The Southeastern Center for Faculty Excellence hosted their annual semester lecture series and interdepartmental faculty luncheon, Lyceum Lights on Tuesday, Oct. 19, in conjunction with this year’s Homecoming celebration.

Each semester, the luncheon is held to allow faculty from different departments the opportunity to socialize outside their normal work hours.

“Communication is a basic life need,” said professor Warren Schulingkamp, of the department of chemistry and physics.  “I enjoy coming. You meet new people and get a great meal at a reasonable price.”

Admission is five dollars for faculty, but for the retirees, the admission fee is waived.  

“They have worked so hard, it is the least we can do,” said Cindy Vernon, administrative assistant at the Center for Faculty Excellence. But food isn’t the only thing that the faculty comes for.

The event has become a Southeastern tradition since it was created in 2002.

“A lyceum is a place for learning,” said Eric Johnson, director of the library who created the luncheon’s name. “The discussion at lunch is just as rewarding.”

Each semester, a professor is chosen as a guest lecturer for the event to share with faculty and staff what is currently going on within their department. This year Dr. Lilly Stiegler from the department of communication sciences and disorders was chosen to talk about her work with autism.  

“Each time we spotlight a different person, sometimes rising stars or those who have been here a long time,” said Director of the Center for Faculty Excellence, Dr. Tena Golding. “This year’s Homecoming theme was ‘Roomie to the Rescue’ and she exemplifies that.”  

“I’m happy we have the chance to talk about autism and also what speech language pathologists do,” said Dr. Rebecca Davis, professor in the department of communication sciences and disorders.  People don’t really know what we do and there is a lot of misinformation out there.”

While once these luncheons were a staple during the semester, due to unforeseen circumstances, they have become less frequent.  

“Originally the luncheon was held two to three times a semester, but due to budget cuts, professors have more work and less time,” said Golding.