LEWISTON — Bates College President Clayton Spencer will be the featured speaker at the Great Falls Forum lecture series at noon Thursday, Jan. 17, in Callahan Hall at the Lewiston Public Library.

Spencer’s talk is titled “Bates and the Engaged Liberal Arts.”

Spencer came to Lewiston from Harvard University last July to begin her tenure as the eighth president at Bates. For the 15 previous years she served in various roles on Harvard’s leadership team, guiding major policy initiatives for the university president.

Spencer will offer her perspectives on the key challenges and opportunities facing higher education today. In addition, she will be discussing her priorities for Bates over the next few years.

The talk will be followed by a question and answer session. Spencer is particularly interested in hearing from members of the Lewiston-Auburn community about how Bates and L-A can work together in a variety of domains.

Admission is free to all forum events, and no reservations are required. The presentation will take place from noon to 1 p.m. in Callahan Hall at the Lewiston Public Library, 200 Lisbon St.

Attendees are invited to bring brown-bag lunches, or to take advantage of the forum’s partnership with Guthries cafe and request one of the eatery’s custom-made gourmet sandwiches or salads to be delivered to the library in advance of the talk. Orders may be placed by calling Guthries at 376-3344.

The menu is available at www.guthriesplace.com. Coffee, tea and bottled water will be available onsite at the library.

The Great Falls Forum is co-sponsored by Bates College, Lewiston Public Library and the Sun Journal.

More information on Thursday’s lecture or other upcoming events in the Great Falls Forum series is available by contacting the Lewiston Public Library at 513-3135 or visiting www.LPLonline.org.