Festival of Ideas 2020
JOHNSON CITY – (Jan. 29, 2020) “Dreams and Discord” is the theme of the second annual Festival of Ideas at East Tennessee State University Feb. 10-14.
“An Evening with Melissa Fitzgerald” will be held Monday, Feb. 10, at 7 p.m. in the
ETSU Millennium Center. Fitzgerald is widely known 
for her role in the TV show “The West Wing” and as an advocate for persons in need.
After leaving a career in Hollywood, she became the Advocating Justice Director for
Justice for Vets, which is part of the National Association of Drug Court Professionals
(NADCP) initiative broad justice system reform.
On Tuesday, Feb. 11, at 7 p.m., ETSU’s College of Public Health and the Mary B. Martin School of the Arts will welcome Mandy Harvey for a lecture, “Hidden Challenges: Understanding Invisible Disabilities.” Harvey is an American jazz and pop singer/songwriter who overcame her deafness to appear as a contestant on “America’s Got Talent.” Her lecture will be held at the Millennium Center.
Josh Smith, news anchor at WJHL-TV, will lead a panel discussion, “By the People,
for the People: Campus and Community Perspectives on Voting,” at noon on Wednesday,
Feb. 12, at the Reece Museum. Members of the panel include Nathan Farnor, Joy Fulkerson,
Stephen Hendrix and Dr. Jodi Polaha-Jones.
Pulitzer prize-winning presidential biographer and historian Jon Meacham will speak
at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 13, at the Millennium Center. Meacham is co-author of
“Songs of America: Patriotism, Protest, and the Music That Made a Nation” along with
musician Tim McGraw. The book is a celebration of the music that helped shape a nation
and has been praised as a “glorious celebration of our diversity” by Quincy Jones
and an “unusually well-written and moving story” by Ken Burns.
Meacham is also the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller “The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels” which examines the present moment in American politics and life by looking back at critical times in U.S. history when hope overcame division and fear.
“An Evening with Jon Meacham” is a ticketed event. A limited number of tickets remain and can be purchased at https://www.etsu.edu/festival/. ETSU students, faculty and staff can receive one free ticket by visiting the Student Activities and Organizations office on the second floor of the Center for Physical Activity (CPA). ETSU students and employees may purchase up to four additional tickets at $20 each.
Playwright, director and actor Mike Wiley will close the Festival of Ideas with his play “Breach of Peace” on Friday, Feb. 14, at 7 p.m. at the Millennium Center. The play is based on true accounts of surviving participants of the Freedom Riders and others involved in the early struggle for African-American equality.
Wiley’s plays represents works exploring the lives of individuals such as Emmett Till
and Jackie Robinson as well as participants in the Montgomery Bus Boycott, Brown vs.
Board of Education and other events.
The Festival of Ideas series began in 2019 to highlight the university’s role as a thought leader in the region. It is sponsored by the Office of the President, Office of the Provost and the Division of Student Life and Enrollment.
Excluding the Meacham lecture, all events are free and open to the public. For more information or to request accommodations for persons with disabilities, contact the Office of Student Life and Enrollment at 423-439-4210 or visit www.etsu.edu/festival.
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