What does Dr. Bahram Roughani, department chair for Physics at Kettering University, have in common with Harry Belafonte, Lech Walesa, Spike Lee, Cesar Chavez and Margaret Meade? He will join the ranks of featured speakers for the Ballenger Eminent Persons Lecture Series at Mott Community College (MCC), funded by the Foundation for Mott Community College.

Roughani will be part of a two-day event focused on Nanotechnology that is open to the public free of charge. On the second day of the event, he and Dr. James Hamilton of the University of Wisconsin, Platteville, will provide scientific viewpoints on nanotechnology while Dr. John V. Stone, professor at Michigan State University will discuss the effects on humans and the environment Thursday, Nov. 5, from Noon to 4 p.m.

The event kicks off with “Nanotech...Inspiring the Exceptional,” an evening with nanotechnology experts, Wednesday, Nov. 4, in the MCC Event Center from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. (located on the East side of the Mott College Library), featuring Dr. James Hamilton, distinguished professor of Chemistry and Engineering Physics, University of Wisconsin at Platteville.

Ballenger Eminent Persons Lecture Series at Mott Community College was created in 1955 through a generous gift by the Ballenger Trust to enhance educational opportunities for students of MCC as well as create a public discussion of issues facing the greater Flint community.

In 2005, after a nine-year hiatus, the Foundation for Mott Community College announced the return of the Ballenger Lecture Series, that has included national and international leaders such as Rocket Scientist Werner Von Braun, Journalists Alistair Cooke and Peter Jennings, Art Critic Stanley Kaufman, Talk Show Host Geraldo Rivera, Writers Alex Haley and William Buckley, Humorist Art Buchwald and Black Activist Julian Bond.