Every Tuesday at 11:05 a.m., students, faculty, staff and the greater BYU community gathers for the weekly Devotional or Forum address. During the Spring and Summer terms, Devotionals and Forums are held in the de Jong Concert Hall of the Harris Fine Arts Center. The August 21st Education Week Devotional will be held in the Marriott Center.
Devotional and Forums are open to the public and most are broadcast live on BYUtv, BYUtv.org (and archived for on-demand streaming), KBYU-TV 11, Classical 89 FM, BYU Radio and will be archived on speeches.byu.edu.
Spring/Summer 2018 Devotional and Forum Schedule
May
- May 8: Robert Barrett, Fine Arts & Communications (Devotional)
- May 15: Brianna Magnusson, Life Sciences (Devotional)
- May 22: Randal Beard, Distinguished Faculty Lecturer (Forum)
June
- June 5: Michael R. Orme, Assistant to the President, General Counsel (Devotional)
- June 12: Beth Luthy, Nursing (Devotional)
- June 26: Steven Shumway, Engineering & Technology (Devotional)
July
- July 3: Denise Stephens, Physical & Mathematical Sciences (Devotional)
- July 10: Jeff McClellan, Publications and Graphics (Devotional)
- July 17: Benjamin T. Bikman, Physiology and Developmental Biology (Forum)
- July 31: Lori Wadsworth, Marriott School of Business (Devotional)
August
- August 7: Eric Huntsman, Religious Education (Devotional)
- August 21: Sister Joy D. Jones, Primary general president, LDS Church (Education Week Devotional)
About the Spring/Summer 2018 Devotional Speakers:
Robert Barrett
College Fine Arts & Communications
May 8, 2018 Devotional
In addition to being an accomplished painter, muralist, and illustrator, Robert Barrett is also a BYU professor in the Department of Design. Robert received a BFA in painting from the University of Utah and an MA and MFA in painting from the University of Iowa. He has been awarded the Karl G. Maeser Award for Teaching Excellence at BYU as well as the Karl G. Maeser Research and Creative Arts Award. He was selected as the 2010 Distinguished Educator in the Arts by the Society of Illustrators in New York City and as one of the Most Honored Living Artists of Utah by the Springville Museum of Art.
Robert studied painting in Europe as the recipient of a German academic exchange grant and was an artist in residence at the Kimball Art Center as the recipient of a joint grant from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Utah Arts Council. He has received multiple awards for his work both locally and nationally.
His book Life Drawing: How to Portray the Figure with Accuracy and Expression is currently used as a text at several colleges, universities, and art schools. He more recently completed a children’s book on the Berlin Candy Bomber entitled Christmas from Heaven. Robert has completed multiple portrait commissions, and his work is included in a number of private and public collections.
Brianna Magnusson
College of Life Sciences
May 15, 2018 Devotional
Brianna Magnusson, received her Bachelor of Science in Community Health Education from Brigham Young University (2002) and a Master of Public Health (2005) and Doctor of Philosophy in Epidemiology (2011) from Virginia Commonwealth University. Although born in California and having lived in 5 different states during her childhood, Brianna considers Virginia home. She resides with her husband in American Fork.
Her teaching interests include epidemiology, statistical computing, and reproductive and women’s health. Her research interests include epidemiology and reproductive health with specific emphasis on social determinants of health, including the effect of social norms, residential segregation, family structure and childhood experiences on reproductive health.
Randal Beard
Distinguished Faculty Lecturer
May 22, 2018 Forum
Randal W. Beard received the B.S. degree in electrical engineering from the University of Utah, Salt Lake City, in 1991, the M.S. degree in electrical engineering in 1993, the M.S. degree in mathematics in 1994, and the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering in 1995, all from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y. Since 1996, he has been with the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, where he is currently a professor. In 1997 and 1998, he was a Summer Faculty Fellow at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA. In 2006-2007 he was a research associate at the Air Force Research Laboratory, Munitions Directorate, Eglin AFB, FL.
His primary research focus is autonomous control of micro unmanned air vehicles and multiple vehicle coordination and control. He is a Fellow of the IEEE, an Associate Fellow of AIAA, a past Associate Editor for the IEEE Control Systems Magazine, Journal of Intelligent and Robotic Systems, and IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control. In 1998 and 2004 he was voted the outstanding teacher in the BYU Electrical and Computer Engineering Department by graduating seniors, and in 2002 he received the Outstanding Professor award from the BYU Electrical and Computer Engineering Department. In 2004 he received the Young Scholar award, in 2006 he received the Technology Transfer award, in 2009 he received the Karl G. Maeser Research and Creative Arts award, in 2012 he received the Cozzins Teaching and Learning Fellowship, and in 2017 he received the Karl G. Maeser Distinguished Faculty Lecture Award, all from Brigham Young University.
Michael R. Orme
Assistant to the President, General Counsel
June 5, 2018 Devotional
Mike was appointed Assistant to the President, General Counsel, and Corporate Secretary to BYU in December 2005. Prior to his appointment, Mike had been Associate General Counsel at BYU since 1990. He began practicing higher education law in 1982 when he was appointed General Counsel for BYU–Idaho. Mike was also engaged in private practice in Idaho Falls, Idaho, for 10 years, emphasizing commercial law, general litigation, educational law, and appellate practice.
Mike has served as adjunct faculty in the J. Reuben Clark Law School and the Marriott School of Management and has also taught honors religion. He has lectured widely among various higher education associations and has been an active participant in the American Inns of Court movement and in the National Association of College and University Attorneys, where he served on the Board of Directors for three years. In addition, he has been a director of the Utah Community Credit Union since 1989 and served a three–year term in the 1980s as the Chair of the Idaho Advisory Committee to the United States Commission on Civil Rights.
After receiving a B.A. in history from BYU summa cum laude in 1975, Mike received a J.D. from the BYU J. Reuben Clark Law School in 1978. He is rated "AV"—the highest rating for legal expertise and ethics—by the national Martindale–Hubbell directory. Mike is a member of the bar in both Utah and Idaho.
Beth Luthy
College of Nursing
June 12, 2018 Devotional
Beth Luthy is an assistant professor of nursing at BYU and a family nurse practitioner in Utah County. In 2009 she received the Utah Nurse Practitioner of the Year Award from the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners. She is highly involved in the Utah County Immunization Coalition and has led multiple intervention programs to improve immunization rates in the county and, as a result, improve the overall health of the community. Beth is the recipient of many local and national grants to fund research regarding infant, child, and adolescent immunizations. In addition, she has presented at local and national conferences, sharing her passion for nursing, patient safety, and quality and efficiency in health care. One of her favorite activities is volunteering to teach girls’ maturation to fifth- and sixth-grade girls. She is married to a veteran police officer and has two sons.
Steven Shumway
Ira A. Fulton College of Engineering and Technology
June 26, 2018 Devotional
Steve Shumway is a professor for the technology & engineering studies program in the Fulton College of Engineering and Technology at Brigham Young University. As a teacher educator, Dr. Shumway is actively involved with local school districts in providing professional development opportunities for K-12 teachers to implement STEM curricular activities into their classrooms. Dr. Shumway has been the recipient of several teaching awards including the Benjamin Cluff Jr. Distinguished Educator Award and the Karl G. Maeser Excellence in Teaching Award.
Dr. Shumway and his wife Joyce, met while undergraduate students at BYU and have been married for 33 years; raising their four children in American Fork, Utah. The Shumway family enjoys engaging in athletic events, camping and travelling, and spending time on Steve’s parent's ranch in Wyoming. Dr. Shumway currently serves in the stake presidency of the American Fork East Stake.
Denise Stephens
College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences
July 3, 2018 Devotional
Dr. Stephen's received her bachelor’s degree from BYU and her master’s and PhD from New Mexico State University and then went on to work at the Space Telescope Science Institute and Johns Hopkins University before coming to BYU. She specializes in the study of brown dwarf atmospheres. She is also interested in using space telescopes like HST to identify and characterize close binary systems, primarily brown dwarf and low-mass stellar binaries. She studies transiting extrasolar planets and takes data with BYU's 16" telescope as well as working with the Kepler data set. She is also interested in any science that uses space or ground based telescopes to collect data in the infrared.
Jeff McClellan
Publications and Graphics
July 10, 2018 Devotional
Benjamin T. Bikman
Physiology and Developmental Biology
July 17, 2018
Dr. Bikman’s research focus is to elucidate the molecular mechanisms that mediate the disruption that causes and accompanies metabolic disorders, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and dementia. Driven by his academic training (Ph.D. in Bioenergetics and postdoctoral fellowship with the Duke-National University of Singapore in metabolic disorders), he is currently exploring the contrasting roles of insulin and ketones as key drivers of metabolic function. He frequently publishes his research in peer-reviewed journals and presents at international science meetings.
Lori Wadsworth
Marriott School of Business
July 31, 2018 Devotional
Lori Wadsworth is the MPA program director and department chair of the Romney Institute of Public Management at Brigham Young University. She received her MPA from BYU and then went on to pursue a PhD in Human Resource Management and Organizational Behavior at the University of Utah. She joined the Romney Institute faculty in 1999. Prior to that time, she was an academic advisor for the university for 14 years.
Professor Wadsworth’s research focuses on work-family interaction, particularly how organizations can assist employees in managing their work-life integration. Within this general theme, her research interests include social support, flexible benefits, alternative work schedules, and mentoring. She teaches the MPA Capstone course and Ethics in Management for undergraduate students in the Marriott School.
Wadsworth was raised in San Jose, California, but now considers Provo, Utah her home. She and her husband, Kim, have been married for 35 years. They are the parents of eight children and five son-in-laws, and the lucky grandparents of twelve grandchildren.
Eric Huntsman
Religious Education
August 7, 2018 Devotional
Eric Huntsman was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, but raised in upstate New York, western Pennsylvania, and Tennessee. He married N. Elaine Scott in 1993. They have two children, Rachel (1997) and Samuel (2003).
He received B.A. in Classical Greek and Latin from Brigham Young University, August 1990; M.A. Ancient History, University of Pennsylvania, May 1992; and Ph.D. Ancient History, University of Pennsylvania, Dec 1997. He joined the faculty at BYU full-time in 1994 as an Instructor of Classics, becoming an Assistant Professor of Classics and Ancient History in 1997. He then transferred to the College of Religious Education, becoming an Assistant Professor of Ancient Scripture in 2003 and an Associate Professor in 2008. He was appointed as the coordinator of the Ancient Near Eastern Studies program in August 2012 after spending a year teaching at the BYU Jerusalem Center and was then promoted to full professor in 2015.
He served in the Thailand Bangkok Mission (1985-86), served as second counselor in the bishopric of the Philadelphia Third Ward (1991-94) and Provo Park Ward (1995-1996), and served as bishop of the North Park First Ward in Provo (1996-2002). Has served as an ordinance worker in the Provo Temple since 2002, and is currently a member of the Mormon Tabernacle Choir.
Sister Joy D. Jones
Primary General President, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
August 21, 2018 Devotional
Sister Joy D. Jones serves as the 13th general president of the Primary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Church’s organization for 1 million children who are 11 and younger. She was born in The Dalles, Oregon, to Aldo and Eleanor Adelia Ellsworth Harmon, who as “very active, humble and dedicated” members of the Church became “pioneers in building and strengthening the Church” in that region.
She met her husband, Robert B. Jones, while they were both students at Brigham Young University. They were married in the Manti Utah Temple in August 1974 and are parents of five married children, including two sons and three daughters, and have 19 grandchildren. They have lived in Texas, Oregon, California and Utah.
As a young adult, Sister Jones worked as a dispatcher for the U.S. Forest Service at the Redmond Air Center in eastern Oregon, sending out smokejumpers, suppression crews and supplies for forest fires in the northwest, and as an administrative assistant at the Federal Building in Provo. She was also trained as a medical assistant and worked at a dermatology clinic in Provo. She received an associate of science degree in family living at BYU.
Sister Jones and her husband lived in Santa Rosa, California, for 14 years, where her husband opened a chiropractic practice. When the Joneses’ first son was preparing to leave home to study at BYU and serve a mission, they felt a desire to be closer to him and their other children through their college and mission years so they relocated from California to Draper, Utah, a community her husband’s ancestors helped settle. She assisted in the open house for the Draper Utah Temple in 2009, which she describes as “a continual blessing in her life and in the lives of [her] family.”
Throughout her life, she has enjoyed many leadership opportunities within the Church in various ward and stake capacities in the Primary, Young Women and Relief Society organizations. She served almost six years on the Primary General Board. Sister Jones loves volunteering for Church welfare projects. “Service makes my heart sing,” she said.
She enjoys playing with her grandchildren, temple and family history work, cooking and nutrition, hiking and camping.
