CNN anchor Soledad O’Brien is coming to town. The Emmy award-winning journalist is set to speak on campus as a part of the Student Programming Association’s Distinguished Speaker series. O’Brien is a regular contributor to CNN, HBO Real Sports, and Al Jazeera America. The panel-style lecture, which is hosted in partnership with the Black Caucus, will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 11 at 8 p.m. in Eisenhower Auditorium.

O’Brien has established herself as one of the most respected broadcast journalists in the nation. In 2013, she founded Starfish Media Group, a production company “dedicated to uncovered and producing empowering stories that take a challenging look at the often divisive issues of race, class, wealth, poverty, and opportunity through personal stories,” says the SPA press release.

O’Brien started a documentary series titled “Black in America”, which takes a look at issues involving African-Americans in the country. The most recent part of the series has focused on police brutality, and her current speaking tour is traveling to college campuses nationwide to discuss the hot-button issue. At Eisenhower Auditorium, O’Brien will be joined on stage by panelists Derman French and Julianna Malveaux in addition to Penn State student Jada Hill, a member of the Black Caucus on campus.

“Black in America is about Americans talking about the uncomfortable issue of race, about opening the floor to new perspectives, problems and the powerful experiences of regular people,” O’Brien said. “This is a forum for the conversation America is ready to have — why do so many black Americans fear the very people that are supposed to protect them?”

Tickets will be available for students for free beginning on Jan. 28 before opening up to the community for no charge on Feb. 4.

Image: CNN.com