Bicentennial Distinguished Lecture | Chaos and Creativity: Liberal Education for the 21st Century | David W. Oxtoby

David Oxtoby, president of Pomona College, will address how we can best educate students to enhance their creativity. A liberal education—challenging students to take risks and move well beyond their comfort zones—is, he maintains, the best preparation for success in a world that is constantly changing. Insights from modern neuroscience will be brought to bear on the relationship between the arts and sciences, and implications for how we teach and learn will be explored. Oxtoby is an internationally renowned physical chemist. He was a distinguished professor and dean of the division of physical sciences at the University of Chicago before becoming Pomona's president in 2003, where he continues teaching a course in environmental chemistry. He is author or coauthor of numerous scientific articles, recipient of prestigious fellowships, a fellow of academic and scientific organizations, and an overseer at Harvard and the Claremont University Consortium.