Yale L. Rosenberg Memorial Lecture

About the 2026 Keynote

Academic Freedom Depends on the Ecosystem of Free Speech
Michael Roth’s talk will examine threats to higher education and discuss how defending our democracy is key to revitalizing the higher education sector.

Keynote Speaker Bio

Since becoming president of Wesleyan University in 2007, Michael S. Roth ’78 has overseen major campus improvements and launched interdisciplinary programs spanning public life, creative writing and criticism, the environment, film, East Asian studies, integrative sciences, education studies, science and technology, and design and engineering. An intellectual historian who teaches each semester, he also offers courses online.

Under his leadership, Wesleyan completed a record-breaking fundraising effort of more than $482 million, primarily for financial aid, and began a new campaign. He has led initiatives to make a Wesleyan education more affordable and more accessible to students from under-represented groups, including new recruiting efforts announced following the Supreme Court’s July 2023 affirmative action decision.

Roth is the author of numerous works on how people make sense of the past. His recent books published by Yale University Press include The Student, A Short History (2023), Beyond the University: Why Liberal Education Matters (2014), and Safe Enough Spaces (2019). In 2025, he received the PEN/Benenson Courage Award for standing up against governmental assaults on higher education.

About the Yale L. Rosenberg Memorial Lecture

An alumnus of Rice University, Yale L. Rosenberg graduated in 1964 from New York University Law School, where he was a Root-Tilden Scholar. Rosenberg joined the University of Houston Law Center in 1972 to pursue his true calling of teaching after a distinguished career in government. His inspired instruction in Civil Procedure, Federal Jurisdiction, Professional Responsibility, and Jewish Law at the UH Law Center earned him the UH Teaching Excellence Award in 2000. An award-winning scholar, Rosenberg has been called "America's prophet" for his analysis of the decline of federal habeas corpus. Rosenberg's successful academic career was matched only by his marriage to Irene Merker Rosenberg. Those who knew Yale and Irene marveled at the great love between them for more than 30 years as marriage partners, collaborators, and colleagues.

The Yale L. Rosenberg Memorial Fund was established to recognize and foster excellence at the UH Law Center. The endowment is used to fund a student writing prize and to bring distinguished speakers to the Law Center.

Related Reading

View and download Comparative American and Talmudic Criminal Law by Irene Merker Rosenberg and Yale L. Rosenberg: PDF.