Warren to Give Chellgren Lecture April 18

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 8, 2011) - "Debt, Credit, and the Middle Class" will be the theme of nationally renowned scholar Elizabeth Warren's talk as she delivers the annual Chellgren Lecture at the University of Kentucky at 7 p.m. Monday, April 18. 

The 2011 Chellgren Lecture, which will be held in Memorial Hall, is presented by UK's Gatton College of Business and Economics, the UK Council of Endowed Professors and Chairs, and the UK College of Law Randall-Park Speakers Series.  The lecture is free and open to the public. 

Warren, the Leo Gottlieb Professor of Law at Harvard University, currently is on leave from her academic duties as she serves as assistant to President Obama and special advisor to the secretary of the treasury on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 

In 2008, Warren was named chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel (COP) for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and served in that role for two years.  One of her colleagues on that five-member panel was Ken Troske, Sturgill Endowed Professor of Economics and chair of the Department of Economics in the Gatton College, as well as director of the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER).  The panel recently completed its work with the publication of its final report on TARP's role in addressing the 2008 economic crisis. 

Professor Warren's research on the economics of middle class families has been funded by the National Science Foundation and the Ford Foundation.  She has written 100 scholarly articles and nine books, including two books that were on national best seller lists.  Time Magazine twice has named Warren one of the Time 100 Most Influential People in the World, and the National Law Journal named her one of the Most Influential Lawyers of the Decade. 

"This is a wonderful opportunity for members of the UK community and other interested citizens to hear from one of our nation's leading experts on this very timely topic," said Troske. 

The annual Chellgren Lecture is made possible through an endowment established by retired Ashland, Inc. CEO Paul Chellgren, a UK alumnus and former member of the university's Board of Trustees. 

Free parking is available for those attending the Chellgren Lecture in UK Parking Structure 5, located off of S. Limestone, near the intersection with Avenue of Champions (Euclid Avenue).

MEDIA CONTACT:  Carl Nathe, (859) 257-1754, ext. 238; Michele Sparks, (859) 257-0040.