Upcoming Events
UDARF regularly holds three types of events:
- Quarterly Luncheons (current year)
- My Intellectual Journey Series (current year)
- Executive Committee Meetings (current year)
Link to previous years’ events
Click each speaker’s name to view the corresponding UDaily article (when available).
Luncheons 2024-2025
Monday, October 28, 2024
Speaker: Harvey Price, Associate Professor of Percussion, School of Music, UD
Topic: Peace Drums Steel Band Project
Location: The Audion Star Tower
Time: 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (speaker is scheduled starting at noon)
Wednesday, December 18, 2024
Speaker: Sarah Jenkins, Head Coach Women’s Basketball, UD
Topic: New Landscape of Women’s College Basketball
Location: The Audion Star Tower
Time:11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (speaker is scheduled starting at noon)
Wednesday, February 19, 2025
Speaker: John Ernest, Chairperson, English, Judge Hugh M Morris Professor, UD
Topic: The Underground Railroad
Location: The Audion Star Tower
Time: 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (speaker is scheduled starting at noon)
Thursday, April 10, 2025
Speaker: Carlos Asarta, Bank of America Chaired Professor of Business & Professor of Economics, UD
Topic: The Role of Economic and Financial Education
Location: The Audion Star Tower
Time: 11:30 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. (speaker is scheduled starting at noon)
My Intellectual Journey Series 2024-2025
Thursday, November 7, 2024
Speaker: Joel G. Best, Professor Emeritus, Sociology
Title: My Intellectual Journey
Location: Courtyard by Marriott
Time: 3:45 p.m. (speaker is scheduled starting at 4:00 pm)
Thursday, March 20, 2025
Speaker: Donald Sparks, Unidel S Hallock du Pont Chair, Plant & Soil Science
Title: My Intellectual Journey
Location: Courtyard by Marriott
Time: 3:45 p.m. (speaker is scheduled starting at 4:00 pm)
Executive Committee Meetings
Visitors are welcome.
Please contact the UDARF Secretary (cmanning@udel.edu) if you wish to attend.
Courtyard By Marriott – Newark. Meetings start at 2 p.m. in the lobby area.
Dates for 2024-2025: Sep 17 (Tues), Dec 17 (Tues), Feb 4 (Tues) and Apr 15 (Tues).
Previous Years’ Events
Luncheons 2023-2024
Monday, October 2, 2023
Speaker: Dr. David Shearer, Thomas Muncy Keith Professor of History, UD
Topic: Travels in Ukraine
Wednesday, November 29, 2023
Speaker: Brian Floriani, Founder Bernie’s Book Bank
Topic: Bernie’s Book Bank
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
Speaker: Dr Daniel Freeman, Associate Professor of Marketing: Director, Horn Program in Entrepreneurship, UD
Topic: The Horn Entrepreneurship Program
Monday, April 22, 2024
Speaker: Dr Stuart Kaufman, Professor Political Science & International Relations
Topic: The Gaza Conflict: War or Humanitarian Disaster?
My Intellectual Journey Series 2023-2024
Wednesday, November 8, 2023
Speaker: Dr. David Herman, Professor Emeritus, School of Music, UD
Title: TBD
Thursday, April 4, 2024
Speaker: Dr. Patricia A. Martin-DeLeon, Trustees Distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences Emerita & Francis Allison Professor
Title: My Intellectual Journey
Luncheons 2022-2023
Wednesday, October 19, 2022
Speaker: Dr. Doug Tallamy, TA Baker Professor of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology
Topic: Nature’s Best Hope
Thursday, December 15, 2022
Speaker: Dr. Anne M. Boylan, Professor Emerita of History and of Women and Gender Studies
Topic: Votes for Delaware Women
Wednesday, March 1, 2023
Speaker: Dr. James Butkiewicz, Professor, Department of Economics, UD
Topic: Is This Really a Recession?
Wednesday, May 3, 2023
Speaker: Joan DelFattore, Professor Emerita of English
Topic: Here’s to Your Health!
My Intellectual Journey Series 2022-2023
Thursday, Nov 3, 2022
Speaker: Panel Lead by Dr. Larry Peterson, Professor Emeritus, Music History & Literature & Adjunct Faculty, Master of Art in Liberal Science (MALS) program
Title: Former UD Faculty Discuss “OLLI”)
Thursday, Mar 23, 2023
Speaker: Dr. James Magee, Judge Hugh M. Morris Prof Emeritus, Political Science and International Relations, UD
Title: My Intellectual Journey
Luncheons 2021-2022
Thursday, October 21, 2021
Speaker: Dr. Susan B. Sheehy, Director, Veterans and College Athletes Together (VCAT) Project, UD
Topic: VCAT (https://youtu.be/w6QwTwlp5Yc)
Thursday, December 16, 2021
Speaker: Dean Maria Aristigueta, Biden School of Public Policy & Administration, UD
Topic: The Biden School: Sixty years of academic excellence in public affairs education
Wednesday, March 2, 2022
Speaker: Chrissi Rawak, Director, Intercollegiate Athletic and Recreation Services, UD
Topic: Delaware Athletics & Recreation Services: Achieving Excellence Together
Wednesday, May 4, 2022
Speaker: Dr. Dennis Assanis, President, UD
Topic: TBA
My Intellectual Journey Series 2021-2022
Thursday, Nov 11, 2021
Speaker: Dr. Hal White, Professor, Chemistry & Biochemistry, UD
Title: Bugs, Eggs and PBL
Thursday, Mar 24, 2022
Speaker: Dr. Frederick Adams, Professor Emeritus, Cognitive Science & Philosophy, UD
Title: TBA
Luncheons 2020-2021
Thursday, October 29, 2020
Speaker: Dr. Norm Wagner, Unidel Robert L Pigford Chair, Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering; Professor, Physics & Astronomy, UD
Topic: How to make materials for spacesuits (and more!)
Thursday, December 3, 2020
Speaker: Dr. Stuart Binder-Macleod, Edward L Ratledge Professor, Physical Therapy; Assoc Vice President, Research Office, UD
Topic: FastFES to Improve Walking Post-Stroke: An effective intervention that is not for everyone
Wednesday, March 3, 2021
Speaker: Dr. Donald Sparks, Unidel S Hallock du Pont Chair, Plant & Soil Science; Professor, Chemistry & Biochemistry and Civil & Environmental Engineering, UD
Topic: Impact of a Changing Climate on the Coastal Environment
Wednesday, May 5, 2021
Speaker: Dr. Dennis Assanis, President, UD
Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
My Intellectual Journey Series 2020-2021
Thursday, Nov 12, 2020
Speaker: Mr. Ralph Begleiter, Edward F. & Elizabeth Goodman Rosenberg Professor Emeritus, Communication, UD
Title: A Journalist’s Soul & Spirit
Thursday, Mar 18, 2021
Speaker: Leslie F Goldstein, Judge Hugh M. Morris Prof Emerita, Political Science & International Relations, UD
Title: TBA
Luncheons 2019-2020
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Speaker: Dr. John Pelesko, Dean, Arts & Sciences, UD
Topic: What I Learned in My First Year as Dean
Tuesday, December 10, 2019
Speaker: Mr. Sanford (Sandy) Robbins, Producing Artistic Director, Theater, UD
Topic: The Resident Ensemble Players: your theatre company
Tuesday, March 10, 2020
Speaker: Dr. James M. Jones, Trustees’ Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Psychological and Brain Sciences & Africana Studies, UD
Topic: Diversity is the New Normal: De- and Re-Constructing Diversity
Tuesday, Apr 28, 2020
Speaker: Dr. Dennis Assanis, President, UD
Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
My Intellectual Journey Series 2019-2020
Thursday, Nov 7, 2019
Speaker: Dr. Margaret L. Andersen, Edward F. & Elizabeth Goodman Rosenberg Professor Emerita, Sociology, UD
Title: My Intellectual Journey: Reflections on Race, Gender, and Sociology
Thursday, March 26, 2020
Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
Luncheons 2018-2019
Tuesday, October 2, 2018
Speaker: Dr. Robert L. Hampel, Professor, School of Education, UD
Topic: Fast and Curious: a History of American Shortcuts to Education and Culture
Tuesday, December 4, 2018
Speaker: Dr. Robin W. Morgan, Provost, UD
Topic: 2020 and Beyond: Investing in UD’s Intellectual and Physical Capital
Tuesday, March 5, 2019
Speaker: Dr. David P. Redlawsk, James R. Soles Professor and Chair, Political Science & International Relations, UD
Topic: How Foundational are Moral Foundations: Examining the Effects of Partisanship on Violations of Moral Values
Wednesday, May 15, 2019
Speaker: Dr. Dennis Assanis, President, UD
My Intellectual Journey Series 2018-2019
Thursday, January 31, 2018
Speaker: Dr. Robert J. Taggart, Associate Professor Emeritus, School of Education, UD
Title: Thirty-Eight Years of Teaching, Research and “Politics”
Thursday, April 18, 2019
Speaker: Dr. Marian L. Palley, Professor Emerita, Political Science and International Relations, UD
Title: My Academic Journey
Luncheons 2017-2018
Tuesday, October 3, 2017
Speaker: Dr. Patricia Sloane-White, Professor of Anthropology and Chair, Women and Gender Studies, UD
Topic: Corporate Islam: Sharia in the Modern Islamic Workplace
Tuesday, December 5, 2017
Speaker: Dr. Michael D. Greenberg, Professor Emeritus, Mechanical Engineering, UD
Topic: From Neurons to Matisse
Tuesday, March 6, 2018
Speaker: Ms. Julie Nishimura, Faculty Accompanist (Piano), Music, UD and Co-Founder/Director, Distant Voices Touring Theatre
Topic: A Glimpse into Distant Voices Touring Theatre (talk & performance)
Tuesday, May 8, 2018
Speaker: Dr. Dennis Assanis, President, UD
My Intellectual Journey Series 2017-2018
Thursday, November 16, 2017
Speaker: Dr. M. Sandra Carberry, Professor, Computer and Information Sciences, UD
Title: No One is an Island
Thursday, April 19, 2018
Speaker: Dr. Jay L. Halio, Professor Emeritus, English, UD
Title: Jay Halio’s Intellectual Journey, 1946-present