TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The University of Alabama New College will present the following guest speakers during the spring semester:

Dr. Emily Bernard will be discussing her latest book, “Some of My Best Friends: Writers on Interracial Friendship,” on Monday, March 21, at 7:30 p.m. in 205 Smith Hall. Bernard is a writer and editor; she received her Ph.D. in American Studies from Yale University. Her work has focused on the dynamics of interracial relations in American culture. She is the editor of “Remember Me to Harlem: The Letters of Langston Hughes and Carl Van Vechten.”

A poetry reading will be given by Jerome Rothenberg and Dr. Hank Lazer on Friday, April 8, at 4 p.m. in the Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library. Rothenberg is the author of more than 70 books of poetry, most recently with “A Paradise of Poets and A Book of Witness.” His has received a Guggenheim Fellowship and a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. Lazer, who currently serves as UA vice president for academic affairs, has published poetry in leading literary magazines and journals of experimental writing. Some of his works include: “Doublespace: Poems 1971-1989” and “INTER(IR)RUPTIONS,” a series of 10 collage-poems. Lazer is also a noted critic of modern and contemporary poetry and is a founding member of The Alabama Poetry Ensemble.

Barbara Pleasant will be the New College Distinguished Alumni Speaker; she will discuss “What a Garden Can Do for You” on Thursday, April 14, at 7:30 p.m. in Maxwell Hall. Pleasant is a lecturer, columnist and best-selling author of more than 20 books on plants and gardening. She has written for national magazines and newspapers including Mother Earth News (as a contributing editor), Organic Gardening and Gardening How To. Some of her books include “The Southern Garden Advisor” and “Gardening for Dummies.” She graduated with a bachelor’s degree from UA New College in 1975.

New College was established at UA in 1970 to provide an opportunity for highly motivated undergraduates to have greater flexibility in forming a curriculum leading to a bachelor of science or bachelor of arts degree. For more information on UA New College visit www.as.ua.edu/nc/.