University Of Maryland Launches "Democracy Then & Now: Citizenship And Higher Education"

Campus-wide initiative to engage students, faculty and staff on the role of public education in American democracy.

\r\n For Immediate Release
\r\n September 7, 2016
\r\n  
\r\n Contact
\r\n Katie Lawson, 301-405-4622, lawsonk@umd.edu\r\n

\r\n COLLEGE PARK, Md. – The University of Maryland has launched a campus-wide initiative on the intersection of public education, American democracy and civic engagement called “Democracy Then and Now: Citizenship and Public Education.” Through a series of conversations, lectures, student projects and voter registration drives, the initiative will engage UMD students, faculty and staff on the historical and contemporary relationship between public education and citizenship.\r\n

\r\n “It is the responsibility of a land-grant institution to educate students in preparation for citizenship in both a professional and personal context,” said Mary Ann Rankin, UMD’s senior vice president and provost. “It’s gratifying to see so many scholars join together across campus to advance public education and civic participation.”\r\n

\r\n The initiative spans more than a dozen colleges, schools, departments and offices across the university. For the eight weeks leading up to the November elections, the initiative will trace the history of UMD as an original land-grant institution responsible for fostering civic engagement, and will offer perspectives on the shifting educational and political opportunities of Americans, documented and undocumented.\r\n

\r\n The keynote event is a reading and conversation with Claudia Rankine, award-winning poet and author of “Citizen: An American Lyric,” which holds the distinction of being the only poetry book to be a New York Times bestseller in the nonfiction category. The conversation will take place on Thursday, September 29, 2016, at 5:30 p.m. in The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center at UMD. The event is free but tickets are required.\r\n

\r\n For more information on “Democracy Then and Now: Citizenship and Public Education,” including a full listing of events, visit http://dtn.umd.edu.\r\n

\r\n EVENTS
\r\n
\r\n SEPTEMBER\r\n

\r\n Education Week
\r\n
\r\n Historic Visions of Education at the University of Maryland
\r\n Wednesday, Sept. 7 at 4 PM, Parren Mitchell Art-Sociology Building 2203
\r\n Lecturer: Ethan Hutt, Assistant Professor, Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n Classics Week
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\r\n Democratic Readings of Addison’s “Cato” Then and Now: Classical Receptions Before and After Barack Obama
\r\n Thursday, Sept. 15 at 4 PM, Tawes Hall 0310
\r\n Lecturer: Judith P.  Hallett, Professor, Department of Classics, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n Agriculture and Resource Economics Week
\r\n
\r\n The Unifying Role of the Land-Grant University in 21st Century America
\r\n Monday, Sept. 19 at 3:30 PM, Biology-Psychology Building 1250
\r\n Lecturer: Angus Murphy, Professor and Chair, Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n English Week
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\r\n Public Education in the Early American Republic
\r\n Monday, Sept. 26 at 3:30 PM, Tawes Hall, Ulrich Recital Hall
\r\n Lecturer: Ralph Bauer, Associate Professor, Department of English, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n WORLDWISE: ARTS AND HUMANITIES DEAN’S LECTURE SERIES
\r\n Claudia Rankine in Conversation with Sheri Parks
\r\n Thursday, Sept. 29 at 5:30 PM, The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center
\r\n Free, Tickets Required
\r\n
\r\n Informal Meeting with Students
\r\n Friday, Sept. 30 at 10 AM, McKeldin Library, Special Events Room 6137
\r\n Guest Speaker: Claudia Rankine, Award-winning poet and author of “Citizen: An American Lyric”
\r\n Moderator: Josh Weiner, Professor, Department of English, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n OCTOBER
\r\n
\r\n Philosophy Week
\r\n
\r\n Most Americans Shouldn’t Vote
\r\n Tuesday, Oct. 4 at 3:30 PM, Martin Hall 1108
\r\n Guest Speaker: Jason Brennan, Robert J. and Elizabeth Flanagan Family Chair and Associate Professor of Strategy, Economics, Ethics, and Public Policy, McDonough School of Business, Georgetown University
\r\n
\r\n Public and Personal Morality in a Democracy
\r\n Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 3:30 PM, Tawes Hall, Ulrich Recital Hall
\r\n Lecturer: Susan Dwyer, Executive Director, Honors College and Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n Rhetoric and Communication Week
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\r\n Rhetoric and Politics in America: What’s Past is Prologue
\r\n Monday, Oct. 10 at 1 PM, Tawes Hall, Ulrich Recital Hall
\r\n Lecturers: Shirley Logan, Professor, Department of English, and Trevor Parry-Giles, Professor, Department of Communication, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n Internationalizing U.S. Public Higher Education
\r\n Tuesday, Oct. 11 at 1:30 PM, Tawes Hall, Ulrich Recital Hall
\r\n Guest Speaker: Amy Wan, Associate Professor and Co-Director of First Year Writing, Queens College, CUNY
\r\n
\r\n From the Schoolhouse Gate to the Jailhouse Door: Constitutional Rights on Campus
\r\n Thursday, Oct. 13 at 3:30 PM, Knight Hall, Eaton Theater
\r\n Guest Speaker: Frank LoMonte, Executive Director, Student Press Law Center
\r\n
\r\n History Week
\r\n
\r\n Promises of Consent and Equality? Public Education After the American Revolution
\r\n Wednesday, Oct. 19 at 3:30 PM, Taliaferro Hall 2110
\r\n Lecturer: Holly Brewer, Burke Chair of American History and Associate Professor, Department of History, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n American Democracy and Science
\r\n Thursday, Oct. 20 at 4 PM, Physical Sciences Complex, Lobby
\r\n Lecturer: Thomas D. Cohen, Professor, Department of Physics, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n Government and Politics Week
\r\n
\r\n The Architecture of Thomas Jefferson for a New Democracy
\r\n Monday, Oct. 24 at 5 PM, Architecture Auditorium 0204
\r\n Lecturer: Cynthia R. Field, Adjunct Professor, and Isabelle J. Gournay, Associate Professor, School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n Citizenship and the Right to Public Education for Undocumented Immigrants
\r\n Thursday, Oct. 27 at 3:30 PM, Jimenez Hall 0220
\r\n Lecturer: Robert Koulish, Director, MLaw Programs and Joel J. Feller Research Professor, College of Behavioral and Social Sciences, University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n NOVEMBER
\r\n
\r\n With Justice for All? Bryan Stevenson and the First Year Book
\r\n Tuesday, Nov. 1 at 4 PM, Stamp Student Union Colony Ballroom
\r\n Guest Speaker: Bryan Stevenson, Author of “Just Mercy,” the 2016–17 First Year Book at University of Maryland
\r\n
\r\n Of Slaves, Sharecroppers and Convicts: Unsettling Clemson University’s History
\r\n Monday, Nov. 7 at 3:30 PM, Tawes Hall 2115
\r\n Guest Speaker: Rhondda Thomas, Associate Professor, Department of English, Clemson University
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\r\n Sponsors
\r\n
\r\n Maryland Humanities
\r\n Office of Undergraduate Studies
\r\n Office of Diversity and Inclusion
\r\n College of Arts and Humanities
\r\n Philip Merrill College of Journalism
\r\n Honors College
\r\n College Park Scholars
\r\n School of Architecture, Planning and Preservation
\r\n Center for Literary and Comparative Studies
\r\n Center for Global Migration Studies
\r\n Department of English
\r\n Department of Classics
\r\n Department of Philosophy
\r\n Department of Teaching and Learning, Policy and Leadership
\r\n First Year Book Program
\r\n Local Americanists Group\r\n

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