Conference Workshop and
Institute on Diversity
From the outstanding keynote speakers, to the individual and panel presentations, this conference will be an extraordinary opportunity for anyone seeking to integrate diversity into their program - and all in the captivating city of Santa Fe!
Nuts and Bolts - Morning Session
This workshop is
geared to faculty and administrators—new and old—interested in the actual work involved in creating and administering graduate liberal studies programs. This “where the rubber meets the road” workshop will address such areas as faculty development, marketing and recruiting, issues facing new directors, and support services for students.
Institute on Diversity - Afternoon Session
"Through the Higher Education Recruitment and Retention Glass Darkly: An African American Experience" - Dr. George Henderson
Drawing on his own college experiences, Dr. Henderson will discuss selected socio-cultural factors that enhance and impede the recruitment, retention and graduation rates of African Americans.
George Henderson, Ph.d., became a University of Oklahoma faculty member in 1967. He was the third African-American appointed to a full-time faculty position, and the first African-American to hold an endowed professorship in the State of Oklahoma. During his tenure, Dr. Henderson has received many honors, including four distinguished professorships and dozens of University and community awards. He created the Human Relations Program in 1969, and was dean of the College of Liberal Studies from 1996- 2000.
"Art and Aesthetics: The means of teaching Americans History through the Arts of Native Americans" - Dr. Mary Jo Watson
This discussion encompasses the past, present and future educational research efforts to incorporate the Indian experience into American education including specific geographic areas in the Americas that provide rich avenues of education based on art and aesthetics. This presentation draws on Dr. Watson's twenty-five years of research and study on the art history, history and sociology of specific groups of Native Americans and their arts.
Mary Jo Watson, Ph.d., pioneered the contemporary program of Native American Art History in the School of Art at the University of Oklahoma commencing in 1980. She is currently an associate professor in art history; she is the associate dean of the Weitzenhoffer Family College of Fine Arts, and interim director of the School of Art at the University of Oklahoma. Dr. Watson has developed numerous courses on Native arts, including pre-contact art, a seminar on Native American women artists, 19th century and contemporary Indian arts. She also teaches pre-Columbian art and architecture and the Native arts of all the Americas. She has received numerous faculty and community awards including two Governor's Arts Awards from the Oklahoma State Arts Council.
“A Diverse Student Body and the Professor’s Commitment to Students Outside of Class” - Dr. R. C. Davis-Undiano
Research universities naturally take pride in their rigorous and high-quality curriculum. However, success in maintaining and developing a diverse student population requires a commitment to support student life outside of the classroom, and the involvement of professors is crucial. This is true for a number of reasons. Much of the time, mainstream students will generally find reflections of their cultural identity in most dimensions of higher education, curricular and otherwise. A minority student, however, can find the curricular path to be lonely and alienating, with little or no reflection of his or her own culture present in the curriculum or campus life. Professors must find long-term strategies for giving support to student life as a supplement to formal study. Only when this effort approaches a high level of interaction and support for student life from professors does a diverse student population become a reality that can be sustained and even developed over time. Given the limited time of research professors to devote to such activities, they must make strategic decisions for supporting student life in a variety of venues.
R. C. Davis-Undiano, Ph.d., is dean of the Honors College at the University of Oklahoma, executive director of World Literature Today and holder of the Neustadt professorship in comparative literature. Publishing in Chicano and American studies and literary criticism and theory, he is author, co-author or editor of 12 books and more than 40 articles. He received the Rufus G. Hall Faculty Achievement Award in 1993, the Kenneth E. Crook Annual Faculty Award in 1994 and the Sullivant Award for perceptivity in 2004.
Conference Opening Reception - Evening
The conference opening reception will be held at the beautiful Gerald Peter’s Gallery in Santa Fe where participants will enjoy hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar, exquisite art and a Native American flute performance. Complimentary shuttles will provide round-trip transportation between the Hilton and the Gallery.
Two outstanding speakers will address the conference on Friday.
