Eastern Connecticut State University is hosting a variety of University Hour events this fall 2018 semester. This free and open-to-the-public series of guest lectures and performances occurs on Wednesdays from 3-4 p.m. in locations across campus. Upcoming University Hours for late September and October include:

On Sept. 26 in the Fine Arts Instructional Center (FAIC) Concert Hall, Carmen Balthrop-Metropolitan Opera alumna and first-place winner of the Metropolitan Opera National Competition-will share her experience as an international opera singer and highly sought-after voice pedagogue. Balthrop will select five students for participation in a public masterclass during which she will address issues of vocal technique and presentation.

On Oct. 3 in the Student Center Theatre, veteran Bruce Weigl will discuss his latest book of poetry, “On the Shores of the Welcome Home.” His previous collection, “The Abundance of Nothing,” was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. Weigl’s Vietnam War experiences inspire much of his work. “The paradox of my life as a writer,” he has said, “is that the war ruined my life and in return gave me my voice.”

On Oct. 17 in the Student Center Theatre, Professor James Lawler of Pace University will share a recent project that uses augmented reality (AR) to improve the performance of students with developmental and learning disabilities, including several videos he produced to document the process. AR is a view of a real-world environment with elements that are “augmented” by computer-generated perceptions.

On Oct. 24 in the Student Center Theatre, a presentation will advocate for a transformation of Puerto Rico’s electric grid, with rooftop solar communities that pool available resources to operate as microgrids. The human suffering caused by Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico has been immense. The catastrophe exposed the lack of maintenance to the grid and the lack of environmental planning.

On Oct. 31 in the Student Center Threatre, Winona LaDuke of the Anishinaabe tribe-an internationally renowned environmentalist, Native rights advocate, author and former vice-presidential candidate for the Green Party in the United States-will discuss restoring systems that have long been considered sacred. LaDuke works on issues of climate change, renewable energy, sustainable development, food systems and environmental justice.