UNT's 2015-2016 Distinguished Lecture Series speakers will cover immigration, communication, science and entertainment

Monday, September 28, 2015 - 15:53
Jose Antonio Vargas
Jose Antonio Vargas

DENTON (UNT), Texas -- The University of North Texas 2015-2016 Distinguished Lecture Series will feature nationally renowned speakers discussing immigration, communication, science and entertainment. Pricing and ticket purchase information for the events will be available online. The speakers are:

Jose Antonio Vargas, Oct. 21 (Wednesday)
8 p.m., Main Auditorium at 1401 W. Hickory St.
Tickets are free for UNT students and $2 for student guests; $3 for UNT staff, faculty and alumni; and $5 for the general population.

Vargas is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and filmmaker whose work centers on the changing American identity. Vargas is well known for producing and directing "Documented," a documentary feature film on his undocumented experience. Vargas also is the founder of Define American, a non-profit media and culture organization seeking to elevate the conversation around immigration and citizenship.

Joe Navarro, Nov. 3 (Tuesday)
8 p.m., Main Auditorium at 1401 W. Hickory St.
Tickets are free for UNT students and $2 for student guests; $3 for UNT staff, faculty and alumni; and $5 for the general population.

Navarro joined the FBI at 23-years-old, becoming one of the youngest agents to ever join the agency. He spent 25 years working as an agent and supervisor in the areas of counterintelligence and counterterrorism. Today, Navarro is recognized as one of the world's foremost authorities on reading non-verbal communications.

Jessica Williams, Feb. 9 (Tuesday)
8 p.m., Location and ticket prices TBA

Williams is an actress, writer and comedian who, in 2012, joined "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart" and became the show's youngest correspondent. Williams also is a frequent performer at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Los Angeles, and has made appearances on HBO's "Girls." 

Bill Nye, April 6 (Wednesday)
8 p.m., UNT Coliseum at 600 Avenue D, ticket prices TBA

Nye is a science educator best known for his PBS show "Bill Nye The Science Guy," which won 18 Emmy Awards over its five year run. Nye studied mechanical engineering at Cornell University, and went on to work for The Boeing Company in Seattle, where he developed a hydraulic pressure resonance suppressor that is still used today in the Boeing 747. In 2000, Nye developed sundials that were used in the NASA Mars Rover missions, and from 2005 to 2010 served as vice president and executive director of The Planetary Society.

The Distinguished Lecture Series program introduces the UNT community to the excellence of world-class speakers whose messages enhance student learning outside the classroom. Previous speakers include President George W. Bush, Condoleezza Rice, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., John Legend, George Takei, Steve Wozniak, Rainn Wilson and Vicente Fox.

The Distinguished Lecture Series is sponsored by UNT's Division of Student Affairs. For more information, contact UNT Student Affairs Coordinator of Special Projects Austin Chappell at 940-565-4587.

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