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Harris Miller, former president of the Information Technology Association of America and CEO of the Career College Association, presented a lecture at Hamilton titled "Can America Still Cut It? Thoughts About the American Worker in the Age of Global Competition" on Feb. 19. Miller called for "a new covenant with the American workforce" and a focus on skills education in order to rebuild the American middle class.

The Green Democracy Roundtable, hosted by the Hamilton Environmental Action Group and the Hamilton College chapter of Democracy Matters on Jan. 31, brought together a distinguished panel of students, staff, alumni and politicians to discuss potential solutions to the problems of climate change. The event, concluding Hamilton's participation in the Focus the Nation global warming teach-in that took place at more than 1,000 schools that day, was notable for the depth of the speakers' knowledge and for their universal commitment to address climate change.

On Thursday, Nov. 15, the Levitt Speaker Series brought economist Catherine Mann to Hamilton to speak about information technology and globalization. Mann outlined the promises and perils surrounding globalization in the information technology sector, and proposed new investments in training to allow the U.S. to continue to compete in an increasingly open economy. 

Professor Eric Lane from the Hofstra University School of Law spoke to Hamilton students and faculty about the role of the United States Constitution on Thursday, Nov. 8. Lane pointed to the problems created in the current political climate by a lack of respect for a "Constitutional conscience," and suggested a set of lessons from the Constitution that can inform modern U.S. discourse.

The Hamilton College Democrats sponsored a speech by David Corn, former editor of The Nation magazine and new bureau chief of Mother Jones, on Oct. 22. Corn discussed the prospects of Democratic and Republican candidates in the 2008 presidential election, and suggested that a Democratic win was possible but still uncertain.

National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) President Myles Brand spoke to a packed Hamilton College Chapel on Tuesday, Oct. 2, about the alignment of intercollegiate athletics and higher education. Brand made a case for the continued link of the two institutions, stating that athletics is “connected to higher education because, and only because, it helps educate.”

Dr. Rafael Campo spoke to the Hamilton College community in a lecture titled “Fact Versus Truth: Examining Health Disparities through Diverse Illness Narratives” on Thursday, Sept. 27. Campo argued that literary works may have equal or greater power than traditional biomedical knowledge to understand and treat illness.

The evening of September 9 saw the Hamilton College Chapel crowded with students listening to "A Conversation about the 2006 and 2008 Elections" from two accomplished Hamilton alumni. Alicia Davis '97 and Marc Elias '90 had different perspectives on the causes of the recent Republican defeat, but agreed on the importance of new media and the closeness of the upcoming campaign.