Isaacson Keynotes William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture
Bestselling author details how a liberal arts education intersects with professional preparation
Bestselling author and journalist Walter Isaacson provided a 90-minute conversation and question-and-answer session with student panelists as the laureate keynoting Buena Vista University’s 24th William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture in Schaller Memorial Chapel on Nov. 3.
Isaacson, the former CEO of CNN, and Editor-in-Chief of Time magazine, has written biographies about innovators such as Jennifer Doudna, Leonardo da Vinci, Steve Jobs, and Albert Einstein. His most recent bestseller features SpaceX/Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Earlier this year, President Joe Biden awarded the National Humanities Medal to Isaacson, who currently serves as a Professor at Tulane University.
“In order to think outside the box, one must first understand what is inside the box,” Isaacson said, noting how a liberal arts education, the kind BVU provides, shapes critical thinking and decisions that impact our way of life.
Isaacson cautioned students in following individual passions over the greater good. Rather, he advised, lend talent and energy to an organization that seeks to lift others as we work to rebuild trust in institutions that have historically led free societies in research, the finding of fact, and the pursuit of truth.
BVU President Brian Lenzmeier, in thanking Isaacson, took a sentence from the author’s biography on da Vinci, noting how his art shaped his science, and vice versa. “At Buena Vista University,” Lenzmeier said, “where the liberal arts and professional preparation have long been intertwined, one sentence from his exceptional book on Leonardo da Vinci illustrates in just 20 words why places like Buena Vista University are so important to freedom and American Democracy: ‘The ability to make connections across disciplines–arts and sciences, humanities and technology–is key to innovation, imagination and genius.’”
Student panelists, their majors, and hometowns included: Kayla Farmer, a junior double-majoring in English and history from Lincoln, Neb.; Vinh Nguyen, a senior biology and animal science major from Greenfield; Joshua Tigges, a senior digital media major from Carroll; Hannah Olson, a senior accounting and finance major from Estherville; Andrea Leusink, a junior double-majoring in history and English from Sibley; and Peter Roland, a senior biomedical science major from Storm Lake. Alternate panelists included Caitlyn Ebert, a junior double-majoring in animal science and biology from Washta, and Megan Warren, a senior majoring in history education and social science from Moville.
The William W. Siebens American Heritage Lecture Series invites keynote speakers to share their thoughts on business, academics, law, press, government, religion, and other aspects of American life. Past speakers have included Presidents Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and Apple Computer Co-founder Steve Wozniak, among others.