GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN (September 2, 2009) In conjunction with the Aquinas College Lecture Series, Roger Durham, Ph.D., Aquinas Professor of Political Studies, will present Peace Studies at Aquinas College: Potentials and Possibilities on Tuesday, September 15 at 12:30 p.m. in the Wege Center Ballroom, 1607 Robinson Road SE in Grand Rapids. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Durham’s lecture will focus on the various aspects of creating a Peace Studies program at Aquinas. He will outline the benefits of a Peace Studies program, prospective classes and discuss the benefits of having a Peace Studies program at Aquinas. No other college in the area offers an undergraduate program in this discipline, which involves international relations, human rights, conflict resolution and justice issues. Durham believes the creation of a Peace Studies program will complement the inter-disciplinary studies already available through Aquinas College.

Last April Durham attended a three-day conference at the University of Notre Dame, South Bend, Indiana, that discussed the importance of starting Peace Studies programs in smaller colleges. This conference reinforced his interest in creating the program at Aquinas. Durham states that the study of peace is crucial to helping solve current and future conflicts in international relations. Offering the discipline to students as a major or minor will set Aquinas apart from other liberal arts colleges. Durham is currently seeking funding and donors to support the program.