Threshold Series
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In This Section
A platform for intellectual and cultural engagement, the Saint Vincent College Threshold Series has brought a diverse array of distinguished speakers—scholars, experts, authors, artists and public figures—to the Latrobe campus.
Community & Events
Established in 1981 through a generous grant from the Kennametal Foundation, Threshold aims to inspire intellectual curiosity, foster meaningful dialogue and enrich the region’s cultural landscape. By deepening their understanding of the subject matter, attendees can connect theoretical concepts to real-world applications and seek additional knowledge beyond the lecture.
Threshold has become an important institution at Saint Vincent for students, faculty and members of the local community.
“I'm here to follow the first word of the Rule of Benedict that goes back almost 1,500 years, which is: listen.”
– Cornel West, October 2019 Threshold Series speaker
Threshold Lecture: Ambassador John T. Hennessey-Niland
The State of the World in Turbulent Times: What Happens Abroad Matters at Home
November 18, 2025 | 7 p.m. at the Fred M. Rogers Center
Admission is free of charge.
November 2025 Speaker
Ambassador John T. Hennessey-Niland
Ambassador John Hennessey-Niland, a retired US diplomat with more than 35 years of service, has shaped US engagement in some of the world’s most strategically important regions. As US Ambassador to the Republic of Palau, he trengthened critical security and development partnerships at a pivotal time for the Pacific Islands, advancing initiatives that reinforced regional stability and US credibility.
His senior assignments included acting deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Australia; foreign policy advisor to the commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces Pacific; and leadership roles in Ireland, Pakistan, and Fiji, as well as service at the White House National Security Council as director for the G-8, G-20, and International Summits. He played a leading role in negotiations that redefined US, Denmark, and Greenland relations; directed emergency evacuations during political crises; and prosecuted cases at the UN International Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda.
His scholarly output complements his diplomatic record, with publications in journals such as The Foreign Service Journal, Georgetown Journal of International Affairs, and the Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs, addressing US engagement and credibility in the Pacific Islands. A life member of the Council on Foreign Relations, he has been recognized with the US Department of State/US Department of Defense Foreign Policy Advisor of the Year Award, among other honors.
Fluent in French and Dutch, he earned a master’s degree in law and diplomacy from The Fletcher School at Tufts University and graduated summa cum laude from the International Cycle of the École Nationale d’Administration in France. He is currently director of the Scowcroft Institute for International Affairs at Texas A&M University, a senior fellow at the National Defense University Joint Staff College, and a visiting
scholar at the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies.
Threshold Lecture: Ambassador John T. Hennessey-Niland
The State of the World in Turbulent Times: What Happens Abroad Matters at Home
November 18, 2025 | 7 p.m. at the Fred M. Rogers Center
Admission is free of charge.
Past Speakers
Pictured: (header) August 2025 speaker Gene Steratore, (from top left) Stanley Jaki, Robert Jarvik, John Stacks, Joyce Carol Oates, John Noble Wilford, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Alex Haley, Michael Medved, (second row) Strobe Talbot, Isaac Asimov, Harold S. Kushner, Jane Bryant Quinn, Roger Malina, Carl Sagan, Robert Claiborne, Martin E. Marty, Lt. General James A. Abrahamson. Not Pictured: Br. Guy Consolmagno, S.J., Claire Bloom, Stephen F. Cohen, Ralph Nader, Archduke Rudolph of Austria, Roger Cossack, Heinz-Joachim Fischer, Jerome Oetgen, Benjamin Zander, Colleen Carroll Campbell, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Steven Johnson, David Shedloski, Dr. Kevin M. Guskiewicz.