James P. Holland Lecture Series

The James P. Holland Memorial Lecture Series was initiated in fall 2000 by the Office of the Vice President for Student Development and Diversity, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, and the Department of Biology. It honors one of the most beloved faculty members on the Bloomington campus, James P. Holland, who died of cancer in 1998.

This lecture is now organized by the Department of Biology and the Hudson and Holland Scholars Programs. The lecture series honors Holland's legacy as a gifted teacher and a skilled scientist at IU. It is intended to bring awareness and support of diversity in the life sciences.

Upcoming lecture

Victor Torres, Ph.D.
C.V. Starr Professor of Microbiology
New York University Grossman School of Medicine

Title: TBA

Monday, October 31, 2022
4-5:00 p.m.

Dr. Torres’ laboratory focuses on understanding host-bacterial pathogen interactions with a special interest in drug-resistant bacteria. Dr. Torres is an engaging speaker and you can hear a bit about his work from the 2021 MacArthur Foundation video: Victor J. Torres: Investigating how bacterial pathogens overcome the immune system and identifying potential therapies.

Past lectures

About James Holland

Endocrinologist James Holland earned over two dozen teaching and service awards during his 31-year career at IU. Among his many awards, he received the Student Choice Award for Outstanding Faculty, the Herman B Wells Lifetime Achievement Award, Indiana University Faculty Colloquium on Excellence in Teaching Award, the President's Award for Distinguished Teaching, and the Chancellor’s Medallion for his “transcendent service to the Bloomington campus.”

Between 1979 and 1998, Professor Holland was also a seven-time recipient of the Senior Class Award for Teaching Excellence in Biology and Dedication to Undergraduates, an award voted on by senior biology majors.

He worked tirelessly to address the needs of minority students on the Bloomington campus. Professor Holland joined forces with Professor Herman Hudson to found the Minority Achievers Program and the Mathematics and Science Scholarship Program. The programs were renamed in 2003 to honor the efforts of these two men: MAP became the Herman C. Hudson Scholars Program, and MASS is now the James P. Holland Scholars Program.

Holland worked with other biology staff members to create the Summer Enrichment Program, which was designed to interest Indiana minority high school students in science by bringing them to campus for classes and hands-on laboratory experience. He led the program, which was renamed in his honor in 2000, from its inception. Prior to his death in 1998, a one-time-only minority fellowship was created in Holland’s name. This award was used as the model for the endowed fellowship that exists today.

Suggest a Holland lecture speaker

To suggest a speaker who is underrepresented in the sciences for the Holland lecture series, contact one of the Holland lecture committee members:

Lesley Weaver, Assistant Professor of Biology
Heather Reynolds, Professor

This lecture is sponsored by IU's Office of the Vice President for Diversity, Equity, and Multicultural Affairs; Office of the Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs; Office of the Vice Provost for Research; College of Arts and Sciences; Medical Sciences Department; Department of Biology.

James P. Holland Lecture Series