Interdisciplinary Symposia and Guest Speakers

AY 2017-2018 (Includes Hosted and Co-Sponsored)

Fall 2017

North Carolina English Teachers’ Association (NCETA). Friday, October 13 and Saturday, October 14, 2017.

HOW WE KNOW/WHAT WE KNOW Humanities Disciplines Symposium. Monday, October 16, 2017.

“Community in the Age of Riots,” A Lecture by Joshua Clover. Thursday, October 19, 2017. Sponsored by the English Department Graduate Program and the Humanities Institute with support made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Dr. Andreas Weber Public Lecture and Book Signing. Wednesday, October 25, 2017. This lecture is co-sponsored by the Food, Health, and Ecological Well-Being Program at the School of Divinity and Wake Forest University’s Center for Energy, Environment, and Sustainability, the Wake Forest Humanities Institute, made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Center for Education, Imagination, and the Natural World.

“The Transmission of Medical Knowledge along the Silk Road,” A Lecture by Dr. Chen Ming, Peking University, China. Thursday, November 2, 2017. Co-sponsored by the Provost’s Fund for International Scholars, the History Department, the Humanities Institute, and the Department for the Study of Religions.

A Talk by Journalist and Author Masha Gessen. Tuesday, November 7, 2017.

Past Events

  • Spring 2017

    “The State of Eugenics” Film Screening & Panel Discussion. Thursday, January 12, 2017. Sponsored by the Anna Julia Cooper Center, the Journalism Program, Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies, School of Law, Women’s Center, the Documentary Film Program, the Humanities Institute, American Ethnic Studies, Politics & International Affairs, History, and the Center for Bioethics, Health & Society.

    “Writing Resistance: Sustainable Spiritualities in the Anthropocene” with Terry Tempest Williams. Tuesday, February 7, 2017. Williams’s visit was sponsored by the Provost’s Fund for Academic Excellence, the Pro Humanitate Institute, the Humanities Institute, the Writing Program, the Center for Energy, Environment and Sustainability, the Divinity School, the Environmental Program, the Religion and Public Engagement Concentration, and the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Department.

    “Feeding Flesh and Spirit: Stories of Religion, Food, and Resilience in the Black Faith Tradition.” Summer Writing Grant Presentation by Derek Hicks. Wednesday, February 15, 2017. Z. Smith Reynolds Library Auditorium.

    “Keyword Crossings.” Friday, February 17, 2017. Wake Downtown, Second Floor Atrium. Faculty from the humanities and sciences dared to explain common keywords to their non-specialist colleagues. For this first-time event the common keyword was “Scale.”

    “Decoding Morse”: Cross-Disciplinary Conversation and a Viewing of Samuel F. B. Morse’s Gallery of the Louvre. Friday, February 24, 2017. Facilitated by Morna O’Neill, Associate Professor of Art History. Co-sponsored with the Reynolda House Museum of American Art.

    Teachers, Teaching, and Media Conference. March 2-4, 2017. Convened by Mary Dalton (Communication), Adam Friedman (Education), Woody Hood (Film and Media Studies), Allan Louden (Communication). Co-sponsored by the Office of the Provost, the Department of Communication, the Department of Education, and the Film and Media Studies Program.

    “American/Medieval: Book Launch & Reception.” Tuesday, March 14, 2017. Ammons Lounge, Tribble Hall. Sponsored by the Wake Forest University Humanities Institute and the Interdisciplinary Program in Medieval & Early Modern Studies.

    Sixth Annual Student Symposium on Gender and Sexuality: Feminist Solidarities. Wednesday, March 15, 2017. ZSR Library Auditroium. Co-sponsored by the Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies Program and the WFU School of Divinity.

    “Good Business? Hugh Lane, the Art Market, and the Art Museum.” Summer Writing Grant Presentation by Morna O’Neill. Monday, March 20, 2017. Z. Smith Reynolds Auditorium.

    “The Art of the Incomplete” with Thomas Harrison, Professor and Chair of Italian, UCLA. Tuesday, March 28, 2017.  162 Greene Hall.  Sponsored by the Italian Program, in collaboration with the Humanities Institute, the Thomas Jack Lynch Philosophy Fund, and the Department of Art.

    “Is Objectivity Dead?” with Lewis Wallace, Journalist. Monday, April 3, 2017. Z. Smith Reynolds Library Auditorium. Sponsored by the Department of Politics and International Affairs and the LGBTQ Center with additional support from the WFU Humanities Institute, with support made possible by a major grant from the NEH, Diversity Education, Department of English, Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Department, Provost’s Fund for Academic Excellence, the Pro Humanitate Institute, and the Anna Julia Cooper Center.

    “Fake News, Stephen Colbert, and the Momentous Risks of Satire.” Summer Writing Grant Presentation by T.H.M. Gellar-Goad. Tuesday, April 4, 2017. Z. Smith Reynolds Library Auditorium.

    Gendered Narratives of the Holocaust: Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies Symposium. Thursday, April 20, 2017. DeTamble Auditorium, Tribble Hall and ZSR Auditorium. Co-sponsored by the Department of Theatre and Dance, the Department of History, the Department of Communication, the Department for the Study of Religions, and the Intercultural Center.

    Annual Humanities Institute Interdisciplinary Faculty Seminars Spring Symposium featuring the talk, “Decolonizing the Humanities: Reclaiming the Personal and the Public,” with Robert Newman, President and Director, National Humanities Center. Thursday, April 27, 2017. DeTamble Auditorium, Tribble Hall. Sponsored by the Humanities Institute.

  • Fall 2016

    “A Very Brief History of the 21st Century American Novel,” A Lecture by Gordon Hutner. Tuesday, September 6, 2016. Co-sponsored with the Department of English.

    “An Editor’s Guide to Scholarly Publishing: A Workshop for Humanities Faculty” with Gordon Hutner. Wednesday, September 7, 2016. Co-sponsored with the Department of English.

    73rd Annual Southeastern Renaissance Conference. Friday and Saturday, September 23-24, 2016. Sponsored by the WFU Humanities Institute, the English Department, Medieval and Renaissance Studies, the Dean’s Office, and Provost’s Office.

    Story, Health, and Healing: A Symposium on Narrative in Medicine. Saturday, October 1, 2016. Sponsored by the WFU Humanities Institute.

    “De-Ciphering American Literature: 1945-1840-2016” by Caroline Levander. Wednesday, October 5, 2016. Co-sponsored with the Department of English.

    “They are not like us: Constructing a negative Italian immigrant typology” by Peter Carravetta. Thursday, October 6, 2016. Co-sponsored with the Department of Romance Languages.

    Jewish Studies Futures at Wake Forest. Friday, October 14, 2016. Convened by Dean Franco, Professor of English.

    “Knowing by Listing: the Genre of pulu (Treatises and Lists), Chinese Writings on Material Culture and Nature Studies” by Martina Siebert. Tuesday, October 25, 2016. Co-sponsored by the Department of History.

    “Of Poetry and Pixels: The Power of a Liberal Arts Education in TV, Film and Journalism” by Billy Shebar. Tuesday, October 25, 2016. Co-sponsored by the Department of English.

    “Mobile Massasoit: Thanksgiving, Memorialization, and the Myth of Peaceful Colonization.” Summer Writing Grant Presentation with Lisa Blee, Associate Professor of History. Tuesday, November 15, 2016. Z. Smith Reynolds Library Auditorium.

  • AY 2015-2016 (Includes Hosted and Co-Sponsored)

    Rising Voices: A Wake Forest LGBTQIA Alumni Conference. October 23-24, 2015. Convened by Angela Mazaris, Director of the WFU LGBTQ Center. The conference brought together students, faculty, staff, and alumni to discuss current work in LGBTQ scholarship, arts, and public policy, provide mentorship to students, and create an oral history documentary project.
    Co-sponsored by the Anna Julia Cooper Center; the Department of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; the Division of Campus Life; the Dean of the College; the Office of the President; The Office of Personal and Career Development; the Provost’s Fund for Academic Excellence; the School of Business; the School of Divinity; and University Advancement.

    The Naropa University Experience. November  3-6, 2015. Convened by Ulrike Wiethaus, Professor of the Study of Religions and American Ethnic Studies.
    Co-sponsored by Campus Life; Department of Education; Department of Theatre and Dance; University Counseling Center; Chaplain’s Office; Department for the Study of Religions; Teaching and Learning Center; Divinity School; Office of Wellbeing; and the Writing Program.

    A Cherokee Celebration and Commemoration: President James Ralph Scales and the Cherokee Heritage of Wake Forest University. November 13, 2015. Convened by Ulrike Wiethaus, Professor of the Study of Religions and American Ethnic Studies.
    Co-sponsored by Offices of the President, Provost, and Dean of the College; Office of Multicultural Affairs; American Ethnic Studies; Departments of Anthropology, History, and the Study of Religions.

    4th Annual Lenoir-Rhyne Symposium on the Future of Healthcare: Integrated Systems of Care. February 24, 2016. Lenoir-Rhyne University.
    Jointly provided by: Lenoir Rhyne University, Catawba Valley Behavioral Healthcare, and Northwest Area Health Education Center (AHEC) of Wake Forest School of Medicine and a part of the NC AHEC Program.

    Utopias: Dreaming the Social. March 2, 2016. Convened by Herman Rapaport, Reynolds Professor of English. The Program in Medieval and Early Modern Studies is planning a symposium on utopia whose immediate occasion is the commemoration of Thomas More’s publication of Utopia in 1516. The conference Utopias: Dreaming the Social will cover a range of topics, including More’s Utopia, its legacies, and utopian thinking during the Renaissance—what it means in theory and in practice to imagine new forms of community at a time when paradigm shifts are being made in terms of world exploration, technological development, information dissemination, and political-economic conceptualizations.
    Co-sponsored by the Program in Medieval and Early Modern Studies.

    Aging Re-Imagined: A Symposium at Wake Forest University. March 17-18, 2016. Convened by Christina Tsoules Soriano, Associate Professor of Dance and Daniel Kim-Shapiro, Professor of Physics and Director of the Translational Science Center.
    Co-sponsored by the Office of the President; the Provost’s Fund for Academic Excellence; the Translational Science Center; the Center for Bioethics, Health, and Society; the Law School; IPLACe; THRIVE; the Departments of Physics and Exercise Science; and the Sticht Center on Aging at the Wake Forest School of Medicine.

    Words Awake 2. April 8-10, 2016. Convened by Tom Phillips, Director of the Wake Forest Scholars Program.
    Co-sponsors TBA.

    Fifth Annual Student Research Symposium on Gender and Sexuality: Feminist Intersectionalities: Systemic Injustice and Social Inequality. March 16, 2016. Convened by Katherine Shaner, Assistant Professor of Divinity and Wanda Calzano, Director of the Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Program.
    Co-sponsored by the Divinity School; Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; and URECA.

  • AY 2014-2015 (Includes Hosted and Co-Sponsored)

    Humanities for Our Future: Envisioning the Heart of Humanities Education. Panel discussion and working dinner groups. September 11, 2014.
    Co-sponsored by the North Carolina Humanities Council.

    Seis Miradas por Latinoamerica/Six Perspectives of Latin America. An interdisciplinary event honoring Chilean Poet Pable Neruda. September 22-26, 2014. Convened by Patricia Dixon (Music).
    Co-sponsored by NEA, NEH, IPLACe, Humanities Institute, Office of the Provost, Office of the Dean of the College, Music Department, Romance Languages Department, Art Department, Latin American Studies and Latino Studies, Interdisciplinary Honors Program, English Department and the Inter-American Development Bank.

    The Civil Wars of Japan’s Meiji Restoration and National Reconciliation: Global Historical Perspectives. RHMAA. January 30-31, 2015. Convened by Robert Hellyer (History).
    Co-sponsored by the WFU Departments of History, East Asian Languages & Cultures, tbe Dean’s Office, the Provost Office for Global Affairs, Provost Fund for Vibrant Campus & Japan Foundation, NEH, Asian/Pacific Studies Institute-Duke, Carolina Asia Center (UNC Chapel Hill), Japan-United States Friendship Commission, and Association for Asian Studies.

    25 Years Later: Nathan Hatch’s The Democratization of American Christianity. Broyhill Auditorium, Farrell Hall. February 6, 2015. Convened by Jay Ford (Religion).
    Co-sponsored by the WFU Department of Religion and the WFU School of Divinity.

    The Idlewild Conference: Conversations on Race, Gender, Religion, and Capitalism in the U.S. South. Annenberg Forum, Carswell Hall. February 27, 2015. Convened by Ronald Neal (Religion).
    Co-sponsored by the WFU Department of Philosophy, the Department of Religion, the Office of the Provost, BB&T Center for the Study of Capitalism, American Ethnic Studies, Office of the Associate Dean for Diversity and Inclusion, the School of Divinity, the Religion and Public Engagement Program, the Department of Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, the Department of History, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, and the John Allen Easley Professor of Religion.

    Mass Incarceration and the Criminal Justice System: a Student-Faculty Symposium and Opening of Release: From Stigma to Acceptance. ZSR Library Auditorium and Atrium. March 19th (4-6pm) and March 20th (4-5:30pm), 2015. Convened by Lisa Blee (History).

    Reasonable Accommodations and Roma in Contemporary Europe: A Symposium on Global Governance, Democracy and Social Justice. Duke University, John Hope Franklin Center and DeTamble Auditorium, Tribble Hall, WFU. April 7-8, 2015. Convened by Angela Kocze (Women’s, Gender and Sexuality Studies).
    Co-sponsored by the WFU Department of Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies, the Provost’s Fund for Academic Excellence at WFU, and IPLACe, and sponsored by the Council for European Studies at Duke University.

    Climate Talks: Negotiating the Fate of the Planet. ZSR Library Auditorium. 5:30-6:30pm, March 18, 2015. Convened by Luke Johnston (Religion).

    The Human Face of Environmental Inequality: An Interdisciplinary Symposium. Wake Forest University, Wait Chapel and Benson University Center. March 26-27, 2015.
    Co-sponsored by the Center for Energy, Environment and Sustainability and the Human Rights and Global Justice Research Group (an affiliate of the Humanities Institute), with support from the Office of Sustainability.
    Keynote Speakers and Round Table Participants
    Related Events, Programs, and Links

    International Conference on Religion, Violence, and Peace: A Human Rights and Global Justice Event. Annenberg Forum, Carswell Hall. April 9-11, 2015.
    Co-sponsored by the Human Rights and Global Justice Research Group, and the Office of the Provost.

    Annual Interdisciplinary Faculty Symposium. DeTamble Auditorium. April 30, 2015. The program began with a round table discussion featuring representatives from each of this year’s Interdisciplinary Faculty Seminars. Following a Q&A with the participants, invited guest speaker, Christopher Long (@cplong) gave the talk, “Performing Collaborative Scholarship.” Long is Professor of Philosophy & Classics and Associate Dean for Graduate and Undergraduate Education, College of the Liberal Arts at Penn State.

  • AY 2013-2014 (Includes Hosted and Co-Sponsored)

    Humanities and the Professions: The Importance of the Humanities for the World of Work, Tuesday, September 10, 2013.

    Lay My Burden Down: Freedom and the Legacies of the Civil War, lecture by Thavolia Glymph, Associate Professor of History, Duke University. Part of Lay My Burden Down: Freedom and Legacies of the Civil War: A Conference to Commemorate the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War in North Carolina. October 17-18, 2013.

  • AY 2012-2013 (Includes Hosted and Co-Sponsored)

    “Poca Favilla, Gran Fiamma Seconda”: A Commemoration of the Life and Work of Allen Mandelbaum, October 13, 2012.

    Minorities in Islam/Muslims as Minorities, October 19-20, 2012. Michaelle Browers, Political Science, and Nelly Van Doorn Harder, Religion, co-conveners.

    Diasporas and Race, October 25-27, 2012. Sally Barbour, Romance Languages, convener.

    The Global Homer: Odysseys in the Context of Diaspora, October 27, 2012. Phil Archer, Allison Slaby and Stephan Dragisic, RHMAA; Sally Barbour, Romance Languages, and Omaar Hena, English, co-conveners.

    Exile and Interpretation, November 16-18, 2012. David Weinstein, Political Science, convener.

    Cagefest, Fall 2012. Louis Goldstein, Music, convener.

    HerStories: Breast Cancer Narratives and Counter-Narratives, March 1-2, 2013.

    Second Annual Interdisciplinary Student Research Symposium on Gender and Sexuality, March 4, 2013. Michelle Voss Roberts, Divinity, and Wanda Balzano, WGS, co-conveners.

    Scarred for Life, April 4-5, 2013. Phoebe Zerwick, English, and Wanda Balzano, WGS, co-conveners.

    After the Genome: A Conference on the Language of Our BioTechnical Future, April 12-13, 2013. Michael Hyde, Communication, convener.

    Rewriting Homosexuality: An Interdisciplinary, International Conversation, April 19, 2013. Shannon Gilreath, Law and WGS, convener.

    Articulations of Humanity in Black Religious Life, April 19, 2013. Derek Hicks, Divinity, convener.

    Humanities Institute Annual Interdisciplinary Faculty Seminars Symposium, May 1, 2013.