Baltimore Speakers Series Announces Lineup for 2017-2018 Season

The Baltimore Speakers Series, presented by Stevenson University, is preparing to welcome a stellar lineup of some of today’s most celebrated and influential personalities to Meyerhoff Symphony Hall. Officially kicking off on Oct. 3, the Series will offer seven evenings of thought-provoking discussion, opening with a presentation by former British Prime Minister David Cameron. The complete list of presenters in order of appearance includes:

• Oct. 3, 2017 - David Cameron, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (2010-2016)
• Oct. 24, 2017 – Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize-winning presidential historian
• Nov. 14, 2017 – Jane Pauley, television journalist and author
• Jan. 30, 2018 – Robin Wright, Middle East expert, award-winning journalist and author
• Feb. 27, 2018 – Rick Steves, author, television host and European travel guide
• March 27, 2018 – Mark Kelly, Astronaut and Gabby Giffords, former Arizona Congresswoman
• April 17, 2018 – Paul Nicklen, award-winning National Geographic photographer

Tickets for the 2017-2018 Baltimore Speakers Series are available now by visiting www.BaltimoreSpeakersSeries.or... or by calling 410-783-8000. As in years past, the series is being sold by subscription only, with subscribers guaranteed admission to hear all seven dynamic speakers. Subscriptions for the entire series range from $295 - $435. All presentations will begin at 8 p.m., and each is followed by a spirited Q&A period, during which the speaker addresses questions from the audience.

“Stevenson University is thrilled to once again present this insightful series at Meyerhoff Symphony Hall, giving the public the opportunity to experience a variety of diverse perspectives sure to enrich, enlighten and entertain,” said Claire E. Moore, interim president of Stevenson University. “Those in attendance will have a unique opportunity to hear a group of remarkable speakers, ranging from an influential world leader to a man who’s explored space, while also participating in fascinating discussions on a broad scope of issues.”

The 2017-2018 Speakers Series will kick off with a presentation by David Cameron, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. As the youngest British Prime Minister in two centuries, Cameron led a transformation of the U.K.’s economy through his work to remodel the Conservative Party with a modern, compassionate agenda. In 2016, Cameron resigned following the U.K. vote to leave the European Union.

On Oct. 24, Jon Meacham will take the stage at The Meyerhoff. Meacham won the Pulitzer Prize for his biography of Andrew Jackson. He has also profiled Thomas Jefferson and, most recently, George H.W. Bush, in a body of work that spans from the Founding Fathers to the Civil Rights Era. A former editor-in-chief of Newsweek and a contributing editor to Time magazine, he now serves as executive editor at Random House.

In mid-November, the Baltimore Speakers Series will welcome television journalist and author Jane Pauley. Pauley is currently the anchor of CBS Sunday Morning. She is best known for her 13-year tenure on NBC’s Today, followed by 12 years as co-host of Dateline NBC. Her bestselling memoir, Skywriting: A Life Out of the Blue, made public her diagnosis of bipolar disorder. Pauley also penned a second book titled Your Life Calling: Reimagining the Rest of Your Life.

The Speakers Series will continue in Jan. 2018 with a presentation by Robin Wright. As a joint fellow at the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Woodrow Wilson International School for Scholars, Wright has received numerous awards for her reporting for The New Yorker and other publications. She is also the author of many books on the Middle East. The most recent of these books, titled Rock the Casbah, was named the best book on international affairs by the Overseas Press Club.

Rick Steves will grace the Speakers Series stage on Feb. 27, 2018. In addition to authoring numerous European travel guides, Steves is the host of the public television series Rick Steves’ Europe and a public radio show called Travel with Rick Steves. He advocates for independent travel, encouraging Americans to become “temporary locals” by visiting cozy villages away from popular tourist routes, in addition to seeing major cities.

In March 2018, Baltimore Speakers Series guests will get to hear from Mark Kelly and Gabby Giffords. As a former Gulf War naval aviator, Kelly became a NASA Space Shuttle pilot in 1996. During his career, he flew four space missions, which included commanding the final mission of the Space Shuttle Endeavor. Kelly will be joined briefly by his wife Gabby Giffords, the former congresswoman from Arizona who was the target of an attempted assassination in 2011.

The 2017-2018 Baltimore Speakers Series will conclude on April 17, 2018 as guests are entertained by Paul Nicklen. An award-winning National Geographic photographer, Nicklen uses his camera to reveal the nature of the changing polar regions due to climate change. His work also includes serving as an interpreter and translator of scientific information about environmental challenges.

Presented by Stevenson University, the Baltimore Speakers Series is sponsored by WYPR 88.1 and the Baltimore Sun, with additional support from the Waldorf School of Baltimore and GBMC Healthcare.

For more information about the 2017-2018 Baltimore Speakers Series, visit www.BaltimoreSpeakersSeries.org.

About Stevenson University
Stevenson University, known for its distinctive career focus, is the third-largest independent university in Maryland with more than 4,100 students pursuing bachelor’s, master’s, and adult bachelor’s programs at locations in Stevenson and Owings Mills. http://www.stevenson.edu/