BU's Silber Explores Texas Character at Final A.R. Sanchez Lecture for 2000/01

Texas' character will be the focus of the last and final lecture of the 2000-2001 A.R. Sanchez Distinguished Lecture Series scheduled to be held Wednesday, April 18 at 7 p.m. in the Great Room of Texas A&M International University's Sue and Radcliffe Killam Library (319).

Dr. John Silber, chancellor of Boston University (BU), will cast a gimlet eye on his beloved Texas with a lecture titled, "Cowboys, Oil Tycoons, and Buffalo Chips: An Exploration of the Texas Character."

One of the nation's foremost authorities on higher education, Dr. Silber has earned national acclaim for his inspirational mix of academic excellence and financial stability at BU. Since his arrival as the University's seventh

president in 1971, a balanced budget has been standard every year. Sponsored research has increased from $14.1 million in 1971 to $163.4 million in 1997. The University's net worth has sextupled and its endowment has increased $475.4 million from $18.8 million in 1971 to $494.2 million in 1997.

Silber has aggressively sought out the finest faculty including Nobel Prize winners Elie Wiesel and Derek Walcott and Saul Bellow, 1976 Nobel Laureate.

His innovative vision has seen BU contract with the schools of Chelsea and open a private high school, the Boston University Academy, both of which have served as models for the transformation of existing school systems.

Silber was born in San Antonio and earned his B.A. in Philosophy at Trinity University. His M.A. and Ph.D. were earned at Yale University.

After teaching at Yale, he returned to Texas as a faculty member at the University of Texas at Austin (UT), leading the founding of Operation Head Start, the integration of UT, and serving as chairman of his department and later Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

In 1983, President Reagan appointed him to the National Bipartisan Commission on Central America. In 1990, he was the Democratic nominee for the Governor of Massachusetts. He has been decorated by the governments of France, Germany and Israel.

An authority on philosophy, especially the works of Immanuel Kant, he is a frequent commentator on education, social and foreign policy. His book Straight Shooting (Harpers, 1989) has been published in German and Japanese. His writings have appeared in numerous philosophical journals, including the Atlantic, Harper's, New Republic, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and others.

He and wife Kathryn Silber are parents of seven children and 24 grandchildren.

The next Sanchez Lecture will feature Dr. Victoria H. Cummins, professor of history at Austin College, on Thursday, Nov. 2 at 7:30 p.m. in the Great Room. Dr. Cummins' lecture is titled, "Art and Revolution in Mexico: Diego Rivera and the Mexican Muralists."

For further information, please call the College of Arts and Humanities at 326-2460. University office hours are 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Journalists who need additional information or help with media requests and interviews should contact the Office of Public Affairs and Information Services at pais@tamiu.edu