Past Presentations
July 7, 2023, Global Liberal Arts and New Institutions for 21st Century Higher Education
The history of liberal arts both in Europe and Asia is presented, along with a description of the ways in which liberal arts can prepare students for a turbulent future, shaped by rapid advances in technologies such as AI and biotechnology, and in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Aspects of global liberal arts that arise from earlier traditions within Asia are highlighted, with examples of curricula and institutions from India and China. Then a review of emerging new liberal arts programs in China, Japan, Singapore and India is presented, with details of some of the new universities and colleges being created with new curricula in Asia. The emergence of new liberal arts institutions in Europe, Africa, and Asia is also reviewed, and these programs are connected both to more ancient traditions and emerging societal needs within their countries. The global interest in liberal arts is connected to the demands of the 21st century economy, and a review of the Fourth Industrial Revolution and its exponential technologies is provided and connected to new curriculum that can engage liberal arts to solve global challenges. The resulting emergence of liberal arts arises since the skills of articulate communication, deep reflection and collaboration across cultures are ever more vital in the 21st century, making global liberal arts and its deep cultural roots an ever-vital form of education to prepare students for the future.
Speaker Bio:
Bryan Penprase is the Vice President for Sponsored Research and External Academic Relations at Soka University of America, where he develops strategic partnerships and builds collaborations with universities and colleges to advance undergraduate education and research at Soka University. He formerly served as Dean of Faculty for three years at Soka University, where he worked to create new academic programs, and managed the curriculum design, hiring and implementation of a new Concentration in Life Sciences. Bryan also has been actively developing global liberal arts collaborations, most recently with an international conference at Soka University of America, development of the new Pacific Alliance of Liberal Arts (PALAC) organization, and liberal arts symposia in Singapore, India, and at Yale University.
The recording for this talk is here
April 7, 2023, Pending Decisions on Affirmative Action
UCR School of Education Professor Uma Jayakumar(link is external) and William (Bill) Kidder, J.D. UCR Compliance & Civil Rights Investigator, discussed the pending supreme court decisions on Affirmative Action.
The two speakers led the organizing of the American social science scholars brief in SFFA v. University of North Carolina(link is external).
March 2023: Academic Freedom within the University of California
Robert Carlen May, Distinguished Professor of Philosophy and Linguistics, Emeritus, UC Davis, together with CSHE Affiliate George Blumenthal, CSHE Director and Chancellor Emeritus, UC Santa Cruz, led a discussion on academic freedom within the University of California.
February 2023: "To Enjoy Equal Privilege Therein: The effort to restore minority admissions at the University of California after the repeal of affirmative action"
Speaker Bio:
Saul Geiser is a research associate at the Center for Studies in Higher Education at the University of California, Berkeley. He received his Ph.D. in sociology from UC Berkeley and taught there before joining UC’s Office of the President in 1981. Geiser served as director of admissions research for the UC system after Californians voted to end affirmative action in 1996, and he helped redesign UC admissions policy. His work has focused on issues of equity and validity in college admissions, with the aim of identifying admissions criteria that have less adverse impact on low-income and minority applicants while remaining valid indicators of student preparedness for college. Geiser’s work has contributed to the development of a number of new admissions policies, including UC's policy on Eligibility in the Local Context, which guaranteed admission to the top four percent (and now top nine percent) of students in each California high school. His research was influential in the UC Regents’ decision in 2020 to phase out the SAT and ACT in university admissions.