Distinguished Speakers: 2006-2007

The Distinguished Speaker Series enhances Penn Charter's curriculum and adds excitement to the academic year. The program is designed to stimulate and enlighten our students and faculty and, space permitting, our visitors. We would be most happy to accommodate alumni, parents or friends who have an interest in attending a particular presentation; please call the receptionist in advance to confirm space, dates and times.

9.19.06 and 9.20.06
Harry Sheehy, sports advocate
Harry Sheehy is director of athletics at Williams College in Williamstown, Mass., and author of Raising a Team Player: Teaching Kids Lasting Values on the Field, on the Court, and on the Bench. The college is four-time winner of the Josten's Award, given to the East Coast Athletic Conference institution that best combines excellence in academics and athletics, and has been recognized for its women's athletic program. Sheehy says the goal for any sports program should be to make integrity, character and sportsmanship the key lessons for young athletes. Parents, coaches and friends invited to special evening presentation in the Meeting Room at 7:30 p.m. on Sept. 19.

10.4.2006
A.J. Nanayakkara, wheelchair athlete
A.J. Nanayakkara became quadriplegic when he was injured at the age of 21 while training for karate. He has not let his injury deter him, and his story is inspirational. Last year he traveled with the Team USA Wheelchair Rugby team to an international competition in Rio de Janeiro where his squad, USA Stripes, won the gold medal. Locally, Nanayakkara plays for the Magee Eagles wheelchair team, sponsored by Magee Rehabilitation Hospital and the Philadelphia Eagles. He also volunteers as a peer mentor at Magee and is studying psychology at Temple University.

11.8.2006
Felice Yeskel, educator
Felice Yeskel is founder and co-director of Class Action of Northampton, Mass., an advocacy group that develops educational programs about issues of class and classism. She is an adjunct faculty member of the Social Justice Education Program at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. She leads workshops on economic inequality and healing divisions among Americans of different class backgrounds, races, genders and sexual orientations. She is co-author of Economic Apartheid in America.

11.10.2006
Anthony Hollinger, corporate trainer
Anthony Hollinger OPC '83 will discuss "Sharing the Wealth: Our Corporate and Social Responsibility Training Track." He is vice president and general manager of Comcast Communications - D.C., recognized by the D.C. Chamber of Commerce as its 2004 Business of the Year. He serves on the boards of D.C.-based Mentors Inc. and the Children's Law Center. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and later earned an MBA from the Harvard Business School.

11.15.2006
Gerda Klein, Holocaust survivor
Gerda Klein, Holocaust survivor, recounted three years in hiding in Poland and three years in a slave labor camp in the classic, All But My Life, in print for 47 years and published in 57 editions. Excerpts of her work appear in textbooks teaching Holocaust history and literature. Now she has written A Boring Evening at Home, a collection of essays reflecting on her remarkable life, including her marriage to U.S. Army Lt. Kurt Klein, who was among her rescuers at war's end. The Gerda and Kurt Klein Foundation promotes tolerance and understanding and encourages community service.

11.27.2006
Arthur M. Larrabee, Hubben Lecture
Arthur M. Larrabee is a consultant to Friends schools and other Friends institutions on governance and related issues. As a teacher and workshop leader, he focuses on decision-making and clerking. He is a graduate of Westtown School, Yale College and the University of Pennsylvania Law School and founded a law firm now known as Larrabee, Cunningham and McGowan, P.C. He is a trustee of the Westtown School and a member of Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting. He is currently writing a book on Quaker governance and decision making.

11.28.2006 to 12.4.2006
J. Harry Hammond, Friends educator
J. Harry Hammond, longtime Friends educator, again will lead a workshop in support of Friends education. In recent years, he has done work with the staff of the Friends Council on Education, including assisting Irene McHenry in developing and implementing the Institute for Engaging Leadership in Friends Schools; co-developing and leading a program of retreats for experienced teachers, Spirited Practice and Renewed Courage; and co-leading Educators New to Quakerism workshops at Pendle Hill. Earlier in his career, he served in leadership positions at Wilmington Friends School. He is a member of Center Meeting in Delaware.

12.13.2006
James A. Lehman Jr., plastic surgeon
Dr. James A. Lehman Jr., OPC '54, is known for his skills as a plastic surgeon and specifically for his work with children from the time he served as a U.S. Army doctor in Vietnam to the present. After graduating from Penn Charter in 1954, Dr. Lehman received his BA from Princeton and his M.D. from Jefferson Medical College. In Vietnam, he worked in an Army pediatric unit and treated children suffering from medical conditions not war-related. As a plastic surgeon, he helped establish the Children's Hospital Medical Center of Akron, Ohio, as a nationally recognized center for pediatric plastic surgery. In 2004, he was awarded Penn Charter's Alumni Award of Merit. He will speak on his travels to aid young patients in developing countries.

1.31.2007
Robert Giegengack, paleoclimatologist
Robert Giegengack is a professor of Earth & Environmental Science at the University of Pennsylvania. He received his BA and PhD in Geology from Yale University. He founded the University of Pennsylvania's Environmental Studies program and teaches courses in geology related to the environment. Giegengack studies geologic archives that enable paleoclimatologists to reconstruct the history of climate change during the very long period of time (~4.5 billion years) that preceded the instrumental meteorological record. This work provides a long-term scientific perspective on environmental processes, including the issues of global warming. Giegengack's field work has taken him to every continent except Australia.

2.28.2007
Audrey Weeks, technology educator
Audrey Weeks, a high school mathematics teacher for 30 years, wrote the animations for "Calculus in Motion" and "Algebra in Motion," both of which she designed to help students visualize and understand mathematical concepts in a way that a still picture cannot. She leads professional development workshops worldwide and speaks nationally on the use of these dynamic tools and other technologies to facilitate learning. She is particularly known for her work with Geometer's Sketchpad, which she has adapted for all levels of mathematics, kindergarten through grade 12 and beyond.

3.7.2007
Bruce Main, Senior Comprehensive Speaker
Executive director for the past 15 years of UrbanPromise Ministries in Camden, N.J., Bruce Main has been instrumental to the group's outreach to inner-city children and teens. The ministry hosts several after-school programs, youth clinics, summer camps, employment readiness programs, entrepreneurial training opportunities, missionary internships, as well as a home school for teens and the CamdenForward School, an alternative grade school experience. He speaks nationally and internationally at mission conferences, colleges, churches and youth groups, and he is an adjunct faculty member at Eastern College in St. Davids. Limited seating for visitors; L1, 8:30 a.m.

3.19.2007
Kevin Carroll, Agent for change
Kevin Carroll works with corporations and everyday people to improve team dynamics and interpersonal communications, advocating the benefits of living and working in a healthy, fun environment. In May 2005, he addressed dignitaries at the United Nations about the importance of play in their developing countries. Founder of The Katalyst Consultancy, he has worked with Starbucks, ESPN, Mattel and the National Hockey League. He is author of several books, including "Play@Work: How the Genius of Youth Manifest Itself in Business." He has a master's in health education from St. Joseph's University and a BA in speech communication from Angelo State University.

4.6.2007
A.J. Nanayakkara and the Magee Eagles
A.J. Nanayakkara, a wheelchair athlete who visited Penn Charter in October (see above), returns with his teammates on the Magee Eagles to offer Middle School students a wheelchair rugby demonstration.

4.26.2007
Becky Birtha, author
Becky Birtha is author of the acclaimed picture book “Grandmama’s Pride,” the story of six-year-old Sarah and her eye-opening trip to the South during the summer of 1956. During her day in Lower School, and as developmentally appropriate, Birtha talked about her experience getting her first book published and her journey as an African-American Quaker.

5.7.2007
Ingrid Lakey, radio producer and singer
Ingrid Lakey, producer of WHYY's Justice Talking, has worked in public radio for more than a decade, most recently as the program director for WETA 90.9 FM in Washington, D.C. She has also worked for National Public Radio in Washington, D.C. and for public broadcaster WXXI in Rochester, N.Y. Before beginning her career in public broadcasting, she was an assignment editor and production assistant for WCAU-TV in Philadelphia. She also sings with Tribe 1, an ensemble of singers, poets and drummers dedicated to performing songs that nurture the soul and remind us of our interconnection. A native of Philadelphia, she is an active member of Central Philadelphia Monthly Meeting.

Date & Time: TBA
David Evans, asthma expert
David Evans OPC '59 is professor of Clinical Sociomedical Sciences and director of the Asthma Education Research Program at Columbia University, where he conducts research to identify effective methods for teaching patients and health-care professionals about asthma. He developed the Open Airways for Schools health education program for children with asthma and their families. He currently is involved in research to teach high school students to manage their asthma better, and in research to test environmental interventions to reduce exposure to indoor allergens in public housing in New York City. He earned his AB from Harvard University and an MA and PhD from Northwestern University.