University Park, Pa. -- Maya Angelou, best-selling author and remarkable Renaissance woman, is the next speaker in Penn State's 2003-2004 Distinguished Speakers Series at 8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 5, in Eisenhower Auditorium on the University Park campus. The event is free and open to the public, but tickets are required.
Tickets will be available to students attending the University Park campus on Jan. 26. Tickets will be available to faculty and staff and students from other Penn State campuses on Jan. 27. The general public may pick up any remaining tickets beginning Jan. 28, on a first-come, first-served basis. The Eisenhower box office is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Limited tickets might also be available the night of the speech.
Hailed as one of the great voices of contemporary literature, Angelou is a poet, educator, historian, best-selling author, actress, playwright, civil-rights activist, producer and director.
Angelou has authored 11 best-selling books including "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" and her current best seller, "Even the Stars Look Lonesome." One of her many poetry collections, "Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'fore I Die," was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. In January 1993, she read her poem, "On the Pulse of the Morning," at President Clinton's inauguration, receiving a Grammy award for her recitation.
The Distinguished Speakers Series is sponsored by the University Park Allocation Committee, coordinated by the Distinguished Speakers Series Committee and the Office of Student Activities, and funded by student activity fees.
For more information on the speakers series, contact the Office of Student Activities at (814) 863-3786. For ticket information, contact Eisenhower Auditorium at (814) 863-0255.
For more on the Distinguished Speakers Series lineup, visit
http://live.psu.edu/story/3823