On the Commons LECTURES View all lectures from the fall semester on our YouTube Channel youtube.com/universityofscranton Covenant House International President Kevin Ryan signs copies of the book “Almost Home.”
Ignatian Values in Action Lecture features Pulitzer Prize-winning Writer Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Tina Kelley and Covenant House International President Kevin Ryan discussed their book, “Almost Home: Helping Kids Move from Homelessness to Hope,” at the second annual Ignatian Values in Action Lecture, held Sept. 19. Kelley was a staff writer for The New York Times for ten years and shared in a Pulitzer Prize for the paper’s coverage of the September 11 attacks. Covenant House International is the largest privately-funded agency in the Americas, providing shelter and other services to homeless youth. The Covenant House provided residential and non-residential services to more than 61,000 youth in its 2012 fiscal year. “Almost Home” was the required reading selection for the University’s incoming class of 2017. Members of class attended the lecture. In addition, the students will encounter themes from the book throughout the year in classes and extracurricular opportunities.
Lecture Explores the Value of Field Experiments in Economics John List, Ph.D., the Homer J. Livingston professor of economics at the University of Chicago, discussed “Life as a Laboratory: Using Field Experiments in Economics” at the University’s Henry George Lecture on Oct. 1. Passionate about using field experiments to explore economic questions, Dr. List believes that this unique methodology forces researchers to understand everyday phenomena. He received the Yrjo Jahnsson Lecture Prize in 2012, was named a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2011, and won the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association’s Kenneth Galbraith Award in 2010, among several other honors and awards. His articles have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Economist, Bloomberg, The Atlantic and many other prestigious publications. The Henry George Lecture Series is organized by the Economics and Finance Department and the campus chapter of Omicron Delta Epsilon, an international honor society for economics. The series is funded by a grant from Robert Schalkenbach Foundation, which was established in 1925 to propagate the ideas of the 19th century economist and social reformer Henry George as set forth in his book “Progress and Poverty” and other works.
The purpose of The Ignatian Values in Action Lecture is to introduce students and the larger community to the mission and core values of the University. This year’s lecture was intended to foster discussions on youth homelessness, as well as more in-depth conversations about related issues that include mental health, health care, youth advocacy, abuse, juvenile justice and living wages. The ultimate goal is for the discussions to lead to a transformational learning experience for students that includes understanding, as well as constructive action, to address critical issues facing the world. “We are thrilled that The University of Scranton has embraced ‘Almost Home,’” said Ryan. “We hope they are as inspired as we were by the transformation stories of the six remarkable young people in the book, and we hope these new readers join us in our movement to prevent youth homelessness in the first place. Working together, we can ensure that vulnerable kids get the bright futures they deserve.”
Cultural Historian Lectures on Jewish-Christian Relations in the Roman Empire Steven Fine, Ph.D., professor of Jewish history at Yeshiva University in New York City, presented a lecture titled “The Menorah and the Cross: Jewish-Christian Relations in the Christian Roman Empire,” on Nov. 21 on campus. The lecture was sponsored by The Weinberg Judaic Studies Institute of the University. A cultural historian specializing in Jewish history in the Greco-Roman period, Dr. Fine focuses mainly on the literature, art and archaeology of ancient Judaism — and the ways that modern scholars have interpreted Jewish antiquity. The author of academic monographs, museum catalogs, more than 60 articles and even a book for children, his most recent monograph, “Art and Judaism in the Greco-Roman World: Toward a New Jewish Archaeology,” received the 2009 Jordan Schnitzer Book Award from the Association for Jewish Studies. Dr. Fine delivered the first Cecil Roth Memorial Lecture at the Jewish Museum in London and was awarded this year’s Samaritan Medal for Peace and Human Achievement. The Weinberg Judaic Studies Institute was created in 1979 through an endowment funded by the local Jewish community. The work of the institute was further enhanced by a $1 million gift from Harry Weinberg in 1990. Steven Fine, Ph.D., discussed “The Menorah and the Cross: Jewish-Christian Relations in the Christian Roman Empire” at the Judaic Studies Institute lecture.
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