Tufts University Study Group on the Scholarship of
Civic Engagement
Early in 2003, a small
study group began meeting composed of some people from
the Tufts community who are already doing scholarly work
on some aspect of civic engagement broadly defined,
and/or regularly providing students with opportunities
to conduct research related to civic engagement. The
group was initiated by
Professor Susan Ostrander (Sociology). Professor
Kent Portney (Political Science) and Deborah Pacini-Hernandez
(Anthropology) joined Ostrander as co-leaders of the
group (Pacini-Hernandez has since stepped down). The
aims of the group are to:
- Create and sustain a supportive and stimulating
intellectual community
- Learn from one another about current thinking in
our various fields
- Share work in progress and obtain useful
comments and questions from
others well-versed in come aspects of the field
- Develop common projects (e.g. co-authored
papers, a co-edited volume)
Thus far, this new Study Group has held monthly
meetings as follows:
- March 11, 2003 – A Beginning Intellectual
Mapping of the Scholarship of Civic
Engagement, Susan Ostrander, Department of Sociology
- April 8, 2003 – Peace Education, Action
Learning, and the Development of
Nonviolent Consciousness, Dale Bryan, Peace and
Justice Studies
- May 6, 2003 – Civic Engagement and Community
Heterogeneity: An
Economist’s Perspective, Matt Kahn, Fletcher School
- October 2, 2003- The Role of Civic
Environmentalism in the Pursuit of
Sustainable Communities, Julian Agyeman, Urban and
Environmental
Policy and Planning
- November 6, 2003 – A Conversation About Amy
Guttman’s Identity in
Democracy, Charlene Galarneu, Community Health
Program and Medical School
- December 4, 2003 – Race Matters in Civic
Engagement Discourse and Practice,
Jean Wu, American Studies
- February 26, 2004 – Fostering Civic Engagement
by Building a Virtual City,
Marina Bers, Department of Child Development
- March 30, 2004 – Theorizing Education for Active
Citizenship, Molly Mead,
University College
Future Projects for the group currently in process or
under discussion include plans for a volume co-edited by
Susan Ostrander and Kent Portney, a speakers series in
the fall for the larger campus community, and small
conference on university civic engagement.
For further information, contact
susan.ostrander@tufts.edu or
kent.portney@tufts.edu
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