KEYNOTE
IS HIGHER EDUCATION GOOD FOR OUR COMMUNITIES?
ASSESSING THE PAST AND FORGING A NEW PATH FORWARD
Tuesday, September 24, 6pm EDT
UMass Bowker Auditorium and Zoom
Davarian L. Baldwin
Distinguished Professor of American Studies, Trinity College
With an eye to the University of Massachusetts, Davarian L. Baldwin will draw from his book In the Shadow of the Ivory Tower to discuss the “public good” of higher education as it has shifted from a service provider of education and research to acting as a major force of economic development and political governance in our communities. Today’s universities are embroiled in the swirling forces of student debt, labor organizing, corporatization, campus protest and suppression, and a waning public confidence in higher education. Baldwin will explore how we got here, the costs and benefits of what he calls “UniverCities,” and the possibilities for a more liberatory path forward.
A public Q&A will follow, moderated by Feinberg Series co-director Asheesh Kapur Siddique (UMass Amherst History Department). After the event, there will be a book-signing, with copies of In the Shadow of the Ivory Tower available for purchase from Amherst Books. Students attending in person will be eligible for a FREE book raffle.
Closed captions will be available on zoom and a recording will be posted to the Feinberg Series website within 48 hours of the event’s conclusion.
The Presenter
Dr. Davarian L. Baldwin is an internationally recognized historian, cultural critic, and public advocate. He is the Paul E. Raether Distinguished Professor of American Studies and founding director of the Smart Cities Research Lab at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. His academic and political commitments have focused on global cities and particularly the diverse and marginalized communities that struggle to maintain sustainable lives in urban locales. Baldwin is the award-winning author of several books, most recently, In The Shadow of the Ivory Tower: How Universities Are Plundering Our Cities and served as the consultant and text author for The World of the Harlem Renaissance: A Jigsaw Puzzle (2022). His commentaries and opinions have been featured in numerous outlets from NBC News, BBC, and HULU to USA Today, the Washington Post, and TIME magazine. Baldwin was named a 2022 Freedom Scholar by the Marguerite Casey Foundation for his work in racial and economic justice.
The Feinberg Series
The 2024-25 Feinberg Series explores the historical roots of present-day political, economic, and ethical crises in higher education. It is presented by the UMass Amherst Department of History in partnership with numerous co-sponsors. The Feinberg Family Distinguished Lecture Series is made possible thanks to the generosity of UMass Amherst history department alumnus Kenneth R. Feinberg ’67 and associates.
Read the history department statement on the sponsorship of events.
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