The Student Lectureship Committee announced that Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield will speak at the University on Sept. 18 in the Weis Center for the Performing Arts.

Greenfield’s talk, entitled “An Evening of Entrepreneurial Spirit, Social Responsibility, and Radical Business Philosophy” will focus on his experience with his company as well as ethical and sustainable principles in business.

The Student Lectureship Committee researches, selects, and hosts one speaker at the University each semester. Last spring, the committee hosted Olympic gold medalist Shawn Johnson. Recent speakers also include Bill Nye and Humans of New York founder Brandon Stanton.

Committee co-chair Melody Sonnemann ’18 said that the process of bringing a speaker to campus starts with “brainstorming as a committee, and then sending multiple surveys out to students to see what resonates most with them.”

The committee uses the information from the surveys to decide on a speaker that they hope will address the student body’s interests.

“[Lectureship] hasn’t brought in a speaker whose primary focus is business in recent years, so we hope that the College of Management and other groups with similar interests on campus are excited about this lecture,” Sonnemann said.

Tehani Gunaratna ’20, also a committee co-chair, is excited to hear firsthand from a successful entrepreneur about ethical issues, business philosophy, and sustainability.

“Ben & Jerry’s are passionate political advocates, so it will be interesting to hear how Jerry has incorporated and let those ethical standards guide his career,” Gunaratna said.

Student tickets can be purchased free of charge at the Campus Box Office or the Weis Center the day of the event. Ben & Jerry’s ice cream will be provided to the entire audience.