Trinity College

Events Intended to Spark Interest, Unite Campus Community

HARTFORD, Conn. – The “Common Hour,” which will provide opportunities for students, faculty and staff to discuss topics of interest to the entire College community and to enjoy programs that enhance peoples’ intellectual and cultural lives, will get underway Tuesday, September 8 and continue throughout the fall semester.

Although some of the events are meant to be fun and informal, many are designed to be thought provoking, timely, and germane. The lunch hour was chosen so that students can attend without having to miss a class, and so that faculty and staff can also attend.

A light lunch will be provided, but it’s best if you RSVP. To reserve a spot and lunch, please email: common-hour@trincoll.edu.

Unless otherwise noted, the programs will take place on Tuesdays and/or Thursdays from 12:15 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. on the second floor of Mather Hall.

As planned, the Common Hours events are:

• September 8: All-Campus Welcome Back Ice Cream Social.
The social is sponsored by the President’s and Calendar and Special Events offices and will be held on the Mather Quadrangle.
• September 10: National Campus Fire Safety Month: Mock Residence-Hall Room Burn Demonstration. The “controlled burn” of two residence-hall rooms is sponsored by the Facilities and Campus Life Departments in conjunction with the Hartford Fire Department and will take place on the Mather Quadrangle.
• September 17: 5th Annual Summer Science Symposium, sponsored by the Interdisciplinary Science Symposium.
• September 17: Constitution Day Panel Discussion. The panel is sponsored by the Public Policy and Law and Political Science Departments and will focus on the U.S. Supreme Court.
• September 24: Human Rights Summer Fellowship Symposium, sponsored by the Human Rights Program.
• September 24: Gregory G. Colomb, professor of English and Director of Academic and Professional Writing at the University of Virginia. This event is sponsored by Trinity’s Center for Teaching and Learning.
• October 1: Altering Cellular Signals to Reveal Cell Specification Mechanisms during Development. The lecture, to be delivered by Robert Fleming, associate professor of biology, is sponsored by the Faculty Research Committee.
• October 8: Coeducation at Trinity: The Early Years. Organized by Ronald Spencer ’64, associate dean of faculty emeritus, the event is sponsored by the 40th Anniversary of Coeducation Committee.
• October 15: The Epoch Story of Islam: The Struggles of Ordinary Muslins in Extraordinary Times. Sponsored by the Faculty Research Committee, the featured speaker is Raymond Baker, professor of international politics.
• October 22: Majors Fair. This event is sponsored by the Dean of Faculty, the Dean of Students, and the First-Year Program office.
• October 22: President’s Climate Commitment and Climate Action Plan Update, sponsored by the Campus Sustainability Task Force.
• October 29: Mental Illness in the Criminal Justice System. Erin Smith of the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services will speak at the event sponsored by the Psychology and Neuroscience and Human Rights Programs.
• October 29: Connecticut’s Citizen Election Program: Amplifying The Voice of the People or Silencing Free Speech. This panel discussion is sponsored by Community Relations. The speakers include state Rep. Jason Rojas of East Hartford (who is also Trinity’s Director of Community Relations; Diana Evans, professor of political science; state Rep. James Spallone, House chairman of the legislature’s Government Administration and Elections Committee; and Kimberly Hynes, senior organizer for Common Cause of Connecticut.
• November 5: Reading Beauvoir: The Second Sex in the Post-War World. Judith Coffin ’74, associate professor of history at the University of Texas in Austin, is the featured speaker at an event sponsored by the Philip C.F. Bankwitz Lecture and the 40th Anniversary of Coeducation Committee.
• November 12: Sex Differences in Brain and Cognition. Sarah Raskin, associate professor of psychology and neuroscience, will speak at an event sponsored by the 40th Anniversary of Coeducation Committee.
• November 19: Remembering to Remember: Studies of Prospective Memory. Raskin will talk about her research at an event sponsored by the Faculty Research Committee.
• November 19: “Black to Business” Series: Changing Hearts and Minds for the Better of Our Community. Sponsored by IMANI, the event will feature Nisa Islam Muhammad, co-founder of the Wedded Bliss Foundation and Black Marriage Day.
• December 3: Healthy Consumer Fair, sponsored by IMANI.
• December 10: The Artist as Jew: Daniel Deronda and George Eliot’s Search for Meaning. Jonathan Elukin, associate professor of history, will speak at an event sponsored by the Faculty Research Committee.

For the most up-to-date schedule of events and applications, please visit: www.trincoll.edu/TrinityAZ/common_hour.