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On Saturday, May 1 2004 the Greater Boston
Latino Studies Consortium will sponsor the first of what we hope
will be an annual conference focusing on Latino Studies-related
issues and activities. This year's "kick-off"
conference, entitled A Gathering of Voices: Latino Studies
and Pedagogies for Building Community, is being hosted by
Tufts University and funded by the Tufts Arts, Sciences and Engineering
Diversity Fund. The conference consists of two plenary lectures
and six workshops that individually and collectively will interrogate
the intellectual foundations and boundaries of the field of Latino
studies within the academy, and explore strategies to effectively
connect Latino studies pedagogy and programs with the needs of the
Latino community.
The goals of the conference are multiple.
One is to provide an opportunity for Latino studies scholars in
Boston and Massachusetts to get acquainted with each other, to share
information on their institutionsí programs and resources,
and to engage in an intellectual dialogue about the field of Latino
studies itself: what should it include, where is it going, and how
can we prepare our studentsóLatinos/as and non-Latinos/as
alikeófor a future in which the nationís Latino population
will occupy an increasingly important role. The conference will
also provide a forum for thinking about how Latino studies can and
should relate to the communities in which our institutions are located.
Faculty currently engaged in community-based teaching and research
from both the social sciences and humanities will have an opportunity
to share their experiences and ideas on how to ensure that these
initiatives benefit the communities as well as the students.
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