The Hughes Lecture Series began in 1978 and is named after Dr. Raymond Hughes. A beloved professor of English at West Liberty for nearly four decades, his generous endowment gift established a fund for the series. Thanks to this fund, the series has brought a wide range of authors and speakers to WLU, including:
- Eugene McCarthy, U. S. Senator and presidential candidate in 1968
- Ted Kooser, U.S. Poet Laureate
- Homer Hickam, West Virginia writer and NASA scientist
- Jeannette Walls, author of The Glass Castle
The 2021 Hughes Lecture Series will take place on Wednesday, April 21 via Zoom.
Professor Raymond Hughes:
Dr. Raymond Grove Hughes was born on May 29, 1900 in southwestern Pennsylvania. As a child, Hughes contracted polio which left him unable to walk, but he never let his physical challenges prevent him from pursuing a fulfilling life. Professor Hughes’s teaching career at West Liberty spanned from 1931 until his retirement in 1970. At West Liberty, Dr. Hughes advised several fraternities, performed with the Hilltop Players, helped students who were struggling to pay tuition, and brought students along on his many travels.
Past Hughes Lecture Series Speakers
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Clarence Kelley – 1978
Wilma Rudolph – 1978
John Wooden – 1978
Ann Compton – 1979
Charles Berlitz – 1979
Jean-Michel Cousteau – 1979
Jessica Savitch – 1979
Robin Moore – 1979
William Kunstler – 1979
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Jeane Dixon – 1980
John Dean – 1980
James Meredith – 1980
Sonia Johnson – 1980
Bert Lance – 1980
Vincent Bugliosi – 1980
John Barth – 1981
Heywood Hale Broun – 1981
Douglas Edwards – 1981
Katherine Brady – 1981
Daniel Ellsberg – 1981
Richard Horrow – 1981
Bettina Gregory – 1982
Jim Bouton – 1982
Robin Cook – 1982
Ralph Abernathy – 1982
Daniel Keyes – 1982
Thomas Hauser – 1982
Eugene McCarthy – 1983
John Simon – 1983
Cecile Weich – 1983
G. Gordon Liddy – 1983
Tom Sullivan – 1983
Willie Stargell – 1983
Parker Drew – 1984
John Anderson – 1984
Shere Hile – 1984
Judy Belushi – 1984
Lary Linville – 1984
Dr. Timothy Leary – 1984
Chris Carlson – 1985
James Kirkwood – 1985
Hank Aaron – 1985
Cathy Rigby McCoy – 1985
F. Lee Bailey – 1985
Gen. William Westmoreland – 1985
William Arkin – 1985
Jack Anderson – 1986
Mercury Morris – 1986
Scott Keely – 1987
Charles \”Pete\” Conrad – 1987
Edwin Newman – 1987
Ralph Archbold – 1987
Pat McInally – 1988
Tanya Griffith (as Pearl Buck) – 1988
Joe Clark – 1988
Dr. Joyce Brothers – 1989
Phyllis Schlafly and Sarah Weddington – 1989
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Kerry Ashton (as Oliver Wilde) – 1990
James Wright – 1990
Conrad Pomerleau (as Edgar Allen Poe) – 1990
Dumisani Kumalo – 1990
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – 1991
Oliver North – 1991
John Barth – 1991
Gary Bullock (as Abraham Lincoln) – 1992
Brig. Gen. L. Boyd Anderson – 1992
Chuck Noll – 1992
Gene McFall (as Will Rodgers) – 1993
Eileen Stevens – 1993
Brenda Barrian – 1994
Ralph Nader – 1994
Terry Anderson – 1994
Zev Kedem – 1995
Ben Vereen – 1995
Fr. Andrew Greeley – 1997
Richard Leakey – 1998
Homer Hickham – 1999
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Murray Sperber – 2001
John Ciardi
William Colby
Medgar Evans
Joseph Heller
Bert Lance
Richard Leakey
Glen Taylor
Cathy Day
Darin Doyle
Denise Giardina
Michael Griffith
Jim Daniels
March Harshman
Zachary Schomberg
Sam Hazo
Peter Makuck
Dr. Joyce Epstein
Dr. John Zavatny
Dr. Travis Langley
Dr. John Yiannias
Richard Conniff
Julie Zickefoose
Dr. Carol Symes
Scott McCloud
Greg Spalenka
Scott Shalaway
Kathleen Rooney
Robert Mayerovich
Ted Kooser – 2009
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Kelcey Parker – 2014
Richard Hague – 2014
Jeanne Bryner – 2015
Douglas Van Gundy – 2015
Maggie Anderson – 2016
Charlie Lovett – 2016
Jessie Van Eerden – 2017
Jeannette Walls – 2018