University of the Pacific is launching a signature speaker series that will bring top thought leaders to campus to share ideas on the most important issues of the day.

The Pacific Presidential Speaker Series includes Cathy Davidson, a national higher education leader and author of “The New Education: How to Revolutionize the University to Prepare Students for a World in Flux,” which explores how college professors can better drive student success.

Mónica Guzmán, the author of “I Never Thought of it That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times” will speak Oct. 24.

Judy Woodruff, a senior correspondent for PBS NewsHour and the former anchor and managing editor of the award-winning national nightly newscast, is scheduled for the spring semester.

The Presidential Speaker Series will be held at the university’s historic Faye Spanos Concert Hall and is open to the public. Pacific plans to bring four speakers to campus each year.

“Great universities bring thought leaders to campus to expand the minds of students and our entire learning community,” said President Christopher Callahan. “I am delighted we are launching this signature speaker series, which we hope will be a cornerstone of the Pacific experience for years to come.”

Davidson, senior advisor on transformation to the chancellor of the City University of New York, was originally scheduled to visit Pacific Sept. 19-20 but has been rescheduled to spring 2025. 

There are plans for a robust series of discussions and collaborations with Pacific faculty members in addition to her keynote conversation, which will be conducted by Provost Gretchen Edwalds-Gilbert.

Callahan helped bring Davidson to Arizona State University when he was dean of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.

“Dr. Davidson’s writings have influenced my thinking on student learning, engagement and higher education more than any other thought leader,” the president said. “I can’t wait for her to engage with our Pacific community of master teachers and learners.”

“Cathy’s philosophies fit with what we are doing in our learning environments here at Pacific,” said Edwalds-Gilbert. “In her visionary book, she espouses the importance of student success and the role of teaching in those efforts. This is a great opportunity for Pacificans and the community to dialogue and learn.”

Guzmán serves as senior fellow for public practice at Braver Angels, a nonprofit working to depolarize America.

Her book and its concept of curious conversations in divided times have received considerable response in literary circles. The New York Times wrote in a review: “The book’s greater offering … is permission to reclaim people we might have dumped for ideological reasons. Such connections won’t sully us but may in fact enrich us.”

Pacific is purchasing her book for all first-year undergraduates to use in conversations in the classrooms and residential halls.

“Monica’s book fits perfectly into our belief that we teach students not what to think, but how to think and engage with each other,” said Maria Blandizzi, vice president for Student Life at Pacific. “This is a wonderful opportunity for incoming undergraduates to learn and apply those principles in their transition into our learning community.”

Woodruff, after serving as the NewsHour anchor for more than a decade, is now traversing the nation producing “America at a Crossroads,” a series of in-depth stories examining divisions in the United States. Among her many awards was the Walter Cronkite Award for Excellence in Journalism, which Pacific’s president bestowed on her in 2017 when he was dean of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism.

“Judy Woodruff has been one of the most talented and trusted journalists for decades,” Callahan said. “I look forward to hearing her analysis on where we are as a country–and where we might be going in the future.”