University of Chicago political science Professor John Mearsheimer says the United States is doomed to fail in Iraq. He will discuss the reasons in the final installment of the President's Lecture Series Monday, April 25, at UM.

"Why the U.S. Was Doomed to Fail in Iraq" will begin at 8 p.m. in the University Theatre. Mearsheimer will discuss how Iraqi nationalism guaranteed that U.S. troops would quickly go from liberators to occupiers, inciting an insurgency that would be almost impossible to defeat. The lecture is free and open to the public.

As the Lucile E. Speer Memorial Lecture, the event honors the former documents librarian who retired in 1968 after 40 years at the University. Speers was a delegate to the 1972 Montana Constitutional Convention and was awarded an honorary doctorate of humane letters from UM in 1977. She died in 1987.

Mearsheimer also will give an afternoon seminar, in conjunction with the Philosophy Forum, at 3:10 p.m. the same day in Gallagher Building Room 123. The lecture is titled "Lying in International Politics."

A graduate of West Point and Cornell University, Mearsheimer is the R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor of Political Science and co-director of the Program on International Security Policy at the University of Chicago. He served five years as an officer in the U.S. Air Force and has authored three books on security issues and international politics.

Maryland educator James McKusick has been hired as dean of the Davidson Honors College at UM, Provost Lois Muir announced Monday.

McKusick currently serves as director of the Honors College at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He starts his UM position July 1.

During his 20 years at UMBC, McKusick has taught English literature and served in a variety of administrative positions, including scheduling officer and English department chair. His varied administrative experience has been supplemented by significant scholarship and leadership to the wider UMBC community through service on a number of committees and councils.

Robert Greifeld, president and CEO of NASDAQ Stock Market Inc., will speak at UM on Wednesday, April 27.

Greifeld's lecture begins at 5 p.m. in Gallagher Business Building Room 106. He is the featured guest speaker for the first Harold and Priscilla Gilkey Executive Lecture Series Community Forum. This UM School of Business Administration event is free and open to the public.

A resident of Westfield, N.J., Greifeld has led the largest U.S. electronic stock market since May 2003. He rapidly took steps to sharpen NASDAQ's strategic direction as the premier U.S. equities market, including capturing the majority of U.S. IPOs (Initial Public Offerings) and attracting listings from competitive exchanges.

The Gilkey Executive Lecture Series was created through a $1.5 million gift from Priscilla and Harold Gilkey of Spokane, Wash.

UM students are encouraged to join in the many events offered on campus and in the Missoula community during the 36th anniversary celebration of Earth Day.

From 10 to 11:30 a.m. Thursday, April 22, an Earth Day Teach-In will take place in University Center Room 329. Students are invited to learn about water and agriculture, the state of the Clark Fork River and the UM College of Technology's alternative-energy curriculum and degrees.

At 11:30 a.m. a sustainability fair will take place on the Mansfield Mall, located between the library and the UC. Opportunities to play global wheel of fortune, calculate ecological footprints on the earth and learn about UM recycling will be offered until 2 p.m. At noon, Mike Avery and his band will play. At 12:15 p.m. UM's efforts to improve sustainability on campus will be presented, along with the Greening UM Award, given to an outstanding student who has made a significant environmental contribution to campus and the community.

In the afternoon, people are invited to view UM's recycling facilities and ride UM's biodiesel-powered BioBus.

Clean Start, an Earth Day service event, will take place at 9 a.m. Saturday, April 23, at many Missoula locations. Organized by the UM Office for Civic Engagement, the project offers volunteers the opportunity to participate in up to four different areas.

First, from 9 a.m. to noon, a river clean-up will take place along the Clark Fork River on the Kim Williams Trail. Participants can meet at the Van Buren Footbridge or Kiwanis Park to receive collection bags. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., volunteers will meet at the base of Mount Sentinel to pull weeds and plant seeds on the hillside.

From 1:30 to 3 p.m., volunteers will jump into garbage cans in a Dumpster Dive search for recyclables at the UM Recycle Shed located behind Facilities Services. Finally, from noon to 4 p.m. at Bonner Park, participants can attend a seminar on building a bike.

For more information, call the Office for Civic Engagement at (406) 243-5531.

UM Professor Rita Sommers-Flanagan will discuss how to be and beget ethical citizens in the next lecture of the Provost's Distinguished Faculty Series Wednesday, April 27, at UM.

The lecture, "Courage, Character, Compassion: Challenges in Raising Ethical Children," will be held at 7 p.m. in the Music Recital Hall and is free and open to the public.

Sommers-Flanagan is a professor in UM's Department of Educational Leadership and Counseling, as well as director of the Women's Studies Program. She has a doctorate in clinical psychology and a master's degree in communication, and she is a certified school counselor, licensed psychologist, ethics consultant and author.

Her recent publications include "Don't Divorce Us! Kids' Advice to Divorcing Parents" and "Problem Child or Quirky Kid?"

Art depicting the viewpoints of Native American artists on the Corps of Discovery and the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial will be on display at the Montana Museum of Art and Culture April 26 through June 26 at UM.

"Contemporary Native American Art -- Reflections After Lewis and Clark" features 31 paintings, prints, photographs, sculptures and installations by 19 nationally and internationally recognized artists. An opening reception will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday, May 6, in the Meloy and Paxson galleries of the Performing Arts and Radio/Television Center, where the exhibit is on display. Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesdays through Thursdays and Saturdays and 3 to 7 p.m. on Fridays.

Filmmaker Sally Thompson, director of UM's Lifelong Learning Center, will present her current film, "Why Save a Language?" at 7 p.m., Tuesday, April 26, in the Meloy Gallery.

Historian Walter Fleming of Montana State University will give a lecture on how important historical events are documented in Native American artworks. "Balancing Accounts: Telling Stories Through Art" is set for 7 p.m. Monday, May 2, also in the Meloy Gallery.

All events are free and open to the public.

An upcoming lecture will explore the mysteries surrounding a major heroine in Western history -- Sacagawea.

Virginia Scharff, a history professor and director of the Center for the Southwest at the University of New Mexico, will present "Desperately Seeking Sacagawea" at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 28, in Gallagher Business Building Room 123.

This Third Annual Hammond Lecture in Western/Environmental History is free and open to the public. It's sponsored by the Hammond Endowment in the Department of History and the O'Connor Center for the Rocky Mountain West.

Scharff specializes in women's and environmental history in the American West. She is the author of "Twenty Thousand Roads: Women, Movement and the West" (2003), a study of the intertwined paths of American women and the West.

Improve Missoula's air quality and your physical fitness during Walk n Roll Days Monday-Friday, April 25-29, at UM.

Part of Missoula's 14th annual Bike Walk Bus Week, Walk n Roll Days encourages people to travel to campus in some way other than driving alone in a car.

Volunteers will be posted at all campus entrances to hand out raffle tickets to bikers, skaters, walkers, joggers and carpoolers. Raffle prizes include a cruiser bike, bike trailer, headlights, locks and more. The drawing will be held at noon Friday, April 29, on the Mansfield Mall. There also will be free food and live music at the event.

Many additional events will take place during Bike Bus Walk Week, including historic neighborhood walking tours, bike rides and panel discussions.

"Galaxy Video," a humorous play presented by UM's Department of Drama/Dance, runs in the Masquer Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 26, through Saturday, April 30, and Tuesday, May 3, through Saturday, May 7.

All performances take place in the Masquer Theatre of the Performing Arts and Radio/Television Center. Tickets are $7 and can be purchased by calling the Drama/Dance Box Office at (406) 243-4581.

Marc Morales' "Galaxy Video" is set in a video store with the universe's largest selection of rentals. The comedy focuses on the action right before the store closes and revolves around Russel, a clerk desperate to escape his employment at the video store.

Audience discretion is advised because of adult language.

UM student and state representative Kevin Furey is among two freshmen legislators profiled in "Making A Difference: From Citizen to Citizen Lawyer," a Montana PBS documentary airing this weekend.

The half-hour program premiered last night and repeats at 5 p.m. Saturday, April 23, and 8:30 a.m. Sunday, April 24, on Montana PBS stations statewide.

Furey, a Democrat, and Harry Klock, a Republican, were followed to the capitol this session by reporter Anna Rau, who wanted to know: What is it like to be a new state representative? What have they accomplished in their freshman session? How will their decisions affect Montanans?

Tune in for the answers.

Listeners from across the state and beyond answered Montana Public Radio's call for support during the station's annual on-air fund-raiser held April 2-10.

MPR supporters pledged $440,000, exceeding this year's goal of $433,000. In addition to the pledges, listeners donated more than 2,700 premiums.

In the fund-raiser's annual grand finale, "Pet Wars" -- in which listeners call in pledges in the names of their pets -- dogs won the competition with 1,441 pledges, just nine more than the cats.

The UM women's golf team carded a 299 in Wednesday's final round to finish second at the Big Sky Women's Golf Championship in Goodyear, Ariz.

Montana entered the final round in fifth place but surged past Eastern Washington, Northern Arizona and Montana State to finish with a team score of 918 -- 13 strokes behind team champion Portland State at the 6,050-yard Palm Valley Golf Course.

UM's three-round team score (918) eclipsed the school record (922) and its final-round team score (299) matched the school mark, both set on the same golf course earlier this season. The team's second place finish was its best at the conference championship since the 2002 season.

UM's men's and women's tennis teams return home this weekend to wrap up the dual-match regular season with league contests against Northern Arizona, Weber State and Idaho State.

Montana faces the Lumberjacks today, the Wildcats Saturday, April 23, and the Bengals Sunday, April 24. Matches will be played at the Lindsay Tennis Center unless there is inclement weather, in which case they'll move indoors to the Missoula Athletic Club.