Former North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue will speak at the fall convocation of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Duke (OLLI) at 2 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 8., in the Bryan Center's Reynolds Theater.
Perdue, a distinguished visiting fellow at Duke's Sanford School of Public Policy for the fall semester, is also serving as an adviser with the Duke Center for Child and Family Policy.
OLLI director Garry Crites says the fall convocation is not simply a time for members and potential members to reconnect after the summer break. "It is also an event where they can be stimulated intellectually by great speakers from government, academia and popular culture," he said.
Perdue served in both the North Carolina House and Senate before being elected as lieutenant governor and then, in 2008, as the state's first female governor. A longtime public school teacher who earned a M.Ed. in community college administration in 1974 and a Ph.D. in education administration, Perdue focused much of her energy in the governor's mansion on educational issues, from Pre-K to college.
"No matter what side of the political spectrum one is on, the chance to interact with a person who has had her finger on the pulse of both government and education for decades will be remarkable," Crites said.
OLLI at Duke is offering more than 100 11-session courses during the fall semester beginning on Sept. 9 at locations across Durham.
For a nominal membership fee, adults can join campus life, registering for courses that touch on the fine arts, mastery of an iPad or Duke sports history. OLLI at Duke's fall offerings range from "An Exploration of Art and the Brain" to "Africa 2013." For the full list of September-December courses, click here.