Second TAMIU La Frontera Lecture Series Features Rice University President David W. Leebron
The second in a new Texas A&M International University lecture series focused on ensuring Laredo’s children are healthy, supported, and arrive at school will be presented Wednesday, March 9 from 6 – 7 p.m. and feature Rice University president Dr. David W. Leebron.
The virtual lecture, co-hosted by TAMIU’s College of Education and Laredo Learns is free of charge and available to all. To register online, visit the La Frontera Speaker Series website at: https://www.tamiu.edu/coedu/la-frontera-series.shtml. A direct link to the lecture will be here: https://go.tamiu.edu/COEDSeries2
Leebron has served as Rice University’s seventh president since 2004, a period of growth and transformation for the university. A native of Philadelphia, he is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School, where he was elected president of the Harvard Law Review. Following a judicial clerkship on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, he taught at the UCLA School of Law in 1980.
After two years practicing in an international law firm in New York City, he joined the faculty at the NYU School of Law in 1983. In 1989, Leebron joined the faculty of Columbia Law School. In 1996 he was appointed dean and served in that position until coming to Rice.
He is a member of the political science faculty at Rice and has written about international trade and investment, torts, privacy, corporate law, and human rights. Leebron is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and serves on the Greater Houston Partnership, Fulbright Canada, and IMAX Corp. boards.
He has also been awarded the Commandeur de l'Ordre National du Mérite by the government of France, and the Encomienda de la Orden de Isabel La Católica by the government of Spain, and is the recipient of an honorary degree from Nankai University in Tianjin, China.
TAMIU’s dean of the College of Education Dr. James O’Meara explained the mission of the La Frontera Lecture Series.
“Through this occasional Series, we want to connect thought leaders from various professional fields to students, agencies, and community members across Texas. The Series is designed to inspire and stimulate conversation, and provide a unique opportunity to hear from and interact with our featured speakers. Its offering is consistent with the University’s goal of serving as a leading academic resource for improving the quality of lives for citizens of the border region, the State of Texas, and national and international communities,” Dr. O’Meara said.
Laredo Learns is a group of local residents working to advance the economic prosperity, and sustainable development of Laredo by expanding access to quality education and lifelong learning opportunities.
Memo Treviño of Laredo Learns said the Series offers an innovative way to help families.
“Many families with young children in Texas are having trouble getting the support they need, especially during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Now more than ever we need to hear from Texans about how we can invest in quality early childhood care, opportunities to learn, and to support families to ensure our children are healthy and arrive at school ready to learn,” Treviño noted.
Upcoming lectures in the Series include:
Doug Foshee, CEO, and founder, Sallyport Investments, LLC, Wednesday, March 23, 2022, 6 – 7 p.m.
Dr. Sarah Baray, Chief Executive Officer of Pre-K 4 SA, San Antonio’s early learning program, Thursday, April 14, 2022, 6 – 7 p.m.
Rebecca Klein, director of Early Childhood Systems Consulting at Start Early, Wednesday, April 28, 2022, 6 – 7 p.m.
Sheetal Singh, executive director of The Early Learning Lab at Start Early, Thursday, May 12, 2022, 6 – 7 p.m.
For more about the free Series, contact Dr. O’Meara at james.omeara@tamiu.edu. Information on College of Education programs and resources is available at tamiu.edu/coedu
