Officials for the Fredericksburg Forum, which is hosted by the University of Mary Washington, have announced the speakers for the upcoming 2009-10 season.
The series will begin on Tuesday, October 20 with economist and humorist Ben Stein followed by broadcast journalist Judy Woodruff on Tuesday, March 23. Each program will be held at 8 p.m. in the university’s Dodd Auditorium, located in George Washington Hall.
Ben Stein
Ben Stein has enjoyed a versatile career as a columnist with the New York Times, a television and movie actor, author, lawyer and university teacher. Known as one of the funniest economists and among the most economically insightful humorists, Stein provides a unique perspective on the economic crisis, how it occurred and how to survive it.
He studied economics at Columbia University and law and economics at Yale Law School, where he graduated as valedictorian of the class of 1970. He has served as an economist at the Department of Commerce; a poverty lawyer in the field of trade regulation at the Federal Trade Commission; a university adjunct professor at American University, the University of California and Pepperdine University; a speech writer and economic advisor for Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. He also has been a columnist and editorial writer for The Wall Street Journal and a syndicated columnist for The Los Angeles Herald Examiner and Kings Features Syndicate. He currently writes a column for the New York Times Sunday Business Section and, for many years, has written a column on personal finance for Yahoo!
Stein has written, co-written and published 30 books, including a best-selling series of finance and self-help books, “How to Ruin Your Life.” He became well-known in 1986 for his iconic role as the boring teacher in “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and was host of Comedy Central’s Emmy Award-winning game show “Win Ben Stein’s Money.” He is a regular commentator for “Sunday Morning,” on CBS, “Larry King Live” on CNN, Fox News and Yahoo! Finance.
Judy Woodruff
Judy Woodruff has covered politics and other news for more than three decades at the major television networks CNN, NBC and PBS. She is senior correspondent for PBS’ “News Hour with Jim Lehrer” and was editor of the show’s 2008 election coverage.
A graduate of Duke University, Woodruff served as senior correspondent for CNN, anchoring the weekday political program, “Inside Politics,” and has played a major role in the network’s political coverage and major news stories. Before joining CNN, she was chief Washington correspondent for the “MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour” and was anchor of PBS’ award-winning weekly documentary series “Frontline with Judy Woodruff.”
She has served as NBC News’ White House correspondent, covering both the Carter and Reagan administrations and is author of “This is Judy Woodruff at the White House,” which documents her experiences as a political journalist.
In 2007, Woodruff concluded reporting and production, along with MacNeil/Lehrer Productions, on “Generation Next: Speak Up. Be Heard,” a project to interview American young people and report on their views. Two hour-long documentaries on the subject aired on many PBS stations, as well as a series of reports on the “NewsHour with Jim Lehrer” and news accounts on NPR and in USA Today.
Through fall 2006, Woodruff served as a visiting professor at Duke University’s Terry Sanford Institute of Public Policy, teaching a weekly seminar course on media and politics. She also was a visiting fellow at Harvard University’s Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy. She is founding co-chair of the International Women’s Media Foundation.
Now entering its 14th season, the Fredericksburg Forum is a community-sponsored program underwritten by season ticket sales that brings nationally known speakers to the Fredericksburg community and the university. The 2009-10 season also is sponsored by PNC Bank. Tickets for the 2009-10 season, which cover both programs, are $50 for general admission, $75 for orchestra seating and $100 for patron seating, which includes a post-event reception with the speakers.
For ticket information, contact the Fredericksburg Forum Office at (540) 654-1055.