GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Calvin University announced its 2023 January Series lineup Wednesday.
The 36th edition of the free lecture series will kick off on Monday, January 9 and fun 15-straight weekdays through Friday, January 27.
Some notable names joining the series in 2023 include:
- Ken Jennings, a former Utah software engineer who rose to fame in 2004 when he spent six months as a contestant on Jeopardy. His 75-game winning streak and $2.52 million in winnings still stand as Jeopardy records. Jennings plans to discuss why it’s important to be a generalist in an age of hyper-specialization.
- Kate Bowler, a New York Times best-selling author, podcast host and professor at Duke University. She studies the cultural stories we tell ourselves about success, suffering and whether we’re capable of change. Bowler’s podcast “Everything Happens” features people like Malcolm Gladwell, Matthew McConaughey and Anne Lamott.
- Mónica Guzmán, a bridge builder, journalist and entrepreneur who lives for great conversations sparked by curious questions. She’s senior fellow for public practice at Brave Angels, the nation’s largest cross-partisan grassroots organization, which works to depolarize America. Guzmán also hosts a live interview series at Crosscut and is the cofounder of the award-winning Seattle newsletter The Evergrey.
- Peter Wehner, an in-resident Senior Fellow, a contributing opinion writer for The New York Times and a contributing editor for The Atlantic. Wehner served in the Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush administrations, including as Deputy Director of Speechwriting and later Director of the Office of Strategic Initiatives for President George W. Bush.
For a full list of speakers and topics, click here.
Calvin University says Michael Wildschut is in his inaugural year as director of the January Series.
Wildschut says the 2023 series centers on thinking about how we can best care, engage and connect with each other.
“We’ll learn from Ken Jennings about how having a wider range of knowledge can provide us a greater opportunity to connect with other people. We’ll hear from Mónica Guzmán about how being curious can play a key role in building bridges during divided times. And we will hear from Amy Kenny, a leading scholar on disability, about how faith communities can cultivate a culture of welcome for people of all abilities,” Wildschut added.
The 2023 January Series runs from 12:30- 1:30 p.m. EST, Monday through Friday, in the Covenant Fine Arts Center on Calvin University’s campus.
Attendees can also watch and listen to the 15 presentations virtually, both live and until midnight PST on the day of each presentation.
The January Series welcomes a worldwide audience each year.
Between in-person, remote and on-demand virtual viewing, the series reached a record of more than 100,000 viewers in 50 states and 52 countries, spanning six continents in 2022.
