The largesse Gov. Winthrop Rockefeller bestowed upon the state he loved is the stuff of legend.
In John Ward's book on the subject, he lists Rockefeller Foundation grants from 1975 to 1999 totaling almost $70 million going to education, the arts, farming, urban and rural development, scientific research, and a potpourri of causes to move the state forward. Over the last two decades, that amount has mushroomed.
A jewel in the crown of the Rockefeller Estate Trust was the establishment of the Winthrop Rockefeller Distinguished Lectures (WRDL) by the trust and friends of Governor Rockefeller to bring great minds to the six four-year UA campuses in the state. The mission for the gift was succinctly stated in the Gift and Trust Instrument in 1972 signed by co-trustee and WRDL Committee member Marion Burton: "The educational community is enhanced in its pursuit of knowledge when the foremost scholars and personages of the time are brought to the campus to engage in dialogues involving the issues with which intelligent young men and women concern themselves."
Each year, two of Arkansas' recipient universities (UA-Fayetteville, UA-Fort Smith, UAMS, UAPB, UALR, and UA-Monticello) receive $35,000 each to fund the speech of a notable scholar. The Lecture Series Committee that oversees the program is composed of eight public members, including a person engaged in agriculture. The six representatives from the participating universities also attend the committee meetings. Topics and speakers are determined by each university and then submitted to the Lecture Series Committee for approval. The U of A Board of Trustees has the final say.
Recent speakers have included Jon Meacham (Pulitzer Prize-winning author and historian), Dr. Cornel West (intellectual, author, and professor), Julian Castro (former mayor and HUD secretary), Rebecca Skloot (author of The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks), Donna Brazile (professor and political analyst), Neil deGrasse Tyson (astrophysicist, author and science communicator), Ken Burns (documentary filmmaker), and Helen Thomas (White House correspondent).
Clearly, Rockefeller's vision has exceeded all expectations. During visits to the campuses, the speakers go to classrooms, provide media interviews, and give a major address to students and members of the community, followed by question-and-answer sessions. The stimulation for the students associated with these visits is palpable.
Because of a recent major trust disbursement to increase the endowment for the lecture series, the program now has considerable resources to explore even more creative means to enhance the pursuit of knowledge for our young men and women. Ideas for the future include an agricultural program coordinated by committee member George Dunklin, which is now in the planning stages for 2021. Issues under consideration for that program are the impact of global warming, the future of row cropping, use of artificial intelligence in farming, population decline in the Delta, artificial meat products created in a test tube, and the impact of trade wars on the farm economy.
Lisenne Rockefeller, who also sits on the committee, recently added: "The lectures provide access for students, as well as the surrounding community, to a wide range of wonderful speakers right in their hometown. The committee takes seriously, and truly enjoys, our role in furthering Governor Rockefeller's commitment to Arkansas and her people."
University President Don Bobbitt, also on the committee, agrees about more outreach into the surrounding community of the particular university sponsoring a Rockefeller lecture. He explains that it is important to publicize these vital programs and make them available to as many people as we can. Live-streaming and subsequent broadcasting of the talks are avenues for larger potential outreach. Another thought is to pool the money available among two to three campuses to use the resulting $105,000 to attract speakers most in demand.
Arkansas was always a special project for Governor Rockefeller, where he sought all that could be achieved for his adopted state in terms of government reform and education. Bringing fertile minds to our campuses to speak on the burning issues of the day has engendered the debate and stimulation among our students that he envisioned.
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Former Supreme Court Justice Robert L. Brown is chair of the Governor Winthrop Rockefeller Distinguished Lecture Committee.
Editorial on 02/24/2020