Henry Louis Gates Jr. at Penn

Henry Louis Gates Jr. is a renowned scholar, respected social critic, prolific writer, accomplished documentarian and pre-eminent public intellectual. And that’s just scratching the surface. One of the most widely acclaimed scholars in the world, Gates has been named one of the “25 Most Influential Americans” by Time magazine, penned some of the most lauded books of his time (including his landmark, “The Signifying Monkey: Towards a Theory of Afro-American Literary Criticism”) and has picked up so many awards (including a MacArthur Genius Award in 1981) it would be impossible to list them all here. He even once spent a year working in an East African hospital. In short, Gates has lived a full life—and continues to churn out remarkable new pieces of scholarship

Penn welcomes Gates to campus next month, when he will serve as featured speaker of the School of Arts & Sciences 2006 Dean’s Forum. The event is set for Thursday, March 23 at 4:30 p.m. in Irvine Auditorium. It is open and free to the public. For more information, visit www.sas.upenn.edu/home/news/deans_06.html. — T.H.

Henry Louis Gates