Events for: UMass Lowell Inn and Conference Center

Robert Dietz, the Chief Economist of the National Association of Home Builders, will present the latest economic and housing forecast. The NAHB macroeconomic outlook will examine recent employment growth data, as well as current GDP conditions and expectations concerning a future recession. His talk will examine the housing affordability crisis and the pivot and outlook for monetary policy and the Federal Reserve. He will also present results from the Home Building Geography Index, a new research project that examines housing and apartment productions levels in suburban, rural and exurban markets, as well as examining the connection between manufacturing and construction. Dietz will discuss differences in the forecast for the single-family, multifamily and remodeling sectors. And he will present data on current, demographic-based housing demand conditions, as well as supply-side issues holding back industry output. A question and answer session will follow. Prior to joining NAHB in 2005, Robert worked as an economist for the Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation. He is a native of Dayton, Ohio and earned a Ph.D. in Economics from the Ohio State University in 2003. The Moses Greely Parker Lunchtime Lecture event is co-sponsored by the UMass Lowell Community Relations Department.  The program begins with a light lunch. Reservations are required, as space is limited. To reserve a seat, email community@uml.edu or call 978-934-2957.

Join UMass Lowell Chancellor Jacquie Moloney for a conversation with U.S. Representative Lori Trahan. Lori Trahan was born and raised in a working-class family in Lowell, Massachusetts. Her father was a union ironworker and her mother was a domestic worker who juggled various part time jobs while raising four girls. The first in her family to graduate from college, Lori earned a scholarship to play Division 1 volleyball at Georgetown University. She joined the staff of former Congressman Marty Meehan as a scheduler, eventually working her way up to Chief of Staff. She and her husband, Dave, currently reside in Westford, MA. As a member of the House Education and Labor and House Armed Services Committees, Lori is focused on fighting for working families on issues such as affordable health care, quality public education, workforce development, the environment, and working to end the pain and suffering of the opioid crisis. Lori is the first Portuguese-American woman elected to Congress. The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Moses Greeley Parker Lectures and UMass Lowell Community Relations. Free and open to the public, the program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch at the UMass Lowell Inn & Conference Center. Space is limited – reservations are required. RSVP by October 1, 2019 to community@uml.edu or call 978-934-2957.

Gina McCarthy has been a leading advocate for common sense strategies to protect public health and the environment for more than 30 years. She served under President Barack Obama as the 13th Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 2013–2017. Gina is currently Professor of Practice of Public Health and Director of the Center for Health and the Global Environment at Harvard School of Public Health. Gina leads the development of the School’s strategy in climate science, health, and sustainability. She also currently acts as an Operating Advisor at Pegasus Capital Advisors, a private equity firm in New York focused on the intersection of global sustainability, health and wellness. Her tenure as EPA Administrator heralded a paradigm shift in national environmental policy, expressly linking it with global public health. She led EPA initiatives that cut air pollution, protected water resources, reduced greenhouse gases, and strengthened chemical safety to better protect more Americans, especially the most vulnerable, from negative health impacts. McCarthy signed the Clean Power Plan, which set the first-ever national standards for reducing carbon emissions from existing power plants, underscoring the country’s commitment to domestic climate action and spurring international efforts that helped secure the Paris Climate Agreement. McCarthy worked with the United Nations and the World Health Organization on a variety of efforts and represented the U.S. on global initiatives to reduce high-risk sources of pollution. During her career in Massachusetts, McCarthy advised five governors on environmental affairs, worked at the state and local levels on critical environmental issues, and helped coordinate policies on economic growth, energy, transportation, and the environment. The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Parker Series and the UMass Lowell Office of Community Relations. The program begins with a light lunch and Reservations are required and limited. To reserve a seat, contact community@uml.edu or call 978-934-2957.

John H Sununu was the 75th Governor of New Hampshire and served at White House Chief of Staff to President George H. W. Bush from 1989-1992. After leaving the White House he started JHS Associates, Ltd, an international strategic business consulting firm, where he has served as President and CEO. From 1992 until 1998, he co-hosted CNN’s nightly “Crossfire” program, a news/public affairs discussion program. In 2010 he served as Chairman of the NHGOP and in 2012 was a prominent Romney campaign surrogate and steering committee member. In this major reassessment of George Herbert Walker Bush, the 41st president of the United States, his former Chief of Staff offers a long overdue appreciation of the man and his universally underrated and misunderstood presidency. “I’m a quiet man, but I hear the quiet people others don’t.”—George H. W. Bush. In this unique insider account, John H. Sununu pays tribute to his former boss—an intelligent, thoughtful, modest leader—and his overlooked accomplishments. The program begins at 11:45 with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required. To reserve a seat, contact: Mehmed Ali,   mehmed_ali@uml.edu.   978-934-5467 (office)

Howard Bauchner, MD, is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and the JAMA Network, the latter consisting of ten additional leading medical journals ranging from JAMA Oncology to JAMA Psychiatry. The Network also includes JAMAevidence, which integrates the best available Evidence-based medicine in multiple and accessible formats to help clinicians recommend, and their patients to make, informed choices consistent with their values. Bauchner became the 16th editor of JAMA in July 2011. He has published over 125 peer-reviewed papers in academic journals, mainly on clinical trials and health promotion. The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Moses Greeley Parker Lectures and UMass Lowell Office of Community Relations, with support from Prof. Bill Mass of the UMass Lowell Center for Industrial Competitiveness, the UMass Lowell College of Health Sciences, Lowell General Hospital. The program begins with a light buffet lunch Please note the two events have different locations. Reservations are required (seating is limited.) To reserve a seat, contact community@uml.edu call 978-934-2957.

One of Boston's most engaging anchors and reporters, Susan Wornick spent 34 years at Boston's number one television station, WCVB-TV. She rose from street reporter, to investigative and consumer reporter winning a cache of awards along the way. Susan's commitment to keeping her sources almost landed her in jail. The veteran reporter, now retired, will talk about the issue of a Shield Law for journalists, the non-stop 24-hour news cycle, how technology has changed broadcast and all media, and what careers will look like for aspiring journalists as we move deeper into the 21st Century. Co-sponsored by the UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas. The program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required (seating is limited). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu or CALL 978-934-3107.

Throughout her career in public health and health care, Ms. Bartlett has been a voice for promoting positive change in health outcomes for Massachusetts residents. As Commissioner Ms. Bartlett chairs the newly appointed Prevention and Wellness Advisory Board, which oversees a $60 million Prevention Trust Fund – the first of its kind in the nation. Recently she was recognized in HealthLeaders magazine as one of twenty individuals making a difference in healthcare in the U.S. Co-sponsored by the UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas. The program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required(seating is limited). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu or CALL 978-934-3107.

Nicco Mele, entrepreneur and consultant to Fortune 1000 companies, is one of America's leading forecasters of business, politics, and culture in our fast-moving digital age. Nicco's first book, The End of Big: How the Internet Makes David the New Goliath, was published by St. Martin's Press on April 23, 2013. In it, he explores the consequences of living in a socially-connected society, drawing upon his years of experience as an innovator in politics and technology. Born to Foreign Service parents, Nicco spent his early years in Asia and Africa before graduating from the College of William and Mary in Virginia with a bachelor's degree in government. He then worked for several high-profile advocacy organizations where he pioneered the use of social media as a galvanizing force for fundraising. As webmaster for Governor Howard Dean's 2004 presidential bid, Nicco and the campaign team popularized the use of technology and social media that revolutionized political fundraising and reshaped American politics. Subsequently, he co-founded EchoDitto, a leading internet strategy and consulting firm, whose non-profit and corporate clients have included Sierra Club, UN World Food Programme, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, AARP, and Medco. Nicco is also on the faculty at the Harvard Kennedy School where he teaches graduate-level classes on the internet and politics. The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Moses Greeley Parker Lectures and UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, with support from Prof. Bill Mass of the UMass Lowell Center for Industrial Competitiveness. Free and open to the public, the program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required (seating is limited). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu OR CALL 978-934-3107

Boston Mayor Thomas Menino is the current mayor of Boston, Massachusetts.. A native of Boston, Menino served on the city council for several years before becoming mayor. On March 28, 2013 Mayor Menino announced that he is not running for re-election. On July 13, 2009, Menino became the longest-serving mayor in Boston history. According to Menino’s official biography, “Among his main priorities, are: providing every child with a quality education; creating affordable housing; lowering the crime rate; revitalizing Boston's neighborhoods; and promoting a healthy lifestyle for all city residents.” Menino was president of the United States Conference of Mayors from 2002 to 2003. The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Moses Greeley Parker Lectures and UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, with support from Prof. Bill Mass of the UMass Lowell Center for Industrial Competitiveness. Free and open to the public, the program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required (seating is limited). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu OR CALL 978-934-3107

Stuart Altman, the Sol C. Chaikin Professor of National Health Policy in Brandeis’ Heller School for Social Policy and Management, has been appointed by Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick to chair the agency charged with monitoring the reform of Massachusetts health care delivery and payment systems in order to reduce costs and improve quality. Altman will chair the board of the Health Policy Commission, which sets the broad policy direction for the Commonwealth based on data and information collected by the Center for Health Information and Analysis. Altman also is a member of the Institute of Medicine and a member of the board of Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston. He holds M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in economics from the University of California, Los Angeles. The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Moses Greeley Parker Lectures and UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, with support from Prof. Bill Mass of the UMass Lowell Center for Industrial Competitiveness. Free and open to the public, the program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required (seating is limited). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu OR CALL 978-934-3107

Michael T. Klare teaches at Hampshire College, and is a Five Colleges professor of Peace and World Security Studies. Klare is a defense correspondent of The Nation magazine, and author of Resource Wars and Blood and Oil: The Dangers and Consequences of America's Growing Petroleum Dependency (Metropolitan). Klare also teaches at Amherst, Smith, Mount Holyoke, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. This program is the last of three “Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center.” The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Parker Lecture Committee and UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, with support from Prof. Bill Mass of the UMass Lowell Center for Industrial Competitiveness, Middlesex Community College and the Cultural Organization of Lowell. Free and open to the public, the program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required (limited to 100 people). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu. Or call978-934-3107

Coordinated by the UMass Lowell Center for Public Opinion, a panel of experts headed by Paul Jorgensen, Fellow, Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, Harvard University and Assistant Professor, will discuss and debate issues from the upcoming presidential election. This program is the second of three “Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center.” The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Parker Lecture Committee and UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, with support from Prof. Bill Mass of the UMass Lowell Center for Industrial Competitiveness, Middlesex Community College and the Cultural Organization of Lowell. Free and open to the public, the program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required (limited to 100 people). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu. Or call978-934-3107

Author Catherine Tumber of “Small, Gritty, and Green: The Promise of America's Smaller Industrial Cities in a Low-Carbon World (Urban and Industrial Environments). America's once-vibrant small-to-midsize cities--Syracuse, Worcester, Akron, Flint, Rockford, and others--increasingly resemble urban wastelands. These cities would seem to be part of America's past, not its future. And yet, journalist and historian Catherine Tumber argues in this provocative book, America's gritty Rust Belt cities could play a central role in a greener, low-carbon, relocalized future. Tumber, who has spent much of her life in Rust Belt cities, traveled to twenty-five cities in the Northeast and Midwest--from Buffalo to Peoria to Detroit to Rochester--interviewing planners, city officials, and activists, and weaving their stories into this exploration of small-scale urbanism. Smaller cities can be a critical part of a sustainable future and a productive green economy. This program is the first of three “Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center.” The Lunchtime Lectures are co-sponsored by the Parker Lecture Committee and UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, with support from Prof. Bill Mass of the UMass Lowell Center for Industrial Competitiveness, Middlesex Community College and the Cultural Organization of Lowell. Free and open to the public, the program begins at 11:45 a.m. with a light buffet lunch. Reservations are required (limited to 100 people). To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu. Or call978-934-3107

Each year, thousands of students on field trips to Lowell bring with them a knowledge of Lowell’s industrial history that they acquired by reading about fictional “mill girl” Lyddie Worthen, the main character of Katherine Paterson’s beloved novel Lyddie.  Paterson, the Library of Congress's 2010-2012 National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, will talk about how historical research, a compelling plot, and a feisty female character combine to create a novel that breathes life into the story of Lowell’s nineteenth-century textile mills and the labor activism of “mill girls.” A 20^th Anniversary Series offering of the Tsongas Industrial History Center, a partnership of Lowell National Historical Park and the UMass Lowell Graduate School of Education.  This presentation is supported in part by the UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas.

Award-winning author Jane Brox, a native of the Merrimack Valley, will discuss the way literature is both affected by a writer’s sense of place and the how the writing infuses meaning into particular landscapes and communities, from small towns to entire regions. Her recent book, “Brilliant: The Evolution of Artificial Light,” was named by TIME magazine as one of the top ten nonfiction books of the year and was praised by reviewers in the New York Times Book Review and other publications. She is the author of three books informed by her experiences on her family’s long-time farm in Dracut, Mass. About “Clearing Land: Legacies of the American Farm,” Booklist wrote: “In her third observant and meticulously researched rumination, she continues to chart the fortune of family and farm, albeit from within a fresh and incisive history of cultivation in America.” This program is the last of three “Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center.”  This series is co-sponsored and presented by The Parker Lecture Committee, UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, Middlesex Community College, and UMass Lowell Prof. Bill Mass. A complimentary buffet lunch is included, but reservations are required and seating is limited. The program begins promptly at 12 noon. To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu or call 978-934-3107.

UMass Lowell Chancellor Marty Meehan will moderate a panel discussion with notable experts from the worlds of media and politics as they look at the field of presidential candidates, the upcoming primaries and caucuses, and national context for the 2012 election. Chancellor Meehan represented the Fifth Congressional District of Massachusetts in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1993 to 2007. He served on the House Armed Services and Judiciary committees. Widely respected as a reformer, he established a national reputation for his legislative leadership in reforming campaign finance laws and protecting people against the health risks in tobacco use. This program is the second of three “Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center.” This series is co-sponsored and presented by The Parker Lecture Committee, UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, Middlesex Community College, and UMass Lowell Prof. Bill Mass. A complimentary buffet lunch is included, but reservations are required and seating is limited. The program begins promptly at 12 noon. To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu or call 978-934-3107.

Karl “Chip” Case, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Wellesley College, and co-author of the Case-Shiller Index, the leading measure of home prices in the US. He is the author of five books, including “Principles of Economics” and “Property Tax: The Need for Reform.” He serves on the boards of directors of the Mortgage Guarantee Insurance Corp. and Depositors Insurance Fund of Mass. and on the Advisory Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. He is a Senior Fellow at the Joint Center for Housing Studies at Harvard University. This program is the first of three “Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center.”  This series is co-sponsored and presented by The Parker Lectures Committee, UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, Middlesex Community College, and UMass Lowell Prof. Bill Mass. A complimentary buffet lunch is included, but reservations are required and seating is limited. The program begins promptly at 12 noon. To reserve a seat, contact artsandideas@uml.edu or call 978-934-3107.

It's hard to talk about changing education, never mind transforming it. Education is, after all, the one institution to which we entrust our children for the larger part of a day. Discussions about changing education run the gamut of emotions, raise tensions and reveal deeply held beliefs whether accurate or not. This is one of this season's "Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center." See October 18 program note above for details about reserving a seat for the lecture and lunch.

Health care will continue to be a "hot topic" over the next several decades. As the U.S. demographics continue to shift, providing culturally competent health care becomes critical in order to decrease health disparities, improve access to care and decrease the financial burden associated with illness care. Yet, the current healthcare work- force does not adequately represent the ethnic and cultural diversity of the country. Programs focused on the recruitment and retention of diverse individuals in college and university health related programs are greatly needed.

This is one of this season's "Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center." See October 18 program note above for details about reserving a seat for the lecture and lunch.

Dean Baker is co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C. He is frequently cited in economics reporting in major media outlets. He writes a weekly column for the Guardian Limited (UK) and his blog, Beat the Press, features commentary on economic reporting. His latest book, Taking Economics Seriously, thinks through what we might gain if we took the ideological blinders off of basic economic principles, False Profits. This is one of this season's "Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center." See October 18 program note above for details about reserving a seat for the lecture and lunch.

An economist by training, he joined the Bank in 1985 as a member of the research department. In his research Rosengren has made significant contributions in the fields of banking and monetary policy. A focus of his research has been on how financial problems can impact the real economy. This program is the first of four "Lunchtime Lectures at the Inn & Conference Center" included in the Parker Lectures schedule for 2010-11. The community series is co-sponsored by the Parker Lectures Committee, UMass Lowell Center for Arts and Ideas, and Middlesex Community College. A complimentary buffet lunch is included, but reservations are required and seating is limited to 100. The program begins promptly at 12 noon. To reserve a seat, contact paul_marion@uml.edu or call 978-934-3107