OCH News: September 2007

NEH Grant Helps Kick-off "Borders and Boundaries" Programming

Thanks to a generous We the People Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, OCH will explore the theme of "Borders and Boundaries" through much of its programming over the next two years.

We at OCH selected this theme in order to explore the complex issues of globalization, nationalism, identity, and community. Borders and Boundaries programs--including specific Oregon Chautauqua presentations, Teacher Institutes, Commonplace Lectures, and issues of Oregon Humanities--will give Oregonians many opportunities to converse about and reflect on the notions of nation and state, race and class, identity and community.

Our first Borders and Boundaries event takes place this fall when we welcome Mark Trahant, editorial page editor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and a member of the Shoshone Bannock tribe of Idaho, who will discuss the challenges faced by urban Indians in the Fall 2007 Commonplace Lecture on October 26, 2007, in Portland.

This lecture is also occasion to celebrate the publication of the second edition of The First Oregonians, an anthology about the history and contemporary culture of Oregon's first peoples. Members of Oregon's nine federally recognized tribes, as well as notable Northwest scholars, contributed to the volume, which is edited by Laura Berg, published by OCH, and distributed by Oregon State University Press. Watch our website for more information about this book, which will be available in October 2007.

This event is only the first of many to explore the theme of Borders and Boundaries in the coming year. The three 2007-08 Commonplace Lectures will be delivered by native scholars who will explore issues important to both native and non-native communities in the state. In addition, the Spring 2008 issue of Oregon Humanities and the summer 2008 Teacher Institute will both focus on questions of mobility and class. Also, specific Oregon Chautauqua presentations will be earmarked as Borders and Boundaries programs, including Respecting an Establishment of Religion; Innovator's and Traders: The Indigenous People of the Columbia River; and Sojourners, Settlers, and New Immigrants: Mexicanos in Oregon.


Panel Discusses Young Citizens

A U.S. Navy representative, religion professor, and political activist weigh in on the challenges to engaging young people.

In June 2007, more than twenty Oregon high school teachers convened at Reed College for an OCH Teacher Institute about twenty-first century citizens and the transformation of American public life.

As part of this institute, Education Program Director Jennifer Allen assembled a panel to discuss ways to engage young people in civic life. The panelists were Lt. Paul L. Hudgens, human resources officer for the U.S. Navy; Robert Hildebrand, professor of youth and educational ministries at Multnomah Bible College; and Garrett Downen, managing director of the political group Oregon Bus Project.

The panelists discussed the particular challenges to engaging young people: the myriad sources of "noise" made available through new technologies, the negative connotations associated with politics, and, as one panelist noted, the lack of an invitation to engage in conversations about civic responsibility.

Listen to the entire discussion.

HIP Has a New Home

OCH is accepting applications for the Fall 2007 course, which will be held at new location.

Humanity in Perspective, OCH's free, two-semester, college-level course in the humanities for low-income adults, begins its seventh year in Portland on September 24, 2007, at a new, more central location, New Avenues for Youth in downtown Portland. OCH, which offers the program in partnership with Reed College, is accepting applications for the program through Monday, August 20, 2007. Applications can be downloaded from the OCH website.

HIP aims to promote the intellectual and personal growth of students, to spark their interest in civic and community life, and to encourage them to continue their education. Course director and OCH education program director Jennifer Allen says, "HIP was founded in the conviction that the humanities provide an avenue to ideas and skills that change people's lives."

A student from last year's course says, "I used HIP to get out of the shelter a couple of nights a week, and I found a whole new world--that I could read, write, and study, and most of all feel important. I found a place that I didn't know existed and totally fell in love with."

HIP offers course participants two semesters of instruction from Reed College professors in the humanistic disciplines. Students explore ancient and contemporary masterpieces in literature, philosophy, and history. Writing instruction is also integral to the coursework.

Classes meet twice weekly, over a seven-month period, on Monday and Thursday evenings at New Avenues for Youth in downtown Portland. Reading and writing assignments are roughly equivalent to those of a first-year humanities survey course at Reed College.

Tuition is waived; books, on-site childcare, and bus tickets are also provided free of charge. Reed College grants a certificate of achievement, as well as transferable college credit, to any student who completes the course.

Students must be eighteen years of age or older. The only entrance requirement is the ability to read an English-language newspaper and commit to attending class two evenings per week. The course is for adults who do not already have a bachelor's degree.


OCH Staff Grows by One

The OCH staff warmly welcomes Annie Dubinsky, who began working for the council in August as the program assistant to Education Program Director Jennifer Allen and Public Program Director Carol Hickman. Before joining OCH, Annie was the assistant director of 3D Center of Art and Photography in Northwest Portland, where she worked for two years organizing exhibitions, handing public relations, and managing a pool of fifty volunteers.

Annie was familiar with OCH before applying for the position and was eager to work for an established nonprofit organization. She's most excited about working with the grants program, saying, "Having been on the other side--applying for grants--I'm interested in learning about the grants process."

While working part-time at OCH, Annie will also be pursuing a master's of public administration with a concentration in nonprofit management at Portland State University. "I really like the community-based programming done by nonprofits," she says. "The ability to participate in and contribute to the community is really important to me."

OCH is currently accepting applications for another new position: a finance manager to assist the executive director with finances and the budget. Please visit the OCH home page for more information. The position closes on August 15, 2007.


Message from the Executive Director

As you can tell by the activities described in this e-newsletter, this is an exciting time for the Oregon Council for the Humanities. Our grants reach far and wide to support filmmakers, libraries, and universities. And our education programs encourage teachers and young people to ask hard questions and explore new ideas. Graduates of our HIP program have gone on to attend college and work as community activists.

Because the humanities are concerned with human thought and culture, they are integral to helping us make sense of our daily lives. For this reason, we have designed programs and publications that help shape the civic imagination by asking Oregonians to think deeply about issues such as immigration, land-use planning, and justice. But there is much more to accomplish. In the coming months, watch for publications and programming around the issues of private/public spheres, native/non-native relations, and class mobility.

We at OCH are committed to providing more Oregonians access to exhilarating, life-changing humanities programming. I hope that you will join us in this venture by attending one of our programs, reading our publications, or making a donation today.

Sincerely,

Cara Ungar-Gutierrez

© 2007 Oregon Council for the Humanities