JACKSON, Tenn. — Jan. 22, 2007 — A nationally syndicated columnist and the author of a much-discussed book on race will visit 51社区 this winter to headline the ninth annual Union Forum lecture series.
Mona Charen will visit Union Feb. 21, while Juan Williams will be on campus March 7.
Each will address the subject, 鈥淧eople Focused: Opportunity in America.鈥�
Charen鈥檚 column is featured in more than 200 daily newspapers. She spent six years as a regular commentator on CNN鈥檚 鈥淭he Capital Gang.鈥� Charen remains a frequent guest on television and radio programs and has served as a judge of Pulitzer Prize entries.
Outside of her media career, Charen worked for two years in the Reagan White House. There she served in a number of roles, including speechwriter for Nancy Reagan. She left the White House in 1986 to work on the presidential campaign of then-U.S. Rep. Jack Kemp.
She graduated with honors from Barnard College and Columbia University and also earned a degree in law from George Washington University in Washington, D.C.
Williams is a senior correspondent for National Public Radio News and a contributing political analyst for the Fox News Channel. During his 21-year career with the Washington Post, Williams covered the White House, served as an editorial writer and as a columnist.
A critically acclaimed author, Williams鈥� latest book is entitled 鈥淓nough: The Phony Leaders, Dead-End Movements, and Culture of Failure That Are Undermining Black America--and What We Can Do About It.鈥� He also wrote the bestseller 鈥淓yes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965,鈥� and a biography of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall.
A graduate of Haverford College, Williams currently sits on a number of boards, including the Aspen Institute of Communications and Society Program, Washington Journalism Center and the New York Civil Rights Coalition.
The luncheons begin at 11:45 a.m. each day. Tickets are $30 each, or $150 for a table of six. A table for both luncheons is $225. Online registration is available at .
Union Forum is sponsored by the First Tennessee Foundation, TLM Associates, West Tennessee Healthcare, Mr. and Mrs. Norman Hill and The Jackson Sun.
For more information, contact Union鈥檚 Office of University Relations at (731) 661-5050.