Academic Symposium

DIGITAL TECHNOLOGY EMPOWERS US TO FACE MANY MODERN CHALLENGES, but does it pose its own unique challenge to the ways we interact as humans? Is the assault on Ukraine only the latest example of an ongoing pernicious threat to global democracy? What does the future portend for all of us if global climate change goes unchecked? Members of Clark University’s faculty from across a range of disciplines came together to address these and other pressing questions during the Academic Symposium, a series of eight discussions and presentations held on campus April 29. The Symposium, which was part of the University’s Inauguration events, highlighted the distinctive expertise, impactful research, and creative talents of Clark faculty, and inspired lively conversations about the social, political, cultural, and environmental imperatives of the day.

“Clark’s motto is ‘Challenge Convention. Change Our world.’ You can’t change the world unless you’re engaged with it,” said Eric DeMeulenaere, associate professor of education, at the start of this panel discussion.

Clark University has a long history of partnering with the neighboring community, particularly through the University Park Partnership. Faculty discussed their work in local schools, with area organizations, and prisons, among other engagements.

Professor Laurie Ross, who has spent decades gathering and analyzing data on youth violence prevention in Worcester, emphasized the need to let community members speak for themselves and represent their own stories and perspectives.

What makes this culture of community involvement so strong at the University? The professors cited supportive colleagues and interdisciplinary collaboration, the lack of physical barriers separating Clark from the neighborhood, and community engagement being written into the curriculum.

Climate change is the challenge of our time — but it’s one that Clark University researchers are well prepared to meet. In fact, they’ve been confronting it for decades. In this session, four of the University’s internationally renowned scholars shared their individual work, along with a common goal: that their research will inform action and help society effect transformational change.

At Clark, faculty and students engage in research that has a tangible impact, said Christopher A. Williams, professor of geography and director of environmental sciences. “We try to research things that are important to society, and we’re excited to keep doing that at Clark — a smaller institution with an outsized impact in global and climate change.”

The panel stressed the importance of moving beyond basic research and into climate action, to get from where we are now to where we need to be.

Read the full stories from the Academic Symposium.

From virtual reality to blockchain to YouTube, Clark faculty in 2022 are incorporating a wide range of emerging digital technologies in their research and teaching. Faculty from distinct disciplines — interactive media, management, and computer science — described how that looks in practice.

“It’s wonderful to have introductory courses where you can allow students to build a comfort level and then realize that they’re totally capable of working with new technology, and understanding the history behind it, so it becomes more approachable,” said Terrasa Ulm, professor of practice in the Becker School of Design & Technology and director of the undergraduate interactive media program.

And while technology — and social media — frequently get a bad rap, computer scientist Shuo Niu shared his research on video sharing, which showed that the widespread impact of YouTube during the pandemic had a positive influence on viewers’ mental health.

Political science faculty came together to address the crisis in democracy unfolding in Russia, China, the Middle East, Latin America — and the United States.

Professor Valerie Sperling used the democratic deterioration in Russia as a lens through which to view threats to democracy in the U.S. “One unfortunate commonality between the United States and Russia is the rise of censorship on certain subjects, and the spread of disinformation,” she said.

And a recent NPR poll revealed that a majority of Americans believe U.S. democracy is in peril, Professor Heather Silber Mohamed said, noting that while social media can be a powerful tool for good, it can disrupt trust and destroy the public’s understanding of truth.

The professors also noted that the pressure put on American educational systems has left many people ill-equipped to identify what is plausible and what isn’t. The topics addressed pointed to the value of a liberal arts education and “the ability to debate freely about complicated and difficult ideas,” said Professor Ora Szekely.

Clark University geographers have spent decades researching land change through the use of both remote-sensing technology and in-person observation. “The truth is what we see on the ground,” said Professor Gil Pontius. In this session, geography faculty highlighted their research, from Antarctica to Africa, as they seek solutions to achieve more sustainable living.

“On the ground” is where the student researchers in Clark’s Human-Environment Regional Observatory (HERO) program do their work. Over 23 years, more than 180 students have conducted hands-on research in Worcester and the surrounding communities, becoming critical contributors to initiatives to increase green space and respond to infestations of invasive beetles.

HERO fellows are able to interact with policymakers and stakeholders in the community, said Co-Director Deborah Martin, and have published their research in prestigious journals. Clark students also have access to conduct research well outside of Worcester. Two students this summer will be accompanying Professor Karen Frey aboard an icebreaker in the Arctic’s Bering and Chukchi seas.

Kristina Wilson, professor of art history, and Parminder Bhachu, professor of sociology, put gender and race at the heart of their research, but from unique lenses. Wilson has delved into the study of the modernist design styles that boomed during America’s post-war decades, while Bhachu examines why people who migrate across international borders are particularly innovative.

Wilson shared her work, which explores the indelible mark left by modern design while also considering how modernism was marketed to diverse audiences, and Bhachu discussed her research that spotlights the resilience and creativity of migrants who navigate a changing world.

History has narrowed the stories of race and gender, Wilson said, and she and Bhachu are dedicated to working to contextualize these topics and explore counternarratives.

For more than two years, the world has been inundated by numbers — case counts and deaths; layoffs and business closures. “We live in an interesting age where we have access to a lot of data,” said Nathan Ahlgren, assistant professor of biology. For some Clark faculty, those numbers provided an opportunity to examine a once-in-alifetime event from a variety of angles.

Ahlgren, his fellow Biology Professor Philip Bergmann, and Sociology Professor Rosalie Torres Stone worked together to explore the progression of the pandemic over time, and the disparities in its effect on different demographic groups.

Zhenyang Tang, associate professor of finance, found that when businesses exhibited higher levels of responsibility, people in their communities were more likely to follow masking guidance and practice social distancing. “Socially responsible firms are associated with socially responsible citizens,” he concluded.

And Mary-Ellen Boyle, professor of management, and Jacqueline Geoghegan, professor of economics, teamed up to examine a different type of business: craft breweries. These small businesses thrived during the pandemic, and the professors’ study showed that the industry’s resilience was due in large part to the collaborative nature of the business.

For Stephen DiRado, professor of studio art, coping with his father’s decline and death from Alzheimer’s disease was more manageable through the lens of his camera. The result was the photo book, “With Dad.”

For Soren Sorensen, professor of screen studies, DiRado’s photos of his father’s life, particularly in those later years, provided the narrative for a documentary film, also titled “With Dad.” Both men consider these creative works a framework to better understand aging, especially as people are living longer.

“With Dad,” which has won a host of awards at film festivals across the country, formed the basis for a wide-ranging discussion on aging, including how someone can extend their sense of self and live meaningfully.