Whitworth traditionally hosts a large selection of speakers for students, visitors, and faculty to hear and learn from. Honors students, in particular, will find these experiences valuable and instructional.

Every year Whitworth puts on the President’s Leadership Forum, wherein we welcome renowned speakers, politicians, authors, activists, and this year, scientists to give a talk.

Francis S. Collins (M.D., Ph.D.) is our Fall 2025 speaker. From the press release for the event, “Collins is one of the best-known scientists of the current era. He served as director of the NIH (National Institutes for Health) for 12 years under three presidents. He is known for his discoveries of disease genes, for leading the Human Genome Project, and for championing the harmony of science and faith.”

His talk is titled, “The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith and Trust” and takes place at the Fox Theatre on October 2^nd at 7pm. Attending his talk requires an RSVP and a ticket, which students can purchase at The Fox website. Students who cannot attend the event are in luck because President McQuilken is hosting Francis Collins in Weyerhaeuser at 4pm on the 2^nd for a Q+A with students free of charge.

Outside of our Presidential guests, we have many other speakers coming to campus. The Political Science department is hosting Rushan Abbas, a leading Uyghur activist, to give a talk titled, “One Voice, One Step: Fighting Genocide Through Activism” on October 7^th in Weyerhaeuser 107.

The very next day (October 8^th), Shane Claiborne appears in the Chapel from 4-5:30pm. Claiborne will grapple with the question, “What does Following Christ require of us now?” in our current world filled with escalating tragedies and polarization.

Whitworth’s Weyerhaeuser Speaker Series also kicks off in October with the first event on the 22^nd. Kristin Kobes Du Mez is a New York Times bestselling author, who is giving a talk on the topic of her next book, “Live Laugh Love: White Christian Women and the World They Made.” Hear her in Cowles Auditorium at 4pm.

With all these fun events and speakers coming to campus, students have no excuse to miss them. These opportunities to hear educated, knowledgeable people speak are invaluable to all, but especially Honors students. Go to these events!