AnBryce Forum: Navigating the Margins: Diversity, Inclusion and Access at the University of the 21st Century

This year’s Forum will examine how those who are on the University’s “margins” – those who are often perceived to be, or perceive themselves to be, on the outside looking in –  navigate the University life.  Here, we use as our marginal “reference point” the experience and background of our own students, who are first-generation, low-income, and in many cases, students of color.   Our panels will include students, faculty, alumni and administrators, and guests from other Universities.  

◊ Monday, November 6, 3:30pm, McKenna Hall

Unique Challenges Faced by First-Generation Students at 21st Century Colleges and Universities: A View from the Trenches

Administrators from Georgetown, Stanford, Princeton and Wake Forest will discuss the ins and outs of managing programs that support the burgeoning first-generation student population at elite colleges and universities.  Please join us for an insider’s view of the history, evolution and challenges inherent in this enterprise.

◊ Monday, November 6, 5:30pm, McKenna Hall – Keynote Address

Our Nation’s Professoriate, Diversity and Racism: The Five Truths We Don’t Want to Confront

Following a brief overview of the 2017 AnBryce Forum and an address entitled, “What Kneeling Football Players, Charlottesville Marchers and Commencement Walk-Outs Have to Teach Us about the Margins at Notre Dame,” Dr. Paulette G. Curtis, the Faculty Director of the AnBryce Scholars Initiative at the University of Notre Dame, will introduce keynote speaker, Professor Marybeth Gasman, Judy & Howard Berkowitz Professor of Education, University of Pennsylvania, who will speak candidly about the lack of diversity in Higher Education. Prof. Gasman’s remarks will draw upon her extensive academic career, which has focused on the history of American higher education, Minority Serving Institutions, racism and diversity, fundraising and philanthropy, and higher education leadership. Please join us for what promises to be a thought-provoking lecture and a great kick-off to the 2017 AnBryce Forum.

A reception following the keynote will begin at 7pm in the McKenna Hall Atrium. Registration is not required, but will assist in determining reception numbers.  Register

◊Tuesday, November 7, 3:30-4:45pm, McKenna Hall

Race and the Inclusive Classroom

Faculty from the University of Notre Dame and Indiana University, along with a student interlocutor from Notre Dame, will examine the ways that race matters in the classroom, a space not simply shaped by an educational agenda but also impacted by complex social dynamics.  Students who are both in the Notre Dame  “majority” and those whom are often defined as “minorities” within its structure will walk away with a deeper understanding of this topic.  This panel, which will be moderated by Professor Stuart Greene, is the first of two dedicated to understanding the classroom experience.

◊Tuesday, November 7, 5-6:30pm, McKenna Hall

Standing Out and Fitting In: How Low-Income Students Navigate Campus Life at Wealthy Institutions

An open and provocative discussion about the myriad challenges low-income students face at institutions where many students are from higher economic strata.  Using their own experiences as a touchstone, panelists from Princeton, Georgetown and Notre Dame will speak about the culture of their institutions, as well as the successes and blind spots of programs meant to support low-income students.

◊ Wednesday, November 8, 12:15pm, McKenna Hall

Being DACA in the “Age” of Trump: A Legal Perspective

Professor Alina Das, professor of Clinical Law and Co-Director of the Immigrant Rights Clinic at New York University (NYU) School of Law, will offer insights into the contemporary legal landscape for immigrants since the Trump administration took office in January 2017. Given the heated discussions around sanctuary campuses and how colleges and universities will manage in the face of the changing laws and regulations, Prof. Das’ lecture will offer unique insights into the contemporary reality regarding this topic.  Rev. Donald P. McNeill Professor of Transformative Latino Leadership Luis Fraga, who is also the Chair of Political Science and Director of the Institute for Latino Studies will offer remarks following Prof. Das’ presentation.  Boxed lunches will be served at 11:30, with the presentation and remarks beginning promptly at 12:15. Registration ensures a boxed lunch. Register

◊ Wednesday, November 8, 3:30pm, McKenna Hall

Intersectionality and the Inclusive Classroom

The second of two panels dedicated to understanding complex social dynamics in the classroom, with panelists drawn from Notre Dame, St. Mary’s College and Indiana University, as well as the ND student body.  This panel, also moderated by Prof. Greene, will examine the intersecting factors  – race, class/financial status, gender, sexual orientation –  that shape student and faculty experiences in the classroom.

◊ Wednesday, November 8, 5:30pm, McKenna Hall

 

Scholarship Athletes: Challenges, Pressures and Expectations

Scholarship athletes, who appear to be exalted “insiders,”  face many pressures at universities like Notre Dame, where they are expected to not only be skilled on “the field” but good students who are able to juggle their academic lives.  Recent alums from football, men’s basketball and women’s track will discuss the complex realities they navigated as athletes, including stereotypes, parity in the classroom, work/life balance and how they struggled to “do it all” and at what cost to their experience of campus life.  They will also touch upon the other social categories that weighed upon their experience, namely financial status and race.    Dr. Gabriel Torres Colon, from Vanderbilt University, will moderate this exciting panel. A reception will follow at 7pm to mark the end of the 2017 AnBryce Forum. Registration is not required, but will allow us to determine reception numbers. Register