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‘Hank Talks’ continue this spring at UWSP at Wausau

February 15, 2023
Jeff Leigh
Professor Jeff Leigh, history, will lead a "Hank Talk" about the Russian invasion of the Ukraine.

A talk on the historic relevance of the Russian invasion of the Ukraine will be the first in a series of lectures during the spring semester by faculty at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point at Wausau.

“Hank Talks,” named for Hank the Husky campus mascot, will be offered on various Tuesdays at 7 p.m. on the stage of the James F. Veninga Theater in the UW Center for Civic Engagement on the UWSP at Wausau campus. Each presentation is 30 minutes followed by a question-and-answer session with the faculty member. Events will be live streamed at https://tinyurl.com/HankTalk.

“The Russian Invasion of Ukraine: The Relevance of History” will be Tuesday, Feb. 21, by Professor Jeff Leigh, history. He will discuss how the role of competing understandings of history has played on decisions by the war’s most important participants, as well as how future historians may see the war’s importance.

Leigh teaches courses in Russian and Soviet history as well as world history, and has studied in the Soviet Union and Czech Republic. He has served overseas twice as a Fulbright Scholar, was named a UW-Marathon County Distinguished Faculty Society Fellow and won a UWSP at Wausau Barrington-Musolf Faculty Scholarship.

Additional lectures this spring include:

  • March 14 – “The James Webb Space Telescope: An Amazing First Year,” Associate Professor Aaron Steffen, astronomy
  • April 18 – “Genetic Engineering and Biofuel Production: Making Better Yeast,” Associate Professor Kristine Prahl, biology

After the live event, HANK Talks will be archived at www.uwsp.edu/wausau/hank-talks/. Talks will also air on the public access cable television channel.

To learn more about lecture and arts programming at UWSP at Wausau, contact Chad Premeau at cpremeau@uwsp.edu.