Small College, Big Ideas

GAMBIER, Ohio (October 23, 2007) The Burton D. Morgan Lectureship Series brings two Kenyon graduates back to campus for talks about their successful careers in the worlds of investment management and fashion.

Joseph E. Lipscomb '87 will share his thoughts on environmentally friendly investments on Thursday, and Eric Gaskins '80 will describe his work as a fashion designer on Nov. 6.

Lipscomb will discuss how businesses can make a profit and have a positive impact on society in his lecture called "The Double Bottom Line: Doing Well and Doing Good in Business" at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in room 109 in Rutherford B. Hayes Hall.

Lipscomb is a College trustee and the managing director at the Global Environment Fund, a Washington, D.C.-based international investment firm that targets emerging markets, clean technology and forestry. He has worked in private equity and corporate finance, with his primary area of investment focus in service-oriented business in North America. Prior to his work with the environment fund, Lipscomb was a managing director at the Carlyle Group.

Lipscomb established the James S. Lipscomb Scholarship at Kenyon in 2001.

Gaskins, president of Eric Gaskins Design in New York City, will discuss "A Life Designed: Works in Progress" at 11:10 a.m. on November 6 in room 215 of Samuel Mather Hall.

Gaskins was trained in Paris by Hubert Givenchy, and launched his label in 1987. His work, mostly dresses, suits, and gowns, is known for its craftsmanship and technique. His designs have been featured on the covers of Cosmopolitan, Glamour, and VanityFair. His clients include Geena Davis, Salma Hayek, Allison Janney '82, Jada Pinkett, and Maria Shriver.

The lectures are free and open to the public. They are funded through a grant from the Burton D. Morgan Foundation, a private foundation based in Hudson, Ohio, that supports the free-enterprise system. Morgan was a business innovator who founded the Morgan Adhesives Co. In 1967, he established the foundation, which has distributed more than $25 million to colleges and universities.