’s guests:

October 19: Dr. Elliot Engel
The Wizardry of Oz: L. Frank Baum and His Classic American Fairy Tale

Dr. Elliot Engel has taught at the University of North Carolina, North Carolina State University and Duke University. He earned his M.A. and Ph.D. as a Woodrow Wilson Fellow at UCLA. He has written 10 books and his mini-lecture series on Charles Dickens ran on PBS television stations around the country. His articles have appeared in numerous newspapers and national magazines. He has lectured throughout the United States and on all the continents, including Antarctica.

He has written four plays that have been produced during the last 10 years. In 2009, he was inducted into the Royal Society of Arts in England for his academic work and service in promoting Charles Dickens.

In this presentation, Dr. Engel will reveal the life of L. Frank Baum and the reasons for the enduring and endearing fame of his “Wonderful Wizard of Oz.” Using anecdotes, analysis and large doses of humor, Professor Engel brings to life this most fascinating of fairy-tale writers.

February 15, 2024: Dave Lieber
If a New Yorker Can Make it in Texas, Imagine What You Can Do!

Dave Lieber, a certified professional speaker, rode a bull in a rodeo (or two), interviewed the Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, lived in a nudist colony for three days for a newspaper story and, once, helped solve a murder. The award-winning newspaper columnist doubles as a popular keynote speaker, coach and trainer whose programs delight dozens of audiences every year.

Lieber works as The Watchdog investigative columnist for the highly- respected “Dallas Morning News.” His latest columns are available on the “Dallas Morning News” Watchdog page. He fights for Americans and shows them how to save time, money and aggravation. He works to expose corruption and uses stories to make positive change.

In 2019, Lieber won top prize in the nation’s largest column-writing contest sponsored by the National Society of Newspaper Columnists. The contest judge noted: “Through a lively combination of consumer advocacy and investigative reporting, Lieber’s columns were models of suspenseful storytelling and public service.”'

April 4, 2024: Catherine Sanderson
The Science of Happiness

Catherine Sanderson is the Manwell Family Professor of Life Sciences (Psychology) at Amherst College. She received a Bachelor’s in Psychology, with a specialization in Health and Development, from Stanford University, and received both Masters and Doctoral degrees in Psychology from Princeton University.

Professor Sanderson’s research examines how personality and social variables influence health-related behaviors, the development of persuasive messages and interventions to prevent unhealthy behavior, and the predictors of relationship satisfaction. She has published more than 25 journal articles and, in 2012, she was named one of the country’s top 300 professors by the Princeton Review.

This talk presents both surprising and not-so-surprising information on the science behind happiness. What role do money, marriage, friends, children, weather, age and religion play in making us feel happier? Is happiness stable over time? How can happiness be increased?

Professor Sanderson will describe cutting-edge research from the field of positive psychology on the factors that do (and do not) predict happiness and provide participants with practical (and relatively easy) ways to increase their own psychological well-being.