The Learning in/from Place and Community conference marks the culmination of Kalamazoo College’s Humanities Integrated Locational Learning (HILL) initiative, a Mellon Foundation “Humanities for All Times” project. Over four years, HILL fostered site-based collaboration among students, faculty, and community partners in Kalamazoo, New Orleans, St. Louis, and San Diego, exploring how the humanities engage with place, displacement, and community.
Conference Highlights
BODEWADMI NDAW film + discussion with Davis Henderson & Jason Wesaw
Plenary Speakers: Jamala Rogers and Monica Kelly
Panelists from New Orleans, San Diego, St. Louis, and Kalamazoo
Community Panels & Art Workshops
Digital Humanities & Student Research Exhibition
Conference Schedule
Friday, October 24 — Day One
Welcome + Intro to Conference — 4:30 p.m. (Dewing 103)
Opening Remarks + Kalamazoo Cluster & Film Screening
Film: BODEWADMI NDAW
Discussion & Q&A: Jason Wesaw & Davis Henderson — 5:15–6:30 p.m.
Saturday, October 25 — Day Two
Location: Arcus Center for Social Justice Leadership
Plenary Address (St. Louis) — 10:00–11:00 a.m.
Jamala Rogers, Executive Director, Organization for Black Struggle
Panel One: History and Preservation — 11:15 a.m.–12:45 p.m.
Moderator: Dr. Christina Carroll (Associate Professor, History)
Panelists: Lulu Urdiales (San Diego), Ben Looker (St. Louis), Amber Mitchell (NOLA/Detroit), Dylan AT Miner (Ann Arbor)
Lunch with Discussion & Reflection — 12:45–2:00 p.m.
Panel Two: The Urgency of the Local — 2:00–3:30 p.m.
Moderator: Dr. Espelencia Baptiste (Associate Professor, Anthropology)
Panelists: Jazmin Ortiz-Ash (Kalamazoo), Macrina Cardenas Montaño (Tijuana & Mexicali), Kenlana Ferguson (Kalamazoo), Sashae Mitchell (Kalamazoo)
Panel Three: Cultivating Community — 3:45–5:15 p.m.
Moderator: Marquise Griffin (Associate Director, Mary Jane Underwood Stryker Center for Civic Engagement)
Panelists: Gloria Ward (NOLA), Hristina Petrovska (Kalamazoo), Jackie Mitchell (Kalamazoo), Shane Bernardo (Detroit)
Dinner Downtown — 6:30 p.m. (Bell’s Eccentric Café; open to all attendees; not provided by grant)
Sunday, October 26 — Day Three
Location: Arcus Center for Social Justice Leadership
Digital Humanities & Student Research Exhibition — 9:00–10:00 a.m.
Plenary Address (New Orleans) — 10:00–11:00 a.m.
Monica Kelly, People for Public Art
Place-Based Art Workshop — 11:15 a.m.–12:30 p.m.
Monica Kelly (People for Public Art) + Destine Price (FIRE)
Closing Remarks — 12:30 p.m.