Academic Symposia and Performance

Join us on Friday, October 17, for a set of cross-disciplinary conversations and a performance during Inauguration Weekend.

The Inauguration of Daniel G. Lugo as Trinity College’s 23rd president is an opportunity to celebrate the enduring power of the liberal arts in today’s world. Through a set of cross-disciplinary conversations and a performance, we engage some of Trinity’s leading scholars and artists with a broader audience. What are the possibilities and limits of human creativity, and how do we bridge knowledge and practice to advance society? We seek to inspire a robust exchange of ideas about the future of both the liberal arts and higher education.

The two symposia will be held in Cinestudio in the Clement Chemistry Building, and a performance will be held in the Chapel. Welcome remarks will be delivered by Garth Myers, faculty secretary and Paul E. Raether Distinguished Professor of Urban International Studies and Director of the Center for Urban and Global Studies.

Symposium I: Human Creativity

11:00 a.m.–12:15 p.m.

Clement Chemistry Building, Cinestudio

This symposium probes the role of creativity as an essential human skill. Faculty from across disciplines reflect on how creativity shapes their scholarship and teaching, the complex role of technology, and the value of preparing all students to think creatively in a digital world.

• Sarah Bilston, Professor of English
• Pablo Delano, Charles A. Dana Professor of Fine Arts
• Kent Dunlap, Thomas S. Johnson Distinguished Professor of Biology
• Ewa Syta, Charles A. Dana Research Associate Professor of Computer Science

Moderator: Laura Holt ’00, Professor of Psychology

Lunch

12:30–1:30 p.m.

Raether Library and Information Technology Center, Engelhard Reading Room

Inauguration Performance: The Art and Science of Awe

1:45–2:45 p.m.

Chapel

Join us at Trinity’s iconic Chapel for a performance by world-renowned organist Christopher Houlihan ’09, John Rose Distinguished College Organist, Director of Chapel Music, and Artist-in-Residence. Opening comments will be delivered by Michael Grubb, associate professor of psychology, based on his seminar “The Science of Awe,” offered as part of Trinity’s Rome Campus, in collaboration with Professor Houlihan.

Symposium II: Bridging Knowledge and Practice

3:00–4:15 p.m.

Clement Chemistry Building, Cinestudio

The second symposium explores the bridging of knowledge and practice as a hallmark of a distinctive liberal arts education. Award-winning teacher-scholars discuss their boundary-spanning work and its public impact, whether in Hartford, nationally, or globally.

• Davarian Baldwin, Paul E. Raether Distinguished Professor of American Studies
• Shafqat Hussain, George and Martha Kellner Chair in South Asian Studies
• Michelle Kovarik, Dr. Henry A. DePhillips, Jr. Professor of Chemistry
• Kevin McMahon, John R. Reitemeyer Professor of Political Science

Moderator: Jennifer Regan-Lefebvre, Professor of History

Reception

4:30–5:00 p.m.

Clement Chemistry Building, Cinestudio Lobby