Under the theme “Thought into Action,” President Jill Beck opens Lawrence University’s 164th academic year and the 2012-13 convocation series Thursday, Sept. 13 with the annual matriculation address. The convocation, at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel, is free and open to the public. It will be Beck’s final matriculation convocation. In February she announced her plans to retire at the end of the 2012-13 academic year. Named president in 2004, Beck is the college’s 15th — and only woman — president. In 2009, Forbes.com named Beck a “barrier breaker,” one of 15 female college presidents on Forbes’ list of America’s 50 Best Colleges. A native of Worcester, Mass., she earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and art history from Cl...