Barrett, The Honors College and Arizona State University will be hosting Walter Isaacson as the 2026 Flinn Foundation Centennial Lecturer. Joining him in conversation is ASU President Michael M. Crow.
Walter Isaacson has spent his career illuminating the lives of history's most influential innovators and visionaries through bestselling biographies of Leonardo da Vinci, Elon Musk, and many others. His newest work, The Greatest Sentence Ever Written, turns his attention to a different kind of genius- exploring how a single sentence can capture profound truths about humanity, creativity, and the enduring power of words.
Joining him in conversation is Arizona State University President Michael Crow, whose visionary leadership has transformed ASU into one of the nation's most innovative public universities. President Crow has long championed the idea that universities should expand opportunity, advance discovery, and tackle society's most pressing challenges. His commitment to curiosity, interdisciplinary thinking, and the exchange of ideas makes him the perfect partner for this event.
Together they will explore not only the inspiration behind The Greatest Sentence Ever Written, but also the broader questions it raises about storytelling, history, innovation, and the ways language shapes how we understand ourselves and our world.
In 1985, the Flinn Foundation established an endowment to commemorate the University’s 100th year. The gift created the ASU Centennial Lecture, and in 1989 it provided the Barrett Honors College the resources to bring some of the world’s most influential intellects to campus.
In just a few short years, the Centennial Lecture has become one of ASU’s premiere intellectual events featuring noted diplomats, scientists, playwrights, and authors. Each of the women and men chosen as the Centennial Lecturer has added significantly to the strength of the University, and each has provided students and members of the community with a memorable experience.
| Year | Presenter | Title |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Anthony Robles | "Be Unstoppable: Wrestling with Life's Challenges On & Off the Mat |
| 2024 | Dr. Bernice A. King | "Building History: Continuing the Legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr." |
| 2023 | Laura Linney | "A Forgotten Profession: Reconsidering the Arts as Essential for Success" |
| 2022 | Maria Teresa Kumar | "Our Changing America" |
| 2021 | Common | "An evening with Common" |
| 2020 | Roxane Gay | "Roxane Gay: With One 'N'" |
| 2019 | Jose Antonio Vargas | "Define American: My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant" |
| 2018 | Norah O'Donnell | "An Evening with Norah O'Donnell" |
| 2017 | Titus Kaphar | “Making Space for Black History, Amending the Landscape of American Art.” |
| 2016 | Henry Cisneros | "Immigrants: An Essential Ingredient for a Strong America and Our Nation's Future" |
| 2015 | Sherman Alexie | "An Urban Indian’s Look at the World and How to be a 21st Century American Nomad" |
| 2014 | Sandra Postel | "Understanding the Importance of Urban Water Systems" |
| 2013 | Michael Pollan | "Out of the Garden and Onto the Plate: A Writer’s Education" |
| 2012 | Sylvia Nasar | “Grand Pursuit: The Story of Economic Genius in Modern Times” |
| 2011 | Oscar Arias | “For We Have Promises to Keep: Ensuring Peace for Future Generations” |
| 2010 | Edward James Olmos | "We're All in the Same Gang" |
| 2009 | Joel Meyerowitz | "A Look Behind the Lens" |
| 2008 | Leonard Downie, Jr | "Focusing on the Future: Politics, Conflict and the Media" |
| 2007 | Anna Quindlen | "The Value of Reading and Writing in a Democratic Society" |
| 2006 | Jules Feiffer | "Feiffer on Feiffer: My Life and Funny Times" |
| 2005 | Kathleen Sullivan | "Civil Liberties in a Time of National Crisis" |
| 2004 | Edward Albee | "The State of Theater and the Arts in America" |
| 2003 | Charles Johnson | "Mindfulness and the Beloved Country" |
| 2002 | David Halberstam | "America and the World: New Challenges in a Time of Uncertainty" |
| 2001 | N. Scott Momaday | "Origins: The Reinvention of the Sacred" |
| 2001 | Meave Leakey | "My Life in Science: An Evening with Meave Leakey" |
| 2000 | Jonathan Weiner | "Evolution in Action: The View from Darwin's Islands and Benzer's Bottles" |
| 1999 | Carlos Fuentes | "A Dialogue for the Americas" |
| 1998 | Annie Dillard | "Performance of Beauty and Grace" |
| 1997 | James Fallows | "News and Democracy: Knowing Enough to Survive" |
| 1996 | Stephen J. Gould | "Pattern and Lack of Progress in the History of Life" |
| 1995 | Sir Crispin Tickell | "The Human Hazard: Refugees and Environmental Change" |
| 1994 | Lynn Margulis | "Gaia as the Living Earth from Space: Soft Goddess or Hard Science?" - See more at: http://barretthonors.asu.edu/news-events/sig |
| 1992 | Susan Sontag | "Traditions of the New" |
| 1991 | Robert Coles | "The Iconography of Western American Art" |
| 1990 | Robert Coles | "The Spiritual Life of the Hopi Child" |
