Dear RSENR Students

We have a great opportunity for engagement and professional development coming up this fall! The Association for American Colleges & Universities is hosting a series of three webinars this fall entitled Citizenship Under Siege: Promoting Listening, Learning, and Engagement. 

 This is a perfect opening to engage in conversations about the topics of citizenship, immigration, race, and difference, all of which are being highlighted in the media during the lead-up to the Presidential election.

The webinars are all at 3:00-4:00, October 13, October 27, and November 3. We have registered for the series and will be presenting them in Aiken 103.

 The US Constitution’s preamble speaks of “We the People”—but who is considered part of that sacred circle, and how has this group varied over time? When national identity is hotly contested, what does it mean to experience citizenship as partial, denied, or fully acknowledged? How can the humanities illuminate differing narratives and open up space for understanding, connections, and shared visions of the future?

 From Fractious Differences to Engaged Dialogues (October 13, 2016)
How can texts and techniques from the humanities disrupt unexamined positions, put human faces to abstract ideas, and help open up spaces where dialogue and consensus might emerge on historic and contemporary questions about citizenship and who deserves it? What models exist for training dialogue facilitators who can help encourage listening and perspective taking across seemingly intractable positions?

Income Inequality and the Cost of Citizenship (October 27, 2016)
When economic disparities—often intertwined with ethnic, racial, and religious differences—impose real limitations on public participation, how can the humanities provide insights into the historic and persistent reality of differential access to full citizenship rights? Learn how several campuses have engaged their students and communities in examining this issue.

 I Want My Country Back: Immigration, Race, and Citizenship (November 3, 2016) In the midst of sometimes-dramatic demographic and cultural shifts, how have the humanities served to illuminate felt experiences, historical contexts, and ethical issues as the rich mosaic of people in the United States fluctuates? What approaches, courses, and public events lead to shared ends rather than perpetual conflict or feelings of displacement?

More information is available here.

 I hope you can make it.

marie