Press Releases
Take An Odyssey With Nationally Syndicated Radio Personality Gretchen Helfrich During Saint Xavier University Honors Program Lecture
Host of WBEZ’s “Odyssey” will Speak to Students, Community on Life of the Mind
CHICAGO (January 8, 2003) – Nationally syndicated radio personality Gretchen Helfrich will deliver Saint Xavier’s 2003 Annual Honors Program Lecture on Wednesday, February 12th at 6:30 p.m. in the Formal Reception Room of the Warde Academic Center.
Helfrich, the engaging and lively host of WBEZ’s “Odyssey,” will discuss her professional and public commitment to the life of the mind -- as well as her own personal desire of learning -- during her talk, “Knowledge, the Media and the ‘Good Life’: Reflections of a Public Radio Broadcaster.”
Produced by Chicago Public Radio since 1998, “Odyssey” offers listeners a voyage through the world of ideas with topics ranging from religion in the public sphere to reasoning about risk. Guests have included authors Salman Rushdie and Ana Castillo.
Helfrich was born in Maine and grew up in Southern California. After graduating from the University of Georgetown, Helfrich moved to Florence, Italy where she taught English as a second language. She currently resides in Chicago, Ill.
The Honors Program at Saint Xavier University offers an enriched academic experience to talented and highly motivated students. Honors students may pursue any undergraduate major in the university’s Schools of Arts & Sciences, Education, Management and Nursing.
The Honors Program Lecture is co-sponsored by the Center for Religion and Public Discourse. For further information about the 2003 Honors Program Lecture, please contact Dr. Judith Hiltner, Director of the Honors Program, at 773-298-3230 or hiltner@sxu.edu.
Saint Xavier University is a private, coeducational institution serving more than 5,200 men and women with high quality academic programs. It offers 36 undergraduate majors and 32 graduate program options in four schools: School of Arts and Sciences, School of Education, Graham School of Management, and School of Nursing. Located in a residential neighborhood in Chicago, the University offers personalized education that emphasizes challenging undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs of study. Crain’s Chicago Business (July 1, 2002) recognized Saint Xavier University for achieving the highest percentage of enrollment growth among Chicago-area universities and colleges during the previous year, increasing 6.3 percent. And, U.S. News & World Report named Saint Xavier in its 2002 “Best Colleges” issue as a best value and for its diversity as a master’s degree-granting institution in the Midwest region.