Convocation
Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Anderson discusses Constitutional law
If Minnesota Supreme Court Justice and convocation speaker Paul Anderson believes that each of the three branches of government are just like basketball players fighting to rebound the ball, does that make the Executive Branch like 2007-08 NBA Rebound leader Dwight Howard?
Harvard professor discusses function of food and meat in Chinese society
James L. Watson, Fairbank Professor of Chinese Society and Professor of Anthropology at Harvard, attended undergraduate school at the University of Iowa and then earned a doctorate in anthropology at the University of California Berkley. His name may be recognized around campus by students taking Introduction to Anthropology, since his book “Golden Arches East: McDonald's in East Asia” is required reading in the class.
“Renegade lunch lady” promotes sustainable food and healthier meals
On May 23, Chef Ann Cooper presented a convocation address at Skinner Memorial Chapel “Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Children.” Known as the “renegade lunch lady,” Cooper is at the forefront of a movement to improve lunch programs at schools nationally by making meals healthier in addition to introducing organic and locally grown foods into school cafeterias.
Special convocation focuses on African-American sacred musical traditions
On Fri., May 16, Robert Morris, founder and artistic director of the St. Paul based Leigh Morris Choral, and Anthony Leach, director of the Penn State University Choir and Essence of Joy, presented a convocation address entitled “The Relationship Between Song and Singing in the African-American Sacred Music Traditions.” Morris and Leach utilized lecture and demonstration during their presentation and invited members of the Leigh Morris Chorale and Carleton College Choir in addition to other artists to demonstrate the spirituals, hymns and gospel music that they presented.
Nobel prize-winning economist applies economic theory to global warming
On May 9, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics and Distinguished University Professor at the University of Maryland School of Public Policy, Thomas Schelling presented a convocation entitled “Can We Manage the Greenhouse Problem?” During the address, Schelling discussed tie-ins between the economy and the reduction of greenhouse gases.
Prashad discusses Asian Americans, Iraq War, and upcoming election
In the Skinner Memorial Chapel last Friday, the Carleton community gathered to hear Dr. Vijay Prashad deliver a convocation entitled, “Watada’s Election: Asian Americans and These Asian Wars.” Prashad’s presentation examined Asian Americans, the Iraq War, and the upcoming election.
Hilliard seeks to dispel misconceptions about the Black Panther Party
David Hilliard, a founding member and Chief of Staff of the Black Panther Party, told the crowd at Skinner Memorial Chapel that young people in the 1960s were attracted to the Black Panther Party, not because of the military bravado, but because of the deeper community service initiatives the party modeled.
Unique convocation brings renowned pipa player for cross-cultural performance
For last Friday’s weekly convocation, students, faculty and staff did not gather in the usual setting of the chapel, but rather in Carleton’s Concert Hall where an array of musical instruments were lined up on the stage. The crowd came together for a unique convocation presentation entitled, “Asian Fusion: A Celebration of Diversity,” which featured world-renowned Chinese pipa player, composer, and faculty member Gao Hong, as well other top artists from India, Japan, and China.
The convocation performance focused on the work of each individual artist, emphasizing their different cultural backgrounds and musical customs as well as the collaborative process in which the four musicians came together to create a pioneering concert that fused these varying traditions.
Hamilton speaks on the decline of literature
Jane Hamilton, ’79, began her Convocation this past Friday by referencing her days at Carleton, with which she, more than the average Convocation speaker, has a personal connection. After being introduced by her daughter, Hannah Willard, ’09, she hearkened back to her previous guest professorship at Carleton, an account which itself referenced her actual time as a student at Carleton and her numerous written exploits since.
Harbor Branch Senior Scientist discusses recent technological studies on deep sea life
On Friday February 22, Edith A. Widder, Senior Scientist of the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution, presented convocation. Her talk was entitled “New Technologies to Discover our World.”
Widder’s many accomplishments include co-founding the Ocean Research Conservation Association (ORCA) in 2005, the creation of the Eye in the Sea camera system, and the education of people across the USA, including students at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution in Florida, where she served as a senior scientist and acted as a consultant for the deep sea portion of Blue Planet. Widder graduated from Tufts University and then continued on to receive her PhD in neurobiology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is considered to be an expert on bioluminescence.Award-winning photojournalist addresses the importance of “Visual Storytelling”
Award-winning photojournalist Josh Meltzer ’95 presented “Visual Storytelling” on Friday, Feb. 15 at 10:50 a.m. in the Skinner Memorial Chapel at Carleton College for this past week’s Convocation.
A 1995 graduate of Carleton with a degree in American studies, Meltzer is a staff photographer for the Roanoke Times, shooting for the news, features, and sports sections of the Roanoke, Virginia newspaper and also working on multimedia projects for the paper’s website (www.roanoke.com).
Hamilton examines possible solutions to Global Warming through national policy
“We are near the tipping point; but there is still time,” warned convocation speaker Jane Drake Hamilton, the Science Policy Director for Fresh Energy, in reference to the steady increase of human-generated greenhouse gases (GHG) into the atmosphere. On Friday, February 8, 2008, Carleton received Hamilton in Skinner Memorial Chapel, where she delivered her convocation, “Global Warming Solutions and Economic Opportunities,” offering the audience hope in the form of changing environmental policy that is gaining momentum nationwide.
