CMU Lecture Series
Geist-Yancey Lectureship
Speaker: John Cariani
Title: YOU CAN SMELL PLAYS, BUT YOU CAN’T SMELL TV SHOWS AND MOVIES…and Other Things I Love About the Theatre
Date: February 26, 2025
Bio: John Cariani is a playwright, actor, and novelist. As a playwright, he is best known for his first play, Almost, Maine, which premiered at Portland Stage Company in 2004, opened Off-Broadway in 2006, and has since become one of the most popular plays in the United States and around the world. The play has received more than 5,000 productions to date and has been translated into more than a dozen languages. It’s also the most frequently produced play in North American high schools over the past decade. John’s other plays—LOVE/SICK, cul-de-sac, and LAST GAS—have received more than 500 productions in the U.S. and around the world.
As an actor, John made his Broadway debut in the 2004 revival of Fiddler on the Roof and received an Outer Critics Circle Award and a Tony Award nomination for his portrayal of Motel the Tailor. He originated the role of Nigel Bottom in the Broadway hit Something Rotten! and received an Outer Critics Circle Award and a Grammy Award nomination for his performance. He also originated the role of Itzik in the The Band's Visit, winner of the 2018 Tony Award for Best Musical; and he recently appeared as Stuart Gelman in the acclaimed revival of Caroline, or Change, receiving a Grammy Award nomination for his performance.
Most people know John from his work on TV. He played Forensics Tech Beck for five seasons on NBC’s long-running drama, Law & Order. He also had recurring roles on CBS’s Numbers and on IFC’s The Onion News Network. Notable film work includes Showtime (with Robert De Niro), Scotland, PA (with Christopher Walken), and Elephant Sighs (with Ed Asner).
John is also a novelist. Almost, Maine-a novel was recently published by Fiewel and Fiends, an imprint of MacMillan.
About the lecture series: Dr. Joe Geist was a faculty member at Central Methodist College from 1972 to 1998 and was named Professor Emeritus upon his retirement from teaching. He served as curator of the Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American Art from 1998 to 2014 and now serves as its registrar. His professional life as been dedicated to the furthering of the liberal arts, culture, literature, and learning.
Mr. Tom Yancey, a 1954 alumnus of Central, joined the faculty in the Swinney Conservatory in 1958. In 1972, he served as the Conservatory's dean, and in 1995 he accepted Professor Emeritus status. In addition to being an accomplished musician, Tom was a well-known artist. Tom, along with Joe, was a co-founder of the Ashby-Hodge Gallery of American Art and was curator of the Gallery from 1993 until 1998.
The purpose of the Geist-Yancey lectureship is to provide a lasting legacy of Joe's and Tom's endless pursuit of the furthering of these pillars of higher education. The lectures will have a theme of cultural affairs, and the speaker shall be a noted/national individual from outside the CMU community.
Funding for this lecture was a gift from Dr. Joe Geist and Dr. Tom Yancey.
Gil and Ruth Fleer Lecture Series
Speaker: Rev. Dr. Rubén Rosario Rodríguez
Title: Spiritual Formation in a Secular World: Challenges and Opportunities
Date: March 26, 2025
Bio: The Rev. Dr. Rubén Rosario Rodríguez, a graduate of Union Theological Seminary and Princeton Theological Seminary, holds the Clarence Louis and Helen Steber Professorship in Theological Studies at Saint Louis University. Dr. Rosario engages issues of global migration and social justice as director of the Mev Puleo Program in Latin American Politics, Theology, and Culture at Saint Louis University. His latest monographs include Theological Fragments: What We Can and Cannot Know about an Infinite God (Westminster John Knox Press, 2023) and Calvin for the World: The Enduring Relevance of His Political, Social, and Economic Theology (Baker Academic, 2024).
About the lecture series: Former faculty member and sponsor of Alpha Phi Gamma “MOKERS,” Dr. Gilbert “Gil” Fleer '55 and his wife, Ruth Hombs Fleer '58, had a vision to enhance the spirit of excellence at CMU. Their passion for their alma mater where they met, and the love of their son, Jeffrey G. Fleer, led them to make gifts to the University, enhancing the Central experience for students for generations to come.
Fleer was an assistant professor of religion at Central from 1959-65. Before his passing, Dr. Fleer was a social science professor at Western Texas College and a United Methodist counselor. He spent many years counseling young adults in unconventional settings. The couple’s strong support of leadership training led them to fund the Gil and Ruth Fleer Fund for Excellence in Values-Based Education at CMU.
This lecture is funded by the generosity of Gil and Ruth Fleer.
Dr. Thomas A. Perry Faith & Science Lecture Series
Speaker: Brother Guy J. Consolmagno
Date: April 21, 2025
Bio: Br. Guy Consolmagno SJ was born in 1952 in Detroit, Michigan. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in 1974 and Master of Science in 1975 in Earth and Planetary Sciences from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. in Planetary Science from the University of Arizona in 1978. From 1978-80, he was a postdoctoral fellow and lecturer at the Harvard College Observatory and from 1980-1983 continued as postdoc and lecturer at MIT.
In 1983, he left MIT to join the US Peace Corps, where he served for two years in Kenya teaching physics and astronomy. Upon his return to the US in 1985, he became an assistant professor of physics at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, where he taught until his entry into the Jesuit order in 1989. He took vows as a Jesuit brother in 1991, and studied philosophy and theology at Loyola University Chicago and physics at the University of Chicago before his assignment to the Vatican Observatory in 1993.
In spring 2000, he held the MacLean Chair for Visiting Jesuit Scholars at St. Joseph's University (Philadelphia), in 2006-2007 the Loyola Chair at Fordham University (New York), and in fall 2009 the Lanigan Chair in Science, Medicine, and Ethics at LeMoyne College (Syracuse). He has also been a visiting scientist at the Goddard Space Flight Center and a visiting professor at Loyola College (Baltimore) and Loyola University (Chicago).
Br. Consolmagno has served on the governing boards of the Meteoritical Society; the International Astronomical Union's (IAU) Division III, Planetary Systems Science (secretary, 2000 - present) and Commission 16, Moons and Planets (president, 2003-2006); and the American Astronomical Society Division for Planetary Sciences (chair, 2006-2007). Since 2008, he has been a member of the IAU Working Group on Planetary System Nomenclature and the Mars Nomenclature Task Group; in 2015, he became chair of the Mars TG.
He has co-authored two astronomy books: Turn Left at Orion (with Dan M. Davis; Cambridge University Press, 1989) and Worlds Apart (with Martha W. Schaefer; Prentice Hall, 1993). He is the author or co-author of four books exploring faith and science issues, including The Way to the Dwelling of Light (U of Notre Dame Press, 1998); Brother Astronomer (McGraw Hill, 2000); God's Mechanics (Jossey-Bass, 2007), and Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial? (With Paul Mueller, Image, 2014). He also edited The Heavens Proclaim (Vatican Observatory Publications, 2009). Since 2004, he has written a monthly column on astronomy for the British Catholic periodical, The Tablet.
About the lecture series: Thanks to a generous gift from the Rev. Garth Leigh, wishing to honor the memory of Dr. Thomas Perry, longtime chair of the CMC English Department, this lecture has been endowed at the Central Methodist University. Rev. Leigh sponosored a lecture series as a testament to the impact Perry had on generations of students at Central, encouraging them to think deeply, wrestle with greater questions, and challenge themselves to be the best citizens and scholars. The annual lecture will focus on the role that minister-scientists have played in the development of both religious traditions as well as scientific discoveries.
In addition to spending 20 years as chairman of the Department of English at Central Methodist College, Perry also served as chair of the Division of Literature and Languages and of the honors program. He sponsored Scribblers and Scrawlers, a club for aspiring creative writers, hosting and entertaining them monthly in his home. Perry is the late father of Tad Perry, current member of the board of trustees at CMU. Rev. Leigh served as a United Methodist Pastor for many years, and has worked as a freelance writer since his retirement from ministry in 2000. He currently lives in Kansas City, Mo. with his wife, Cheri.
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