LEWISTON — U.S. Sen. Angus King, I-Maine, will deliver a speech titled “How Washington Works (Or Doesn’t)” to kick off Bates College’s annual Civic Forum Series this month.

The event will be held at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, in the Olin Arts Center Concert Hall, 75 Russell St.

King, a former Maine governor and a U.S. senator since 2013, has been an outspoken supporter of greater bipartisan dialogue and relationship building among legislators.

Bates College’s civic forums are produced and sponsored by Bates’ Harward Center for Community Partnerships. The series invites college and community audiences to contemplate civic, political and policy issues significant to Maine and beyond.

Three more forums are slated at 7:30 p.m. in the Muskie Archives:

* Monday, Oct. 26: “Preserving the Cuban Revolution During ‘Normalization’”? by Ariel Dacal Diaz, Cuban educator and writer.

* Thursday, Nov. 12: “Burning Desire: Our Longing for Justice and Hope for Healing” by ?Becca Stevens, internationally acclaimed speaker, writer, social entrepreneur and founder of Thistle Farms, a social enterprise run by women who have survived lives of prostitution, trafficking, addiction and life on the streets.

* Monday, Nov. 16: “Harness the Sun: America’s Quest for a Solar-Powered Future”? by Phil Warburg, author and past president of the Conservation Law Foundation.

The forums are open to the public at no cost. For more information, call 207-786-6202.