In alignment with the “Glenn A. and Jane L. Crosby Lecture Series,” Waynesburg University will be hosting Dr. Barbara Baker, President and CEO of the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium, Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. in the Goodwin Performing Arts Center. Admission for the event is free, and students, faculty and members of the community are welcome to attend.

According to Genna Steele, academic projects and grants coordinator, Baker is the perfect fit for the Crosby Lecture Series. Honored as a Distinguished Daughter of Pennsylvania, one of Pittsburgh’s Most Admired CEOs and Top Executives and the 2015 Pittsburgh Business Woman of the Year, Steele said Baker fits the ideal speaker’s persona.

“She is a really good fit for us here, especially when you look at her leadership, business, accolades, and everything she has done from the zoo in general,” Steele said.

It was University Provost Dr. Dana Baer who originally came up with the idea to host Baker for the event, but Steele said everyone involved in the planning process agreed Baker would be a nice fit.

“We have a great staff here too that has connections and make great suggestions,” Steele said. “Sometimes they can be the person who makes the connection between them and the university by contacting them first.”

As someone who has worked with various Crosby Lecture Series speakers in the past, Steele said she is greatly looking forward to Baker coming to speak on campus.

“I think she’s a really good fit for the university and our students here,” Baker said. “I think everyone will be able to garner a lot of information from her.”

The Crosby Lecture Series typically seeks to bring distinguished scholars who are distinguished in their disciplines. It is funded by 1950 Magna Cum Laude graduates of Waynesburg University, Glenn A. and Jane Lichtenfels Crosby.

For Steele, the Crosby Lecture series is a way for students, faculty and members of the surrounding community to immerse themselves in knowledge they might not be able to get inside the classroom.

“I think it’s wonderful that students get to hear from professionals who are in the field currently doing what they are talking to us about,” Steele said. “Sometimes they share with us certain trials or other hardships that they have gone through, and the students can see and learn from those things.”

The speaker will also get a chance to not only teach others, but to have an opportunity to learn and gain perspective from students and other audience members as well.

“I think it’s a win-win where we have a speaker come and they are sharing their knowledge, and they are giving back to those who are just getting started,” Steele said.