LUTHERAN WORLD RELIEF PRESIDENT TO SPEAK AT DANA

Kathryn Wolford's presentations part of annual
Staley Lecture Series, March 31 – April 2

Lutheran World Relief President Kathryn F. Wolford will be the featured speaker for Dana College’s annual Staley Distinguished Christian Scholar Series, on Dana’s campus in Blair, Neb. The series is presented by the Dana College Religion Department and Dana College Campus Ministry.

Wolford has 20 years of experience working in undeveloped countries for Christian relief agencies. She will present several lectures falling under the topic, “From Globalization to Global Community: Doing Justice in a Smaller World — A Christian Perspective.”

“We are honored to have Ms. Wolford come to Dana to speak to our community on how our world’s problems are our problems,” said the Rev. Dr. Andrea Ng’weshemi, Dana campus pastor and assistant professor of religion. “Ms. Woldorf is an articulate and well informed speaker. Her experience of traveling and working in foreign countries will help us understand the role of the Christian faith in bringing justice and dignity to all peoples in the world.”

Wolford’s major address will be at 7:30 p.m. on April 1 in Trinity Chapel. She will also be the guest speaker at the Service of the Word at 10:30 a.m., also in Trinity Chapel on April 1. Other lectures will be at 3:30 p.m. on March 31 in The Forum, 11 a.m. in Room 114 on April 1, and at 10 a.m. in Room 125 on April 2. All lecture locations are in the Margre Henningson Durham Center, and are free and open to the public.

Wolford has been president of Lutheran World Relief since 1993. Before joining LWR, she served as the first Caribbean regional representative of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A./Church World Service, based in the Dominican Republic. From 1983 to 1985, Wolford worked in planning and organizational relations with Social Services of the Dominican Republic, a church-based rural development organization. She is a frequent keynote speaker at national and regional church events, and was selected as one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women by the Baltimore Daily Record in 2002.

Wolford holds a master of arts degree in public policy studies from the University of Chicago and a master of arts degree in religious studies focusing on Christian ethics from the Divinity School of the University of Chicago. She has a bachelor of arts degree in history from Gettysburg College. Gettysburg College awarded her an honorary doctoral degree in public service in 1995, and its Young Alumni Achievement and Woman of Distinction awards in 1994. Wolford also holds an honorary doctorate in humane letters from Muhlenberg College.

The Staley Distinguished Christian Scholar Series is a project of the Thomas F. Staley Foundation of New York. This Lectureship was established in the fall of 1969 by Mr. and Mrs. Thomas F. Staley of Rye, New York, in memory of their parents, Dr. and Mrs. Thomas F. Staley and Judge and Mrs. H.H. Haynes. The Thomas F. Staley Foundation is firmly persuaded that the message of the Christian gospel, when proclaimed in its historical fullness, is always contemporary, relevant and meaningful to any generation. To this end, the Foundation seeks to bring to the college and university campuses of America distinguished scholars/artists who truly believe and can clearly communicate the Christian gospel to students.

Dana College is a place where all students actively participate. They make things happen — in their own lives and in the lives of others. Through a highly supportive faculty and campus community, Dana students develop interpersonal skills, leadership abilities, and other important values and knowledge as they make choices about their future. Dana’s outstanding academic programs in business, education and social work, among others, ensure that students have the knowledge, skills and experience necessary to pursue challenging careers or placement in graduate school.

Dana College is a private, liberal arts institution in Blair, Neb. To learn more, visit www.dana.edu.

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For more information contact:

Sarah Cavanah
Communications Coordinator
Dana College
(402) 426-7216
scavanah@dana.edu