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2021 — Racism: A Public Health Crisis

Can a liberal arts approach help us better understand why racial health disparities began and persist into modern times?

Our 2021 online seminar Racism: A Public Health Crisis will bring faculty, staff and students together into a shared conversation.

In this seminar, we will discuss the many ways racism changes health outcomes and life expectancy for Black and Indigenous Americans. We will also think together and reason together so that we may imagine solutions for these inequities.

Join us to learn about the social, economic, historical and cultural contexts that created the societal impacts we currently witness.

When
June 1, 2021 – July 8, 2021
Schedule
Plenary lectures:
Tuesdays, 2:00-3:15 p.m.
Discussions:
Thursdays, 2:00-3:15 p.m.

Week 1: Tuesday, June 1, 2021

Confidence in Modern Medicine of Marginalized Groups
Plenary lecture by Janelle Mirabeau, MSN-HCA, Sibley Memorial Hospital, with remarks by Eckerd President Damián J. Fernández, Ph.D.

Week 2: Tuesday, June 8, 2021

Maternal Health/Infant Mortality and Environmental Racism
Plenary lecture by Kyaien Conner, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Mental Health Law and Policy at the University of South Florida, and Jalisa Ferguson, Ph.D., assistant professor of chemistry, Eckerd College

Week 3: Tuesday, June 15, 2021

The History of Medical Experimentation
Plenary lecture by Meghan Martinez, Ph.D., assistant professor of history, Florida State University

Week 4: Tuesday, June 22, 2021

The AIDS Crisis
Plenary lecture by Ronald Porter ’05, Ph.D., director of service-learning, Eckerd College

Week 5: Tuesday, June 29, 2021

Dangers Seen and Unseen: Policing in the U.S. and COVID-19
Plenary lecture by Long Doan, Ph.D., assistant professor of sociology, University of Maryland, and Katurah Jenkins-Hall, Ph.D., visiting professor of human development, Eckerd College, and chair of the board at Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg

Week 6: Tuesday, July 6, 2021

Historical Trauma and Mental Health
Plenary lecture by Christy L. Erving, Ph.D., assistant professor of sociology, Vanderbilt University

Discussion Section Student Leaders 2021

Eckerd professor Stark teaches outside

2020: Pandemic & Our Changing World

Can a liberal arts approach help us better understand the global pandemic and its lasting impact on our lives?

Our new online seminar Pandemic & Our Changing World will bring faculty, staff, and students together into a shared conversation.

In this seminar, we will discuss how we as educated citizens ought to interpret the news surrounding the COVID-19 crisis. We will also think together and reason together so that we may imagine a better world to come.

Join us to learn about the science of the pandemic within its broader social, economic, historical, and cultural contexts.

When
May 26, 2020 – July 16, 2020
Schedule
Plenary lectures: Tuesdays, 2:00-3:30 p.m.
Discussions: Thursdays, 2:00-3:30 p.m.

Week 1: Tuesday, May 26, 2020

The Psychological and Emotional Impact of the Pandemic
Plenary lecture by Professor Sara Hofmann with remarks by President Emeritus Donald R. Eastman III

Week 2: Tuesday, June 2, 2020

The Mathematics and Data Science of the Pandemic
Plenary lecture by Professors Nazarré Merchant and Sarah Duncan

Week 3: Tuesday, June 9, 2020

Pandemics and Plagues in Historical Perspective
Plenary lecture by Professor Barnet Hartston

Week 4: Tuesday, June 16, 2020

The Science of the Virus and its Pathology
Plenary lecture by Professors Denise Flaherty and Crystal Young-Erdos

Week 5: Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Disease and Art History
Plenary lecture by Professor David Gliem

Week 6: Tuesday, June 30, 2020

The Politics and Economics of Pandemics
Plenary lecture by Professors Bill Felice and Sophie Tripp

Week 7: Tuesday, July 7, 2020

Pandemics and the Literary Imagination
Plenary lecture by Professor Jared Stark

Week 8: Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Philosophy in a Time of Crisis
Plenary lecture by Professor Nathan Andersen with remarks by President Damián J. Fernández

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