Honors Information Table at Summer Drive-In

Fall 2011 Honors Program Lecture by Kelsey Timmerman

Kelsey Timmerman with Ashland University Honors students

As I woke up on September 22nd, I realized the long-anticipated day during which I would meet Kelsey Timmerman had finally arrived.  Kelsey Timmerman is the author of the 2011 Ashland University Honors Program summer reading Where Am I Wearing?, in which he describes his travels to factories in five different countries to meet the workers who made his clothes.   I read this book last December, having heard from a fellow Honors Director that the book inspired wonderful conversation among his students.  When I heard in January that the College of Arts and Sciences Against Indifference Symposium would focus on globalization this year, I contacted the members of the College Symposium Committee to suggest inviting Kelsey to campus for a lecture co-sponsored by the Honors Program.  The chair of the committee informed me that he had already been in contact with Kelsey and the pieces of the puzzle started to fall into place to bring Kelsey to campus.

At the start of his lecture, Kelsey held up his "Jingle These" boxers in front of an audience of 200 people and read his essay on flatulence-free underwear and I knew this would be an Honors Program lecture that students would never forget.  Kelsey Timmerman presented additional details about his travels and challenged students to "Go Glocal."  Honors students and I had the opportunity to interact with Kelsey more intimately in a variety of venues outside of the lecture, eating breakfast and dinner with him, meeting him in the First Year Honors Seminar and speaking with him at the conclusion of the lecture as he signed our books.  Kelsey's lecture including his PowerPoint slides is available on Ashland University's Mediasite.