Distinguished Lecture Series Announced for Fall ’06

WORCESTER –   Beginning in September, Quinsigamond Community College will again bring its Liberal Arts Distinguished Lecture series to campus.

There are two Distinguished Lectures scheduled for this fall – one from the field of psychology, the other dealing with literature and cultural studies.  Both guest lecturers come from Clark University.

On Monday, September 25, Abbie Goldberg, Ph.D, Assistant Professor of Psychology at Clark, will speak on the topic: “Gay and Lesbian Couples: The ‘New’ Parents of the New Millennium.”  The talk will focus on some of the current studies’ findings on same-sex couples’ transition to parenthood.

Wednesday, October 18 will bring Maria Acosta Cruz, Ph.D. to Quinsigamond.  Ms. Cruz is an Associate Professor of Spanish and will speak on the nature of Latino cultural expression in the United States, touching on a number of different topics within that area.

Kenneth Wong, Professor History and Coordinator of Liberal Arts at QCC is excited to have these two highly regarded professors as part of his lecture series.

“The idea is to bring to campus experts and specialists from a range of liberal arts fields,” Mr. Wong stated. “Our lecturers discuss current, thought provoking subjects that also reflect the multi-culturalism of our student body and the entire Worcester community.”

Since 2003, Mr. Wong’s lecture series has brought professors to campus from as nearby as Holy Cross College and Clark University, to as far away as Florida International University. Professors from Brown, University of Massachusetts, and Harvard, among others, have also spoken.  Lectures are free and open to the public and will take place at QCC’s Harrington Learning Center from 2:00pm to 3:00pm.

Dr. Abbie Goldberg received her Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the University of Massachusetts.  She currently teaches both undergraduate and graduate courses at Clark University and has won numerous awards for her research.   Dr. Acosta Cruz received her Ph.D. from the State University of New York and is affiliated with the programs in Women’s Studies, Cultural Identity and Global Processes, and Race and Ethnic Relations.