Phi Theta Kappa Announces 2008 Honors Seminar Series
Phi Theta Kappa's 2008 Honors Seminar Series, featuring lectures by four
renowned scholars, is scheduled for September 23, October 7, October 21
and November 18.
The Honors Seminars consist of a series of four
lectures by outstanding academicians, all experts in their fields, addressing
an interdisciplinary aspect of the 2008-2010 Honors Study Topic, The
Paradox of Affluence: Choices, Challenges, and Consequences.
"In
a climate of budget cuts and rising transportation costs, the Honors Seminar
Series provides an affordable way for community colleges to bring four
high-quality speakers to their campuses," said Phi Theta Kappa's Executive
Director Rod A. Risley. "In addition, the Seminar Series can serve as a basis
for a college honors program or course, an effective recruiting tool, and
a way to stimulate interaction with members of the community."
Two
subscription options are available: a satellite downlink, allowing viewers
to interactively participate by phoning or emailing questions to presenters;
and also through video downloads. Subscribers to the online video download
and web stream option will also receive a bonus feature including 30 minutes
of post show discussion between the speaker and the studio audience.
"The
Honors Seminar broadcast is appropriate for many different disciplines
-- it can be used in various classes - both campus-based and through online
delivery. Professors at a subscribing college are allowed to download
and make as many copies as they wish - to use when they wish," said Susan Edwards,
Phi Theta Kappa's Director of Honors Programs, "Considering these features
being offered that provide more students exposure to the program, the cost
per student is pennies."
Honors Seminar subscriptions are
$450 for the satellite downlink and $500 for the satellite link and online
video download.
Colleges may subscribe
online. Topics for the 2008 Seminars include:
September
23, Dr. Richard Heinzl, Doctors without Borders - North America
Through
Doctors without Borders, Dr. Heinzl has observed the paradox of affluence
while providing medical care to persons in crisis all over the world, including
Turkey, Cambodia and Iraq. He is author of Cambodia Calling: A Memoir
from the Frontlines of Humanitarian Aid.
October 7, Dr.
Raquel Pinderhughes, Pathways out of Poverty through Green Collar
Jobs: The Role of Scholarship in Improving Quality of Life for Urban Residents
Dr.
Pinderhughes is professor of urban studies at San Francisco State University.
Her teaching, research and community activism focus on improving quality
of life for people living and working in cities. Her landmark study, Green
Collar Jobs: An Analysis of the Capacity of Green Business to Provide High
Quality Jobs for Men and Women with Barriers to Employment, is considered
the definitive work on the subject, and has been used as a model for various
programs.
October 21, Eric Weiner, The Geography of Bliss
A
foreign correspondent for National Public Radio, Weiner is author of The
Geography of Bliss, an examination of the role of place in humanity's
search for happiness. Over the past decade, he has reported breaking news
from more than 30 countries. Weiner has also provided commentary for the
Los Angeles Times, Slate and The New Republic.
November 18, Dr. Michael Galaty, Archaeological Evidence
for the Origins of Affluence
Dr. Galaty, Associate Professor
of Anthropology at Millsaps College in Mississippi, has conducted research
into the archeology of complex societies and state formation at sites around
the world. He is director of the Shala Valley Project, which studies the
archaeology and history of the territory of the Shala tribe in northern
Albania.
Since 2002, Phi Theta Kappa chapters and community
colleges have used the Honors Seminar Series as an honors programming resource
and as an opportunity to raise awareness about the Society and the host colleges.
Some Honors Seminar "Best Practices" include inviting high school honors
students to attend, as a recruitment opportunity for the college; involving
community leaders as moderators for post-seminar discussions; and asking
college faculty to give extra credit to their classes for attending.
Comments
from 2007 Honors Seminar subscribers:
"Two instructors brought
their classes and at least five instructors gave extra credit for attending...
A record attendance included high school students and visitors from other
chapters, as well as entire classes." - Anna Joy, Sacramento City College,
California
"Three chapters from St. Petersburg College's
Seminole, Tarpon Springs and St. Petersburg campuses watched the telecast
and held a discussion afterward. Students have enjoyed the experience
of not only examining current issues related to the Honors Study Topic,
but the fellowship as well." - Steve Meier, St. Petersburg College, Florida
Phi
Theta Kappa International Honor Society, headquartered in Jackson, Mississippi,
is the largest honor society in American higher education with 1,250 chapters
on two-year and community college campuses in all 50 of the United States,
Canada, Germany, the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands,
the Federated States of Micronesia, the British Virgin Islands, the United
Arab Emirates and U.S. territorial possessions. More than two million
students have been inducted since its founding in 1918, with approximately
100,000 students inducted annually.
