Eastern Iowa Community College District brings back its Viewpoint speaker series for another year with internationally acclaimed guests. This is the series that brought Quad-City crowds to the Adler Theatre to see journalist Tom Brokaw and NFL coach Mike Singletary. This series represents a bold step for the community college organization. Our community has relied on Scott, Clinton and Muscatine colleges to shape our work force and encourage lifelong learning. This speaker series adds a new element to the college district's mission: Infusing our local culture with a world of ideas from luminaries in many fields. Last year's series featured professionals at the top of the journalism and professional sports fields. This year's series extends to the arts and international relations.

Many thought it was a stretch to expect broad-based support for such a high-brow series, but that's what community leadership is about - pushing beyond the expected boundaries and comfortable limitations.

Quad-Citians responded well enough for the college district to expand this series and cut ticket prices.

Individually, each event promises to be entertaining, informative and thought provoking. Together, they provide an unprecedented opportunity and a mighty fine gift for anyone who values cultural growth in our community.

Oct. 6: Olympia Dukakis

The acclaimed stage and screen actress has starred in many films, including "Steel Magnolias," "Mr. Holland's Opus" and "Moonstruck," for which she won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress.

Her 2003 bestselling autobiography is titled, "Ask Me Again Tomorrow: A Life in Progress."

She recently directed at Victory Gardens Theatre in Chicago and last year starred in the world-premiere of "Another Side of the Island," based on Shakespeare's "The Tempest," at Alpine Theatre Project in Whitefish, Mont.

Jan. 26: Scott Turow

Attorney Scott Turow turned his profession into a passion, writing seven best-selling novels with stories rooted in the law.

His non-fiction essays appear in The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, the New Yorker and elsewhere.

His books have sold more than 25 million copies worldwide and are the basis of a feature film and two TV miniseries.

At the same time, he continues his legal work as a partner in the Chicago office of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal, concentrating on white-collar criminal defense.

April 13: Mary Robinson

As United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997-2002, Robinson has advocated in Rwanda, South Africa, Colombia and Cambodia, and was the U.N.'s first High Commissioner to visit China.

Her U.N. duty followed seven years as president of Ireland, the nation's first female executive and the first to win without the support of the conservative Fianna Fáil party.

She now lectures internationally on human rights.