Inaugural Last Lecture at University of Richmond to be given by accounting professor Joe B. Hoyle on April 7

March 26, 2009

University of Richmond students will launch their version of a "last lecture" series -- in which a professor speaks on the question, "If you were to address students at the University of Richmond for the last time, what would you say?" – April 7, 7 p.m., at Jepson Alumni Center.

Joe B. Hoyle, an accounting professor noted for his Socratic method of teaching, was chosen by a student vote to be the initial last lecturer in what the students hope will become an annual event. Admission is free and open to the public.

Erin Fields, a senior biology major from Taftville, Conn., won support for a Last Lecture series from other students and Westhampton College Dean Juliette Landphair. Her inspiration was a book, "The Last Lecture" by the late Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University computer science professor suffering from terminal cancer.

Fields says the book captures the humor, wisdom and inspiration of a speech he gave some 10 months before his death, called "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams." Since Pausch's September 2007 speech, "last lectures" – not by terminally ill professors – have been established at a number of American colleges and universities.

Hoyle is author of "Tips and Thoughts on Improving the Teaching Process in College—A Personal Diary." The Duke and Appalachian State graduate was named 2007 Virginia Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Endowment for the Advancement of Teaching/Council for Advancement and Support of Education, as well as one of 22 favorite undergraduate business professors by Business Week in 2006.