This homecoming panel is part of the college's Sondermann Series: Elections 2008. Panelists include Chuck Buxton '68, senior editor at the Santa Rosa Press Democrat; Eric Sondermann '76, president of SE2 Associates in Denver; and CC political science professors Timothy Fuller and Bob Loevy.

Recorded October 10, 2008.

Betty Bright is a Minneapolis-based curator and critic of the book arts. In this slide-illustrated talk, she will explore the role of The Press at Colorado College on the national book arts scene. Bright's discussion will focus on the work of James Trissel at The Press between 1978 and 1998. Her lecture is the final event in Pressfest 2008, a celebration of the work of The Press at Colorado College, now in its 30th year.

A high-profile senior analyst for CNN and staff writer for The New Yorker, Jeffrey Toobin is one of the country's most esteemed experts on politics, media and the law. The author of critically acclaimed New York Times bestsellers, Toobin's 2007 book The Nine: Inside the Secret World of the Supreme Court, delves into the historical, political and personal inner workings of the Supreme Court and its justices to reveal the inside story of one of America's most mysterious and powerful institutions.

Recorded August 23, 2008.

Former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins was the 2008 commencement speaker. Collins became a household name when, in 2001, he was named Poet Laureate of the United States, a position he held for two years. He subsequently served as New York State Poet Laureate from 2004 to 2006.

Gale Norton served as the 48th Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior from 2001-2006. The first woman to head the 153-year-old department, Norton made what she calls the Four C's the cornerstone of her tenure: Consultation, Communications, and Cooperation, all the the service of Conservation. At the heart of the Four C's is the belief that for conservation to be successful, the government must involve the people who live and work on the land.

Recorded April 7, 2008.

John Riker, professor of philosophy at Colorado College, is the author of "Human Excellence and an Ecological Conception of the Self" and "Ethics and the Discovery of the Unconscious."

Recorded March 6, 2008.

Legendary singer, songwriter, actress and human rights activist Odetta will perform as part of CC's Black History Celebration. Dubbed by Martin Luther King, Jr. as the "Queen of American Folk Music", she has been cited as the main influence of artists such as Janis Joplin, Bob Dylan, Sweet Honey in the Rock, Tracy Chapman, Carly Simon and Jewel. Her most recent album, "Gonna Let it Shine," received a 2007 Grammy nod and Real Blues Magazine referred to it as "the most important album of this generation."

Recorded February 21, 2008.

Accomplished comedienne, writer, actress and singer Sandra Bernhard presents the 2008 Cornerstone Arts Week performance. Defying neat categorization, Bernhard is irreverent, intellectual, bawdy, and above all, wildly entertaining. With laser-sharp insight, Bernhard addresses issues ranging from the war in Iraq to the endless media coverage of minor starlets. Through music, storytelling and commentary, Bernhard questions how we determine what is authentic within a media-saturated world.

Recorded February 6, 2008.

Joel Salatin is on the forefront of what may be the most important global issue facing the world today: How to create a world food system not enslaved by multinational corporations and governmental subsidies. Named the most innovative farmer in the nation, he is an articulate voice of the natural food movement, whose holistic approach is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable. Salatin will discuss how, for the first time in history, most food is consumed without an awareness of its place, heritage, social or spiritual implications.

Recorded January 24, 2008.

Bill Ritter Jr. was elected as Colorado's 41st governor in 2006 -- the first Colorado-born governor in more than 35 years. The sixth of 12 children, Gov. Ritter was raised on a small farm in Arapahoe County. He was a member of the first graduating class of Gateway High School (1974), and earned his bachelor's degree in political science from Colorado State University (1978) and his law degree from the University of Colorado (1981). His first job out of law school was as a deputy district attorney in Denver. In 1987, Ritter and his wife, Jeannie Ritter, left Denver to run a food distribution and nutrition center in Zambia, Africa. They returned home in 1990, and three years later Ritter was appointed as Denver's top prosecutor, a position he held until January 2005.