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ASU-York University History Collaboration Update
Nov 19, 2009

ASU-York Field Trip to Southern Arizona October 15-18

As part of their year-long seminar on the US/Canadian borderlands History faculty and graduate students at ASU and York University exchange visits, involving a seminar on the host campus and a field trip related to themes of the course.  This semester, the York contingent visited ASU, plunging immediately after their arrival into a seminar devoted to readings on the borderlands of the Southwest—peoples and their cultural landscapes.  The following morning, faculty and students piled into vans for the drive to the Presidio District in Tucson, our base for the next two days.  In Tucson, we used the “blue line” map produced by the Presidio District Trust to tour on foot the oldest section of the city and its remnants of eighteenth-century Spanish occupation.  On Friday afternoon, we traveled across Tucson to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, where Jésus García introduced us to the “Kino Heritage Fruit Tree Project,” by the museum, the University of Arizona, and National Park Service, and other organizations to identify and establish new plantings of cultivars introduced by Jesuit and Franciscan missionaries to the Sonoran ecoregion from the late eighteenth through the early nineteenth centuries. 

Saturday took us to the Tohono O’odham Cultural Center/Museum  at Topawa, where tribal member and cultural officer Bernard Siquieros introduced us to his people’s history and culture.  After a delicious lunch of desert foods prepared by Desert Rain Café, we met again in seminar to hear cultural officer Peter Steere’s presentation on the problems of drugs, guns, and garbage along the U.S./Mexican border that bisects the Tohono O’Odham homeland.  Thanks to Peter, we were then able to visit the border itself.  Late in the afternoon, we set off for Tucson, stopping along the way at San Xavier del Bac Mission, founded by the Jesuit Father Eusebio Kino in 1700.  Saturday evening found us back in Tucson for a last seminar at the Barrio Brewing Co., before our return to Tempe on Sunday morning.

At the Tohono O'Odham Cultural Center/Museum

In Seminar at the Tohono O'Odham Cultural Center/Museum

Jésus García Describes the Kino Heritage Fruit Tree Project

At the Tohono O'Odham/Mexican Border

The Last Seminar

 

 

Photographic Exhibition "Continental Divide"
Nov 18, 2009

 

ASU-Humboldt Foundation Initiative Lectures on China and Minorities
Nov 04, 2009

 ASU-Humboldt Foundation Initiative Lectures on China and Minorities

Professor Dr. Thomas O. Höllmann is among the leading China scholars in Germany.  In addition to being Professor and Chair of Chinese Studies and Anthropology at the University of Munich (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, München), he is a Fellow of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences as well as the German Archaeological Institute.  

 The two essays collected here were papers he presented during his visit to Arizona State University in April of 2006.  The visit to ASU was sponsored by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation and by the ASU-Humboldt Foundation Initiative in the College of Arts and Sciences.  At that time, the Department of History and the Department of Religious Studies (now integrated into SHPRS), as well as SILC and the Center for Asian Research, supported this ASU-Humboldt Foundation Initiative.

Professor Höllmann’s expertise in Anthropology is reflected in the two essays collected here that explore how Chinese have viewed strangers within and beyond their borders.  The first essay explores the perspective of difference within the functioning of the tribute system in late imperial China.  The second essay focuses on historical and present-day perspectives on minorities within China.  

70-year Retrospective on Eastern Europe
Oct 29, 2009

 

1989 The Fall of the Walls

Monday, November 9, 1:30 p.m., Coor Hall 4403—Panel

“Eastern Europe in Transition: The Significance of the Fall of the Berlin Wall and the 1989 Revolutions”

Volker Benkert, Senior Lecturer, ASU History Faculty
Josef Brada, Professor, ASU W. P. Carey School of Business
Ileana Orlich, Professor, ASU School of International Letters and Cultures
Danko Šipka, Professor, ASU School of International Letters and Cultures

Chair: Mark von Hagen, Director,
ASU School of Historical, Philosophical, and Religious Studies

 

2009 Secularization and Re-Sacralization

Tuesday, November 17, 1:30 p.m., Coor Hall 4403-Panel

“Eastern Europe in Transition: Secularization and Resacralization in Postsocialist Eastern Europe”

Stephen Batalden, ASU Professor of History and Director, The Melikian Center
Eugene Clay, Associate Professor, ASU Religious Studies Faculty
David Kader, Professor, ASU Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law
Laurie Manchester, Associate Professor, ASU History Faculty
Zilka Spahic-Šiljak, Center for Interdisciplinary Postgraduate Studies, University of Sarajevo

Chair: Joel Gereboff, Religious Studies Faculty Chair,
ASU School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies

 

The U.S./Canadian Borderlands - ASU-York U History Collaboration
Oct 27, 2009

 

"The Crisis of the Humanities in America" Clayton Lecture
Oct 23, 2009

 

Religious Studies Forum
Oct 23, 2009

 

Philosophy Colloquium Series
Oct 21, 2009

 

School Launch Celebration
Oct 04, 2009

History, philosophy, religious studies cross boundaries in new school

October 14, 2009 
10 a.m.

The Arizona State University community is invited to a series of events Oct. 14 to officially launch the new School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The launch celebration begins a year of special lectures, research conferences, colloquia and an art exhibit to introduce students, faculty and staff to the new school.

"Though our core is firmly based in the humanities – the critical, historical and comparative study of texts, practices and contexts – we cross boundaries to sustain strong ties with our colleagues in the natural and social sciences, the professional schools and beyond," says Mark von Hagen, a professor of history and founding director of the school.

ASU President Michael Crow will be among the speakers at the launch ceremony and reception, which begins at 10 a.m. Oct 14 in Old Main Carson Ballroom on ASU's Tempe campus. Other speakers include von Hagen; Quentin Wheeler, ASU vice president and dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; and Deborah Losse, dean of humanities.

The School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies was established last year through action by the Arizona Board of Regents. It combines three previous departments: history, philosophy and religious studies.

The new school creates a research and teaching environment that cuts across the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences while maintaining existing degree programs in traditional areas. Faculty members will develop educational and research opportunities – including new curriculum – at the intellectual intersections of these fields.

Within the school are 80 faculty members representing a wide range of disciplines. They are organized into three faculties, each with a faculty leader: Associate Professor Kent Wright (History), Professor Peter de Marneffe (Philosophy) and Associate Professor Joel Gereboff (Religious Studies).

Among the current strengths of the new school are: history and philosophy of science, intellectual history and history of philosophy, American and global religious history and cultures, environmental history and bioethics, women's history and feminist philosophy, Native American history and indigenous epistemologies, history and philosophy of politics and the quest for justice; history, philosophy and politics of religion.

Also planned for the Oct. 14 launch is a Chinese socialist realist art exhibit, film screening and panel discussion – a retrospective of the past 60 years since the founding of the People's Republic of China.

The exhibit of Chinese art, including work by Jin Zhilin, will be open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. through Oct. 30 in the Old Main Basha Family Library, with the exception of Oct. 19-21, when the exhibit is closed.

At noon on Oct. 14 is the screening of a segment of the documentary "From the Masses to the Masses: An Artist in Mao's China." The clip depicts China's cultural revolution. "From the Masses to the Masses" is the third in the Beyond the Border eight-part collection of films covering war, geography, politics, history and current affairs. It originally debuted in 2004 and was produced by Combat Films and Research for the David M. Kennedy Center at Brigham Young University.

The documentary segment will be shown in Old Main Carson Ballroom and be followed by a panel discussion on a 60-year retrospective of China. Panel members include Assistant Professor John Zou from the School of International Letters and Cultures in ASU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and professors Stephen Mackinnon and Hoyt Tillman from the new School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies.

A lecture by von Hagen is set for 7:30 p.m. Oct. 15 in Coor Hall, Room 4403. The lecture is titled "History Wars: Memory and Geopolitics in Eastern Europe and Eurasia."

Other events to celebrate the new school are planned throughout the year. Information about those events, the launch ceremony and the new School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies is online at http://shprs.clas.asu.edu or at 480-965-5778.

Carol Hughes, carol.hughes@asu.edu
480-965-6375
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

 

 

Philosophy Student Spotlight
Oct 02, 2009

Philosophy student Joel Espino was recently honored by the ASU Pre-Law program as an exemplary student.  The following text is from the Pre-Law Web site at http://prelaw.asu.edu/studentspotlight.

 

 

Name: Joel Espino

Hometown: Gallup, New Mexico 

High School: Alhambra High School 

Major at ASU: Philosophy 

Why did you choose ASU?:  I selected ASU for a number of circumstantial reasons. Probably the most significant factor was my lack of direction. Graduating from high school my career goals were indeterminate but my aspirations remained high. I decided that it was in my best interest to stay close to my friends and family during this time of uncertainty. Fortunately for me it didn’t take long for me to find my niche in philosophy. Another determining factor was ASU’s accessibility to low-income students. ASU offered me the most financial aid from all the universities I applied to and it offered me enough funds to keep the cost of a university education to a minimum. Furthermore, ASU’s size and wide assortment of degree programs made it very appealing to an 18 year-old boy who was unsure of what he wanted to do with his life but was enthusiastic to find out.


What activities are you involved with?: (work, volunteer, clubs & organizations, research, internships) 
I am involved in many school organizations and community service groups. I am president of Phi Alpha Delta, an international co-ed pre-law fraternity that serves the needs of pre-law students. I am a member of Adelante, a Latino organization established to help maintain and retain the Latino presence at ASU. I am a scholar with the Doran Community Scholars Program, a program that instills a sense of social consciousness and develops an awareness of the value of service to your community while building leadership through community projects and leadership classes. I am also a member of the Spanish Language and Culture Club at the Downtown Phoenix Campus, a club designed to practice daily conversational Spanish and engross its members in Latin culture. Lastly, I am a mentor for the Be A Leader Foundation, a program that promotes a college-focused mentality for middle school and high school students primarily in inner-city schools.  I recently completed a research practicum this summer where I was exposed to research methodology in the social sciences. As a requirement of the program, my research partners and I conducted a small scale observational study titled, “Parks and People: an observational study on the effects of neighborhood environment on physical activity”. We then presented our findings and methodology at small conference at the end of the program.  
 
What is the best thing about being at ASU?: 
From my experience, the best thing about ASU is the name. Arizona State University is rapidly becoming a household name not only in higher education but in many walks of life especially in the state of Arizona. Being part of the ASU community provides you with many opportunities and the possibility of endless experiences. Experiences that you can obtain through the plethora of partnerships and affiliations ASU has. As a result of ASU’s reach, I’ve completed two internships that provided me with meaningful experience. One with the Center for the Future of Arizona whose CEO is president emeritus of ASU Dr. Lattie Coor and another with the Arizona Justice Project which is housed in the Sandra Day O’Connor School of Law.


What advice would you give to your fellow ASU students and prospective students?: 
My advice is simple. Take college as a learning and growing experience.  Be open to new ideas and points of view. Although college is about obtaining a good education and staying on top of your grades if you focus primarily on these things you will have missed out on a truly life changing experience. That’s not to say that your classroom performance should be disregarded; rather, you should take these things as compliments to your overall experience. In my opinion, college is not about retaining information, or regurgitating a bunch of convoluted jargon. College is a tool that teaches you how to think critically and reasonably about things in general. College is a tool that teaches you how to interact with people and be cooperative. College teaches you to determine which social circumstance is best for you. Although having a good handle on subject matter is important to your career prospects, social adaptation and having an open-mind are equally significant factors that will determine where you end up after college. Social adaptation and open-mindedness are two characteristics that are fundamental if you want to succeed in this cosmopolitan world. So I advise to keep your options open about what it is you want out of life and do your best to be a social-chameleon. These characteristics can be very useful tools in helping you get to where you want to be.  If you take all of this with great consideration you will find that you will get more out of your college years, at least that it how it turned out for me.

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