New College Announces Speakers for ‘New Topics’ Series
This year’s New Topics New College discussion series opens Monday, Sept. 12, with this year’s Klingenstein Lecture on Judaic Studies, by Dr. Talya Fishman, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania and a winner of the National Jewish Book Award.
The New Topics series also will feature talks with Jim Obergefell, the plaintiff in last year’s landmark Supreme Court case on marriage equality, and with Bob Gallucci, a former State Department special envoy on nuclear weapons.
The series also will explore the history and future of Cuban-American relations, with three talks on what the countries’ new relationship means for Southwest Florida and Cuba.
New Topics also spotlights a topic of local interest, the people and the history of Sarasota’s Newtown community.
This year, all programs are complimentary (admission is free) and will be held in the Mildred Sainer Pavilion, 5313 Bay Shore Road, immediately south of the Ringling Museum. A reception follows each program and provides an opportunity to meet the speakers as well as the faculty and students of New College of Florida.
For seat reservations and more information, please contact the New College Events Office at 941-487-4000 or go to donate.ncf.edu/events.
The 2016-17 New Topics New College Discussion Series
“How Did Jews Become the People of the Talmud? The Metamorphosis of Oral Torah in Medieval Europe”
September 12, 2016 | 5:30 p.m.
Sainer Pavilion
The New College Klingenstein Chair of Judaic Studies presents Dr. Talya Fishman, a professor of religious studies and modern intellectual history at the University of Pennsylvania. Her work focuses on Judaism in the medieval and early modern periods, with a special interest in Jewish intellectual and cultural history.
Dr. Fishman is a 2004 Guggenheim Fellow at Penn and a 2011 National Jewish Book Award winner for her book, “Becoming the People of the Talmud: Oral Torah as Written Tradition in Medieval Jewish Cultures.”
“A Conversation with Jim Obergefell”
October 26, 2016 | 5:30 p.m.
Sainer Pavilion
The New College Gender Studies Program presents a conversation with Jim Obergefell, the plaintiff in last year’s U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark marriage equality decision.
On June 26, 2015, in a decision that drew headlines around the world, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed the constitutional right of gay couples to marry in all 50 states after decades of incremental rulings. Jim Obergefell, the named plaintiff and now among the most recognized faces in the LGBTQ rights movement, will share an intimate, gripping account of the legal precedents and personal hardships behind this unforgettable victory for the gay community.
“Nuclear Weapons: They’re Back”
February 15, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.
Sainer Pavilion
The Sarasota World Affairs Council presents Bob Gallucci, director of the The John W. Kluge Center at the Library of Congress and former Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs, and in 1998 was appointed U.S. State Department Special Envoy to deal with the threat posed by the proliferation of ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction.
Gallucci will describe the evolution of the U.S. approach in dealing with nuclear weapons and their re-emergence as critical to Russian defense policy, Chinese force modernization, and regional importance in the Middle East. He will also address the threat posed by the prospect of a terrorist nuclear attack.
“Tampa Cuban Cigar Makers: A Cultural and Economic Heritage”
February 23, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.
Sainer Pavilion
The New College Cubano-American Community Project presents Tampa Bay historian Maura Barrios. She will share the origin and history of Cuban cigar makers who settled in Ybor City and the surrounding area in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Her lecture will have a special focus on the historical context and transformation of Cuban communities across generations in West Central Florida.
“Cuban Diaspora: The Evolving Relationship between Florida and Cuba”
March 3, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.
Sainer Pavilion
The New College Cubano-American Community Project presents Dr. Jorge Duany, anthropologist and director for the Cuban Research Institute at Florida International University. Duany will discuss the Cuban diaspora, and how the recent changes in the U.S. policy toward Cuba affects Florida’s west coast. Duany has published on migration, ethnicity, nationalism and transnationalism in the Caribbean and the United States. He has also published about Puerto Rican and Cuban cultural identity on the islands and in the diaspora.
“Newtown Alive: Courage. Dignity. Determination.”
March 8, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.
Sainer Pavilion
The New College Public Archaeology Lab presents Vicki Oldham, a consultant with the Newtown Conservation Historic District.
The history of Sarasota’s African American community was in fragments throughout Sarasota County until the City of Sarasota funded a groundbreaking research project. Consultant Vickie Oldham led the Newtown Conservation Historic District team and discusses its history makers and historic resources.
U.S.-Cuba Relations: What Does Normalization Mean?
April 25, 2017 | 5:30 p.m.
Sainer Pavilion
The New College Cubano-American Community Project presents Rafael Hernandez, a Senior Research Fellow at the Centro de Investigación y Desarrollo de la Cultura Cubana “Juan Marinello,” and a professor and researcher at the University of Havana, the Instituto Superior de las Relaciones Internacionales “Raúl Roa García.”
Dr. Hernandez is the founding editor of Temas, a Cuban quarterly, offering an open forum within the realm of the state. In addition, his expertise involves Cuban and U.S. policies, inter-American relations, and Cuban culture, society and politics. Dr. Hernandez will speak about the implications for Cuba brought forth by its new relationship with the United States.
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New College of Florida is a national leader in the arts and sciences and is the State of Florida’s designated honors college for the liberal arts. Consistently ranked among the top public liberal arts colleges in America by U.S. News & World Report, Forbes and The Princeton Review, New College attracts highly motivated, academically talented students from 38 states and 20 foreign countries. A higher proportion of New College students receive Fulbright awards than graduates from virtually all other colleges and universities.
