This seminar series delves into a diverse array of issues in a conversational, human-to-human format. Here is the list of upcoming and past events (including replays). Though these events are geared towards instructors and other academics, all are welcome and free to attend.
FREE SEMINAR APRIL 16, 2026: Reshaping the infrastructure of misogyny and patriarchy requires collective engagement from us all. In this free event, Ani Zonneveld discusses the various initiatives she’s created to counter systems of harm including her advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights and opposing the misuse of religion to justify prejudice.
FREE SEMINAR DECEMBER 4, 2025: Names are more than just identifiers; they carry the weight of identity, culture, and resilience. In this conversation between Javeria K. Shah and Dr. Chris McAuley, they will explore the profound ways in which names shape personal and collective realities while navigating cultural and systemic power dynamics.
FREE SEMINAR OCTOBER 16, 2025: In this conversation between Jessye DeSilva and Seutaʻafili Dr. Patrick Thomsen, they discuss how memoir and storytelling help us revisit and repair the stories we tell ourselves and others, with a focus on how trans experiences of authenticity emerge.
FREE SEMINAR AUG 7, 2025: In this conversation between Anne Cecil and Dr. Reham El-Morally, they discuss the practice-based pedagogy of starting with current trends and deconstructing their influences – not only to build connections between the past and present but also to encourage students to reflect on how historical cycles, subcultures, and innovations influence contemporary identities and cultural narratives.
FREE SEMINAR JULY 17, 2025: In this conversation between Dr. David B. Green Jr. and Seutaʻafili Dr. Patrick Thomsen, they discuss the intersection of identity, music, acceptance, and resistance through the life course from childhood to adulthood.
In this conversation between Dr. Gabriel A. Cruz and Dr. Chris McAuley, they explore how contemporary speculative fiction constructs Latinidad in ways that advance humanizing depictions of Latinx people, as well as those cases where narratives reinforce reductive understandings about Latinidad.
FREE SEMINAR MAY 15, 2025: In this conversation between Dr. Kaelie Giffel and Dr. Reham El-Morally, they discuss how the university fails to serve the majority of people that move through it and what can be done about these failures. Themes discussed will include oppression and knowledge production in the university, divisions of labor between faculty, staff, and students, what aspects of the university are worth keeping, and tactics for transforming the university, from within and without.
In this conversation between Stephanie Levin and Dr. Janise Hurtig, they discuss ableism as a systemic issue that continues to plague American postsecondary education – and how educators can help break the cycle of ableism and further promote inclusiveness within their institutions.
A look at the rich complexities and harsh realities of life for Black families living in a segregated working-class community. In this conversation between Chris McAuley and Valandra, they cover themes of intergenerational mutual aid and caregiving, entrepreneurship, spirituality, and the impacts of the legacy of race and economic inequities.
In this conversation between Chris McAuley, Black Studies Collection Editor at Lived Places Publishing and Maurice Tyree, author of The Darkest Parts of my Blackness: A Journey of Remorse, Reform, Reconciliation, and (R)evolution (co-authored with Katie Singer), they examine the numerous problems and possible solutions to the disaster that is the American carceral state.