News & Events

Presidential Debate Sparks Lectures

When the 2008 United States presidential candidates face off in the first debate on Sept. 26 at the University of Mississippi, the topic will be homeland security and foreign policy. In the meantime, the debate provides faculty members with opportunities to share their expertise through public programs and media interviews.

On Monday, Sept. 8, Dr. John R. Neff, Associate Professor of History at UM, will present a debate lecture entitled "War, Race and the House Divided: The Lasting Significance of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates." The lecture is sponsored by the University of Mississippi-Tupelo and will be held in the Advanced Education Center Auditorium at 1918 Briar Ridge Road in Tupelo at 6 p.m.

Born and educated in California, Neff joined the history faculty at the University of Mississippi in 1999. An historian of the social and cultural history of the American Civil War era, his particular research interests focus on the war's memory and commemoration. He is the author of Honoring the Civil War Dead: Commemoration and the Problem of Reconciliation (2005) and is presently researching and writing his second book, Freedom's Village: The Building and Betrayal of an African American Community.

For more information, contact Mollie Gratz at UM-Tupelo at 662-690-6205 or mmgratz@olemiss.edu.