The Rural/Urban Divide
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 3:30 PM CST
Featuring:
Elissa Hansen, President & CEO of Northspan
Peter Lindstrom, Metropolitan Council Member, District 10
Shannon Smith Jones, Executive Director, Hope Community
Geography is an important aspect of how citizens identify themselves, and an increasing number of people are finding themselves classified in the media and elsewhere as urban dwellers, out-state, or various other terms representing core identities. People also have created new geographic identities over the past five decades, including the suburbs and exurbs. Hear panelists from a variety of locations discuss how their geography shapes their identity and that of others.
Religious Identities and Polarization
THURSDAY, MARCH 18, 3:30 P.M. CDT
Featuring:
Emmy Kegler, Pastor, Grace Community Lutheran Church
Chris Stedman, Author, Faitheist
Tahil Sharma, Regional Coordinator for North America, United Religions Initiative (Interfaith Youth Core Alum)
Issues of faith, religious practices, and even the abstaining from religion have long polarized different communities. These topics are also key aspects of many individuals' identities, including forms of monotheism, atheism, humanism, agnosticism, or others. This panel discussion will feature speakers from a variety of different backgrounds discussing how their religion or lack of religion is a core part of their identity and what is important to them about these practices.
Politics in Higher Education
THURSDAY, APRIL 15, 3:30 P.M. CDT
Featuring:
Kathryn Pearson, Center for the Study of Politics and Governance, HHH
Bill Doherty, Department of Family Social Science, CEHD
Colin Agur, Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication, CLA
University of Minnesota faculty members whose research focuses on the Spotlight Series topic for this season will present a response discussion in which they reflect on the first five events of the series. They will frame these events in the context of the larger issue of polarization and identity in America—past, present, and future.
ABOUT THE SPOTLIGHT SERIES
The Institute for Advanced Study, Northrop, and the University Honors Program present the 2020-21 Spotlight Series: Polarization and Identities, a series of six events inspired by both the 2020 Presidential Election and the polarization that has appeared in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
All events will be FREE and open to the public via Zoom and moderated by John Rash, an editorial writer for the Star Tribune.
VIEW RECORDINGS OF PAST SPOTLIGHT SERIES EVENTS.