The 2008 - 2009 Rider University Faculty Lecture Series
The Rider University Faculty Lecture Series Committee is pleased to announce the faculty lectures for the 2008–2009 academic year. All faculty are invited to attend to hear the work of your colleagues.
The Rider University Faculty Lecture Series is a forum for faculty to share high-quality research primarily with other faculty and administrators. The content of each presentation depends on the faculty member’s current research or artistic interests. The faculty member also considers the diversity of the audience members in his or her presentation. Each presentation is approximately forty minutes, followed by a question and answer period, and a wine and cheese reception.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
5 to 6 p.m., Sweigart 117
The Internet and Anti-Democratic Identity Formation: A Tocquevillian Perspective
Dr. Jonathan Mendilow, Department of Political Science
Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America of 1835–1840 led to our understanding of the link between the geographical space occupied by the community and the political dynamics that lie at the heart of democracy. This presentation examines the new geography of cyberspace in the light of de Tocqueville’s theory about space. Cyberspace presents the breakdown of self-preserving mechanisms, such as the ability to isolate homophobic phenomena and mass incitement against minorities, and thus presents a serious danger to democracy.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
4.30 to 6 p.m., Sweigart 117
Effects of Child Health on Family Resources
Dr. Hope Corman, Department of Economics
This presentation is a synthesis of a five-year project investigating the impact of child health on family resources. Although many researchers have investigated the effects of socio-economic status on health, few have considered the impact that family health can have on the economic status of the family. The purpose of this project has been to explore a variety of ways that having a child in poor health can affect the well-being of the family. These mechanisms include: parents’ relationship status, parents’ employment, receipt of public assistance (TANF, SSI, WIC, food stamps, housing), health insurance status (child, mother, father), parents’ social interactions, child care arrangements/use, paternal crime, and material hardship .
Monday, November 17, 2008
4.30 to 6 p.m., Sweigart 117
Hiding from Change: Ethics, Politics and the Role of Music and Education in Society Today
Dr. Patrick K. Schmidt, Department of Music Education, Westminster Choir College
Uni-directionality is a national pastime in the United States today. In the news outlets such unilateral communication is presented as ineluctable; in daily conversations it is often the norm; in education it is articulated through the needs of performativity—in other words, it comprises all that is objectively necessary and functionally effective. At a time when market systems pervade most if not all aspects of life—from education to work, entertainment, dating, structures of space, and usage of time—considering the ethical and political complexities of our decisions and thoughts (which go against simplistic or uni-directional views) is an essential element and a philosophical imperative. Using music and education as parameters, this talk will address how such complexities, which are constructed in dialogue, can both incite us toward agency and help us to shun responsibility.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
5 to 6 p.m., Art Gallery**
Deep Time: Landscape Metaphors in Abstraction
Deborah M. Rosenthal, Department of Fine Arts
My abstract paintings on landscape themes have their origins in the relation of certain sensations rather than in a response to a “scene” as in a traditional landscape. Up/down, distant/near, linear/planar, warm/cool are all juxtapositions I use to construct, as would a poet writing about landscape, a sensual, supra-rational space for the eye to explore. My talk looks at some of these kinds of metaphors in a few paintings in the Idol/Idyll exhibition in the Art Gallery.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
4.30 to 6 p.m., Sweigart 117
Confronting Our Discomfort: Clearing the Way For Professional Interactions in Early Childhood Classrooms
Dr. Tamar Jacobson, Department of Teacher Education
How do our own attitudes and emotions get in the way of our interactions with young children in the classroom? This presentation provides a framework for early childhood teachers and education professors to confront these issues head on. Do all teachers act professionally with children whose behaviors challenge or anger them? Participate in a discussion about childhood disciplinary experiences. Explore emotional development of teachers and learn new strategies to support them.
Monday, April 13, 2009
4.30 to 6 p.m., Sweigart 117
Awakening The Immune System to Combat Cancer
Dr. James E. Riggs, Department of Biology
Although the cells and molecules necessary for an immune response to cancer are found within tumors, they are often rendered ineffective by the tumor microenvironment. This talk will explore this dysregulation of immunity and discuss novel strategies for therapeutic intervention. Cancer treatment via immunotherapy avoids the toxicity associated with current chemotherapy and radiation protocols.
The Rider University Faculty Lecture Series is supported by the Offices of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs; the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, Education, and Sciences; and the Assistant Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, Education, and Sciences.
