Division of Social Studies News by Date
March 2019
03-04-2019
By Sarah Wallock ’19
The Bard Debate Union together with the Center for Civic Engagement hosted the Eighth Annual Middle and High School Debate Tournament at Bard College on Friday, March 1, in the Olin Auditorium. Students representing eight schools throughout the Hudson Valley attended the competition. More than 80 students from Red Hook, Haldane, Manitou, Rhinebeck, Woodstock, and Arlington schools participated. Competitors took on such topics as: whether the United Nations should be abolished or whether social media use is positive or negative. Bard students worked with participants over the course of the day to refine their arguments and improve their delivery.
National collegiate debate competition is only one aspect of the Bard Debate Union’s mission. Students, faculty, and staff in the program engage in a range of activities, from the local area to the national stage. The Bard Debate Union hosts public debates on campus to spark community dialogue on important topics. They participate in international debates with their peers at institutions in the Bard Network. They also conduct outreach in local middle and high schools to mentor the next generation of debaters.
The day began with a briefing in Olin Auditorium before the students broke out into their teams for the first round of debates. The students were given 15 minutes to prepare their arguments and one hour to debate the topic. There were three rounds of debates and an awards ceremony at the close of the competition.
When asked about her favorite part of the day, Sophie from Arlington High School responded, “I really enjoyed getting feedback from the judges. Because they gave us feedback in our first round, we were able to apply it in the second round, and we saw ourselves improving as the day progressed.” Talullah from Woodstock Day School remarked, “What was helpful about the second debate [on social media] was that we could use personal experience and we were confident about the subject.” The Bard Debate Union team members enjoyed volunteering at the event. Tsion, a Bard junior, especially appreciated the “competitive but compassionate” culture she witnessed throughout the day.
The top debaters and teams received medals and gavels in the closing ceremony. Rhinebeck High School and Haldane Middle School received the top honors. In May, the Bard Debate Union will host a separate tournament for the Bard High School Early Colleges.
Learn more about public events, competition, and outreach activities on the Bard Debate Union's website.
The Bard Debate Union together with the Center for Civic Engagement hosted the Eighth Annual Middle and High School Debate Tournament at Bard College on Friday, March 1, in the Olin Auditorium. Students representing eight schools throughout the Hudson Valley attended the competition. More than 80 students from Red Hook, Haldane, Manitou, Rhinebeck, Woodstock, and Arlington schools participated. Competitors took on such topics as: whether the United Nations should be abolished or whether social media use is positive or negative. Bard students worked with participants over the course of the day to refine their arguments and improve their delivery.
National collegiate debate competition is only one aspect of the Bard Debate Union’s mission. Students, faculty, and staff in the program engage in a range of activities, from the local area to the national stage. The Bard Debate Union hosts public debates on campus to spark community dialogue on important topics. They participate in international debates with their peers at institutions in the Bard Network. They also conduct outreach in local middle and high schools to mentor the next generation of debaters.
The day began with a briefing in Olin Auditorium before the students broke out into their teams for the first round of debates. The students were given 15 minutes to prepare their arguments and one hour to debate the topic. There were three rounds of debates and an awards ceremony at the close of the competition.
When asked about her favorite part of the day, Sophie from Arlington High School responded, “I really enjoyed getting feedback from the judges. Because they gave us feedback in our first round, we were able to apply it in the second round, and we saw ourselves improving as the day progressed.” Talullah from Woodstock Day School remarked, “What was helpful about the second debate [on social media] was that we could use personal experience and we were confident about the subject.” The Bard Debate Union team members enjoyed volunteering at the event. Tsion, a Bard junior, especially appreciated the “competitive but compassionate” culture she witnessed throughout the day.
The top debaters and teams received medals and gavels in the closing ceremony. Rhinebeck High School and Haldane Middle School received the top honors. In May, the Bard Debate Union will host a separate tournament for the Bard High School Early Colleges.
Learn more about public events, competition, and outreach activities on the Bard Debate Union's website.
February 2019
02-27-2019
Bard College: The Montgomery Place Campus announces three spring series of events celebrating the history and arts of one of the Hudson Valley’s esteemed historic estates. Toward an Ethical Imagination: Gilsonfest, Spring Salon Series on Music of the Gilded Age, and The Gilded Garden: Historic Ornament in the Landscape at Montgomery Place are presented at Montgomery Place and locations in Red Hook, New York, beginning on Sunday, March 10 and culminating on Memorial Day weekend, May 24–27. Most of the events are free and open to the public. For reservations and more information go to bard.edu/montgomeryplace.
Toward an Ethical Imagination: Gilsonfest
Toward an Ethical Imagination: Gilsonfest is a collaboration between Bard College, Historic Red Hook, Dutchess County Historical Society, and Red Hook Quilters focusing on the life of Montgomery Place gardener Alexander Gilson, an African American slave, who after being freed stayed on as head gardener and eventually opened his own nursery business.The program kicks off on Sunday, March 10 at 3 p.m. with a lecture, “A People’s History: Oral Histories and Inclusion,” by Susan Merriam, Associate Professor of Art History at Bard College, at the Elmendorph Inn, Red Hook, New York.
On Friday, May 24 at 11:30 am the program continues with the opening of an exhibition, Alexander Gilson: From Property to Property Owner, at the Historic Red Hook Annex, Cherry Street, Red Hook. It includes an exhibition by students in a Bard College class about Alexander Gilson, a quilting presentation by the Red Hook Quilters, and a presentation on historic garden artifacts and plants.
There will be a public signage dedication in honor of the life of Alexander Gilson on Friday, May 24 at 1 pm at the Montgomery Place Visitor Center. Following the dedication, there will be a gathering at the Montgomery Place Greenhouse tool room to celebrate an adjunct exhibition on Alexander Gilson.
The program concludes on Sunday, May 26, at 2 pm with the lecture “History of Memorial Day” by Myra Young Armstead, Lyford Paterson Edwards and Helen Gray Edwards Professor of Historical Studies at Bard College. This will be presented at the Montgomery Place Coach House, followed by refreshments on the Mansion House north porch.
Events are free and open to the public and no registration is required. For more information, go to bard.edu/montgomeryplace.
Funding for Toward an Ethical Imagination: Gilsonfest is provided by The Lumina Foundation.
Spring Salon Series on Music of the Gilded Age
Hosted in partnership with Hudson River Heritage and coproduced and curated by Christopher Brellochs.Saturday, May 11, 3 pm
Concert: “The Musical Life of Cora Livingston Barton and Her Husband Thomas Barton at Montgomery Place,” a recital with Christopher Brellochs, saxophone and Rita Costanzi, harp
Montgomery Place Mansion House Parlor. Admission: $25, limited to 40 seats. For more information and to purchase tickets for this event, please go to hudsonriverheritage.org.
Cora Livingston Barton and her husband Thomas Barton expanded the Montgomery Place estate to better capture the Romantic sensibilities of the time; music filled the house and the farming operations become more separated from the “pleasure gardens.” It was 1860 and the beginning of the Gilded Age; relatives such as Major General Richard Delafield, who was stationed at West Point, inspired the dedication of musical compositions such as “Florida March” and “Manassas March.” This performance will be a unique opportunity to hear these forgotten gems and experience music at Montgomery Place like Cora and Thomas did more than 150 years ago.
PROGRAM
Florida March
Manassas March
Berceuse, Op. 16 (1879) Gabriel FAURÉ (1845–1924)
The Carnival of the Animals: The Swan (1886) Camille SAINT-SAËNS (1835–1921)
Hommage a Bellini Antonio PASCULLI (1842–1924)
Meditation, Op.18 (1898) Gabriel VERDALLE (1845–1915)
Introduction, Theme, and Variations (1879) Caryl FLORIO (1843–1920)
Saturday, May 18, 3 pm
Lecture: “Music of the Gilded Age in the Hudson Valley”
Montgomery Place Mansion House Parlor; tickets are $25. The concert is limited to 40 seats. For more information and to purchase tickets for this event, please go to hudsonriverheritage.org.
Dutchess Community College Associate Professor Christopher Brellochs, who has been presenting this beautiful music in authentic historical settings, will discuss the role and importance of music during the Hudson Valley Gilded Age.
Sunday, May 26 at 4 pm
“The Gardener of Montgomery Place and the Composer of Newburgh, New York,” an outdoor saxophone quartet performance
Montgomery Place North Porch; free and open to the public. Attendees are requested to bring their own lawn chairs and/or blankets. In the event of rain, the concert will take place in the historic Montgomery Place Coach House, and be limited to the first 50 attendees.
During the early 19th century, the gardener at Montgomery Place was an African American slave named Alexander Gilson, who, after being freed, stayed on to continue as head gardener. He eventually opened his own nursery business. Downriver in Newburgh, New York, composer Ulysses J. Alsdorf, whose grandfather was freed by the Manumission Act of New York State on July 4, 1827, had a similar life journey. The Alsdorfs were entrepreneurs, involved in everything from catering to dance schools, and became prominent citizens of the thriving Hudson Valley City of Newburgh. Ulysses J. Alsdorf’s music was used to celebrate the Newburgh portion of the 1909 Henry Hudson–Robert Fulton Celebration, when a steamboat traveled from Manhattan to Albany, stopping in Newburgh. His music will do the same for this event, 110 years later.
Christopher Brellochs, soprano saxophone
Eric Aweh, alto saxophone
Joe North, tenor saxophone
Wayne Tice, baritone saxophone
PROGRAM
Selections by Ulysses J. Alsdorf (1872-1952) will include:
Ramsdell Park March (1897)
In College Colors (1900)
Dear Hudson-Fulton Days (1908)
Boom, Boom, Boom It Up! (1908)
Additional selections by:
Quatuor pour saxophones (1861) Jean-Baptiste MOHR (1823–1891)
Quatuor pour saxophones (1863) Léon KREUTZER (1817–1868)
Premier Quatuor (published 1888) Louis MAYEUR (1837–1894)
Quartette (Allegro de Concert) (1879) Caryl FLORIO (1843–1920)
Funding for the Montgomery Place 2019 Spring Salon Series on Music of the Gilded Age is provided by Charles and Valerie Jacob.
The Gilded Garden: Historic Ornament in the Landscape at Montgomery Place
A Garden Party Exhibition OpeningProduced in partnership with and curated by Barbara Israel and her staff from Barbara Israel Garden Antiques.
Friday, May 24, 4 pm
Opening will take place in the Ellipse Garden, located in front of the Greenhouse
The gardens at Montgomery Place once featured decorative garden ornaments and furniture alongside the living plants. During the mid-1800s, renowned architect Alexander Jackson Davis was hired to redesign the mansion as well as consult on the surrounding grounds. He introduced the property owners, Louise Livingston and her daughter Cora and son-in-law Thomas Barton, to landscape designer and writer Andrew Jackson Downing, who designed the gardens surrounding the jewel box–like conservatory directly across from the mansion. It was the style of the time to adorn the grounds with a lavish display of garden ornaments, including cast iron, terra-cotta, and marble objects. Displaying a wide-ranging mix of styles, these pieces were acquired from European and American manufacturers. Elaborate arbors and columnar supports of wirework held up climbing vines. Urns as large as 15 feet wide served as centerpieces for flower beds edged by elaborate rococo revival border tiles of terra-cotta. Many of the garden ornaments pictured in early photographs of the conservatory survive in the museum’s collection. The garden was considered a domestic space, allowing the confines of the home to extend into the landscape. The interior decoration of conservatories followed suit. Designed to be beautiful inside as well as outside, these glasshouses typically featured statuary, furniture, urns, potted plants, and hanging baskets. Program is free and open to the public.
Funding provided by the A. C. Israel Foundation and Plymouth Hill Foundation.
In conjunction with the above programs and Commencement activities, the Montgomery Place Mansion House will be open for viewing on Saturday, May 25 from 10:30 am to 1 pm and on Sunday, May 26 from 1:30 to 4 pm. For more information go to: bard.edu/montgomeryplace.
Bard College: The Montgomery Place Campus, a 380-acre estate adjacent to the main Bard College campus and overlooking the Hudson River, is a designated National Historic Landmark set amid rolling lawns, woodlands, and gardens, against the spectacular backdrop of the Catskill Mountains. Renowned architects, landscape designers, and horticulturists worked to create an elegant and inspiring country estate consisting of a mansion, farm, orchards, farmhouse, and other smaller buildings. The Montgomery Place estate was owned by members of the Livingston family from 1802 until the 1980s. In 1986, Livingston heir John Dennis Delafield transferred the estate to Historic Hudson Valley, in whose hands it remained until 2016, when Bard College acquired the property.
02-19-2019
Hebron, who studied philosophy and film at Bard, points out a key connection between philosophy of language and machine learning: making sense of words in their context.
02-12-2019
Bard College is proud to be included on the list of U.S. colleges and universities that produced the most 2018–2019 Fulbright U.S. students.
02-12-2019
Bard College is proud to be included on the list of U.S. colleges and universities that produced the most 2018–2019 Fulbright U.S. students. Each year, the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announces the top-producing institutions for the Fulbright Program, the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program. The Chronicle of Higher Education publishes the lists annually.
Six students from Bard received Fulbright awards for academic year 2018–2019. “We are extraordinarily proud of our Fulbright Scholars, who are studying chemistry in Ireland and Islamic radicalization in Kosovo, and teaching English in Argentina, Malaysia, Georgia, and Germany. They epitomize the intellectual engagement, global awareness, and curiosity about the world that is the hallmark of a Bard education,” said David Shein, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Studies.
“We thank the colleges and universities across the United States that we are recognizing as Fulbright top-producing institutions for their role in increasing mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries,” said Marie Royce, Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs. “We are proud of all the Fulbright students and scholars from these institutions who represent America abroad, increasing and sharing their skills and knowledge on a global stage.”
The Fulbright competition is administered at Bard College through Dean of Studies David Shein ([email protected], 845.758.7045), and Assistant Dean of Studies Kaet Heupel ([email protected], 845.758.7454).
Since its inception in 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided more than 390,000 participants—chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential—with the opportunity to exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns. Over 1,900 U.S. students, artists, and young professionals in more than 100 different fields of study are offered Fulbright Program grants to study, teach English, and conduct research abroad each year. The Fulbright U.S. Student Program operates in over 140 countries throughout the world.
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is a program of the U.S. Department of State, funded by an annual appropriation from the U.S. Congress to the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and supported in its implementation by the Institute of International Education.
The Fulbright Program also awards grants to U.S. scholars, teachers, and faculty to conduct research and teach overseas. In addition, some 4,000 foreign Fulbright students and scholars come to the United States annually to study, lecture, conduct research, and teach foreign languages.
For more information about the Fulbright Program, visit eca.state.gov/fulbright.
Six students from Bard received Fulbright awards for academic year 2018–2019. “We are extraordinarily proud of our Fulbright Scholars, who are studying chemistry in Ireland and Islamic radicalization in Kosovo, and teaching English in Argentina, Malaysia, Georgia, and Germany. They epitomize the intellectual engagement, global awareness, and curiosity about the world that is the hallmark of a Bard education,” said David Shein, Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Studies.
“We thank the colleges and universities across the United States that we are recognizing as Fulbright top-producing institutions for their role in increasing mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries,” said Marie Royce, Assistant Secretary of State for Educational and Cultural Affairs. “We are proud of all the Fulbright students and scholars from these institutions who represent America abroad, increasing and sharing their skills and knowledge on a global stage.”
The Fulbright competition is administered at Bard College through Dean of Studies David Shein ([email protected], 845.758.7045), and Assistant Dean of Studies Kaet Heupel ([email protected], 845.758.7454).
Since its inception in 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided more than 390,000 participants—chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential—with the opportunity to exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns. Over 1,900 U.S. students, artists, and young professionals in more than 100 different fields of study are offered Fulbright Program grants to study, teach English, and conduct research abroad each year. The Fulbright U.S. Student Program operates in over 140 countries throughout the world.
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is a program of the U.S. Department of State, funded by an annual appropriation from the U.S. Congress to the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and supported in its implementation by the Institute of International Education.
The Fulbright Program also awards grants to U.S. scholars, teachers, and faculty to conduct research and teach overseas. In addition, some 4,000 foreign Fulbright students and scholars come to the United States annually to study, lecture, conduct research, and teach foreign languages.
For more information about the Fulbright Program, visit eca.state.gov/fulbright.
02-11-2019
For all that has been made of Vox’s performance in the Andalusian elections, it is not the political earthquake that many claim it to me, writes Professor Encarnación.
January 2019
01-29-2019
Students participating in the Advanced Certificate in Inequality Analysis program visited the CEU campus for a series of lectures and classes, including an address by Dimitri Papadimitriou.
01-28-2019
Bard College Dean of International Studies and BGIA Academic Director James Ketterer discusses the possibility of an agreement with the Taliban and a drawdown of U.S. troops.
01-27-2019
“Despite growing interest and investment, countering unmanned aircraft remains a significant challenge given ... the rapid evolution of drone technology.”
01-18-2019
Two Bard College students were awarded highly competitive Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships by the U.S. Department of State. Getzamany Correa, a Global and International Studies major, will be studying at Central European University in the Department of International Relations in Budapest, Hungary. Biology major Elizabeth Thomas will be studying at the University College Roosevelt in Middelburg, Netherlands.
01-18-2019
Two Bard College students were awarded highly competitive Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships by the U.S. Department of State. Getzamany Correa, a Global and International Studies major, will be studying at Central European University in the Department of International Relations in Budapest, Hungary. Biology major Elizabeth Thomas will be studying at the University College Roosevelt in Middelburg, Netherlands. Correa and Thomas are two of 844 American undergraduate students from 335 colleges and universities across the United States to receive the prestigious Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship to study or intern abroad during the spring of 2019.
The Congressionally funded Gilman Program broadens the U.S. student population studying and interning abroad by providing scholarships to outstanding undergraduate Pell Grant recipients who, due to financial constraints, might not otherwise study abroad. Since the program’s establishment in 2001, over 1,300 U.S. institutions have sent more than 28,000 Gilman scholars who represent the rich diversity of the United States to 145 countries around the globe.
“The Gilman Program aims to make study abroad, and its career advantages, more accessible and inclusive for American students. These diverse American students gain critical skills overseas that expand their career options and ability to make an impact in their home communities,” said Heidi Manley, the Chief of USA Study Abroad at the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. She notes that the program particularly focuses on supporting first-generation college students, students in the STEM fields, ethnic and racial minority students, students with disabilities, students who are veterans, students attending community colleges and minority serving institutions, and other populations underrepresented in study abroad, as well as broadening the destinations where scholars study or intern.
The Gilman Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and is supported in its implementation by the Institute of International Education (IIE).
The Congressionally funded Gilman Program broadens the U.S. student population studying and interning abroad by providing scholarships to outstanding undergraduate Pell Grant recipients who, due to financial constraints, might not otherwise study abroad. Since the program’s establishment in 2001, over 1,300 U.S. institutions have sent more than 28,000 Gilman scholars who represent the rich diversity of the United States to 145 countries around the globe.
“The Gilman Program aims to make study abroad, and its career advantages, more accessible and inclusive for American students. These diverse American students gain critical skills overseas that expand their career options and ability to make an impact in their home communities,” said Heidi Manley, the Chief of USA Study Abroad at the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. She notes that the program particularly focuses on supporting first-generation college students, students in the STEM fields, ethnic and racial minority students, students with disabilities, students who are veterans, students attending community colleges and minority serving institutions, and other populations underrepresented in study abroad, as well as broadening the destinations where scholars study or intern.
The Gilman Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and is supported in its implementation by the Institute of International Education (IIE).
01-10-2019
Walter Russell Mead is the James Clarke Chace Professor of Foreign Affairs and the Humanities at Bard College, the Ravenel B. Curry III Distinguished Fellow in Strategy and Statesmanship at the Hudson Institute, and the Wall Street Journal’s Global View columnist. He is the author of several books: Special Providence: American Foreign Policy and How It Changed the World (2001), winner of the Lionel Gelber Prize and nominated for the 2002 Arthur Ross Book Award; Power, Terror, Peace, and War: America's Grand Strategy in a World at Risk (2004); and God and Gold: Britain, America, and the Making of the Modern World (2008). He is a contributing editor to and writer on international affairs for the Los Angeles Times; he also writes articles, book reviews, and op-ed pieces for Foreign Affairs, Harper’s, the New York Times, the New Yorker, the Atlantic, and other magazines and newspapers. Mead was a finalist for the National Magazine Award (essays and criticism) in 1997, and was a President’s Fellow of the World Policy Institute at The New School from 1987 to 1997. In 2012, the Foreign Policy Research Institute awarded him its Benjamin Franklin Prize for his work in the field of American foreign policy. Mead is a founding board member of New America, and also serves on the board of Freedom House.
01-07-2019
Professor Tcherneva explains Modern Monetary Theory and writes that PAYGO is based on a fallacy: “Government funding is voted into existence every time Congress appropriates a budget.”
01-07-2019
A leader in liberal internationalism is about to turn its back on the world, writes Professor of Political Studies Omar Encarnación.
01-06-2019
The justices will consider a number of Donald Trump’s most controversial policies, including the rollback of DACA, the asylum ban, and the proposed citizenship question on the 2020 census.
December 2018
12-28-2018
The Center for the Study of Hate brings together multiple disciplines to examine the history and politics of bigotry and how to combat it.
12-26-2018
“The nation needs to have a serious conversation about what it is we’re doing with the troops we’ve deployed in combat areas,” says Ketterer.
12-12-2018
“The trajectory from the Palestinian refugee camp where I grew up … to a graduate school in a foreign capital was not quick or easy, but my persistence paid off,” Jawabreh writes.
12-09-2018
Since 2009, Bardians and local high school students have worked with anthropology professor Christopher Lindner at the 1746 Parsonage in Germantown, 9 miles north of the College.
12-06-2018
12-04-2018
Senator Warren (D-MA) spoke via teleconference to students and faculty from Bard College, Bard College at Simon's Rock, and Bard Microcollege Holyoke on December 1.
12-03-2018
Bard students, staff, and faculty gathered for a Commemoration Walk on the afternoon of Monday, December 3, visiting new signage around campus designed to encourage critical reflection on Bard’s history. This is a project of students in Professor Myra Young Armstead’s Inclusion at Bard course, part of a series of Engaged Liberal Arts and Sciences courses at Bard, sponsored by the Center for Civic Engagement. The new placards on campus engage community practices of public memory, recognition, and forgetting.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at each location, with a historical presentation by students and remarks by a member of the faculty. Professor Armstead kicked off the event at the marker outside Aspinwall Hall highlighting John Lloyd Aspinwall, an early benefactor of St. Stephen’s College, Bard’s first incarnation. Like many antebellum donors to the nation’s colleges and universities, Aspinwall owed a significant portion of his wealth to commercial ventures that profited from slavery in the Americas.
A second placard near the library, overlooking Kline with a view of the Catskills, is dedicated to Vine Deloria Sr., Class of 1926. Deloria was an exceptional athlete at St. Stephen’s whose life and work were defined by a proud Native American cross-culturalism. He became the Episcopal archdeacon of Indian parishes in South Dakota and a vocal advocate for tribal governments.
A third placard near the Chapel of the Holy Innocents honors Matthew McDuffie, Class of 1889. Born a slave in South Carolina, he was literate by the age of five. Thanks to the efforts of his diligent parents, McDuffie was able to take advantage of opportunities for Black Americans that opened after the Civil War. He was one of a cohort of four African American students to integrate St. Stephen’s in 1884. McDuffie experienced discrimination from his classmates but he persisted in his education without protest, and went on to become the first resident priest of St. James Episcopal Church in Tampa, Florida.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at each location, with a historical presentation by students and remarks by a member of the faculty. Professor Armstead kicked off the event at the marker outside Aspinwall Hall highlighting John Lloyd Aspinwall, an early benefactor of St. Stephen’s College, Bard’s first incarnation. Like many antebellum donors to the nation’s colleges and universities, Aspinwall owed a significant portion of his wealth to commercial ventures that profited from slavery in the Americas.
A second placard near the library, overlooking Kline with a view of the Catskills, is dedicated to Vine Deloria Sr., Class of 1926. Deloria was an exceptional athlete at St. Stephen’s whose life and work were defined by a proud Native American cross-culturalism. He became the Episcopal archdeacon of Indian parishes in South Dakota and a vocal advocate for tribal governments.
A third placard near the Chapel of the Holy Innocents honors Matthew McDuffie, Class of 1889. Born a slave in South Carolina, he was literate by the age of five. Thanks to the efforts of his diligent parents, McDuffie was able to take advantage of opportunities for Black Americans that opened after the Civil War. He was one of a cohort of four African American students to integrate St. Stephen’s in 1884. McDuffie experienced discrimination from his classmates but he persisted in his education without protest, and went on to become the first resident priest of St. James Episcopal Church in Tampa, Florida.
November 2018
11-20-2018
On the heels of the Green Book movie, History looks at Professor Armstead's research into how black vacationers during segregation escaped to retreats that catered to them.
11-16-2018
The murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi makes a review of the U.S. relationship with Saudia Arabia critical, writes Frederic Hof.
11-14-2018
The challenge facing any Churchill biographer is how to weigh “a life filled with so much triumph and disaster,” writes Aldous in this review of Andrew Roberts's Churchill.
11-12-2018
Dean of International Studies James Ketterer comments that it is not enough to thank veterans for their service; we must ensure that our elected officials deploy the military conscientiously.
11-12-2018
Professor Mendelsohn describes how he has experienced the Odyssey at different times in his life, and how he rediscovers the text with each new translation.
11-11-2018
“The radically different experiences of Western and Eastern Europe in the years after 1918 explain much about the continent’s political landscape a century late,” McMeekin writes.
October 2018
10-31-2018
“Creative Process in Dialogue: Art and the Public Today” will be held at BHSEC Manhattan on October 31, followed by a lunch hour talk at Bard at Brooklyn Public Library on November 1.
10-30-2018
Poet Elizabeth Alexander and Painter Amy Sherald in Conversation
Creative Process in Dialogue: Art and the Public Today with Elizabeth Alexander and Amy SheraldBard High School Early College Manhattan, October 31 at 6:30 p.m.
Lunch Hour Talk with Amy Sherald and Thelma Golden
Bard at Brooklyn Public Library, November 1 at 12:45 p.m.
Watch Live Starting at 6:30 Eastern Time on October 31:
Bard High School Early College Manhattan (BHSEC) hosts a discussion with poet Elizabeth Alexander and painter Amy Sherald about their creative processes and their commitments to the humanities. This public conversation seeks to diversify perspectives on the arts disciplines and to offer models for collective and inclusive community dialogues. The event is free and open to the public. It takes place on Wednesday, October 31, from 6:30pm to 8:00pm at BHSEC on 525 East Houston Street in New York City. Preregistration is required. Register here. A live webcast of the event will also be available.
Poet and president of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Elizabeth Alexander and painter Amy Sherald have both produced works critical to marking and reflecting on recent periods of political and social change in the United States. Alexander wrote and recited the poem “Praise Song for Our Day” to usher forward the presidency of the first black American president, Barack Obama, and Sherald painted the official portrait of the first lady, Michelle Obama, one of two works to mark the end of the Obama Presidency. Moderators BHSEC literature professor Brittney Edmonds and Bard Associate Professor of History Christian Crouch will ask Alexander and Sherald four contextualizing questions around the process of patronage and collecting in the arts, artistic practice and black feminism, how their work speaks across artistic media, and how their work engages with the image of body.
“This event, the first of a series, is inspired by an ongoing dialogue within Bard’s Africana Studies Program surrounding race and diversity and social engagement in the visual and performative arts. We hope to create the opportunity for public dialogue around creative artistic practice and the humanities, and how artists engage their audience and broader community,” says Director of Africana Studies at Bard and Assistant Professor of Africana and Historical Studies Drew Thompson.
This event is cosponsored by Humanities New York, Bard Center for Curatorial Studies, Bard Center for Civic Engagement, Bard Undergraduate Program in Africana Studies, Bard High School Early College, and Bard American Studies Program.
On Thursday, November 1, from 12:45pm to 2:00pm, Amy Sherald will be in conversation with curator Thelma Golden at Bard at Brooklyn Public Library (BPL), the first New York City Microcollege. In this inaugural Bard at BPL Lunch Hour Talk, Golden and Sherald discuss an understated aspect of the creative process: the relationship between curator and artist. Golden, director and chief curator of the Studio Museum in Harlem, has presided over exhibitions in which painter Amy Sherald’s works were included and was involved in the selection of Sherald to paint the portrait of former first lady Michelle Obama for the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery. The event is free and open to the public. It takes place at BPL Central Library, Dweck Center, 10 Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn. Preregistration is required. Register here.
10-26-2018
Kenneth S. Stern ’75 has been named director of the Bard Center for the Study of Hate (BCSH). The Center, a new program of Bard’s Human Rights Project, will support faculty and students throughout the Bard network who want to study and combat hatred and its various manifestations. Stern, a recipient of Bard’s John Dewey Award for Distinguished Public Service, is an attorney and award-winning author, and an internationally known expert on hatred and antisemitism.
10-22-2018
The murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi could finally push a long-overdue review of American policy in Saudi Arabia, Hof writes.
10-22-2018
“The roots of Bolsonaro’s opposition to LGBT rights, feminism, the environment, and the like is, first and foremost, his fondness for authoritarianism,” writes Encarnación.
10-21-2018
This collection of unpublished works highlights Arendt’s “desire to revive political freedom and public happiness in a world endlessly defined by wars, revolutions, and violence.”
10-19-2018
BGIA has welcomed new staff and faculty, has started a joint program with Central European University, and is finalizing renovations of its space in midtown Manhattan.
10-18-2018
Stephen Mucher, director of Bard’s MAT program in LA, asks why the nation is not discussing college education as the surest defense against voter suppression.
10-17-2018
The Center will work with faculty and students throughout the Bard network to increase the serious study of hatred, to identify ways to combat hate, and to stimulate public discussion.
10-11-2018
The first volume of Arendt’s complete works has been published, with “countless flashes of insight, edited with great care.” Bard faculty member Thomas Wild is an editor of the edition, and Thomas Bartscherer is an editor of a subsequent volume. (In German.)
10-09-2018
Poet Layli Long Soldier reflects on the relatively unknown official apology issued to indigenous people on behalf of the U.S. government in 2009.
10-05-2018
Nadia Murad will share the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize with Dr. Denis Mukwege. Murad spoke at Bard in 2016 on the Yazidi genocide and sexual slavery. Watch the video from the Hannah Arendt Center.
September 2018
09-04-2018
Bard College announces the appointment of esteemed Ambassador Frederic C. Hof as Bard’s first Diplomat-in-Residence in the Political Studies Program.
August 2018
08-23-2018
Bard College has received two grants from the NEH in support of faculty-led humanities projects, part of the endowment’s third and last round of funding for fiscal year 2018.
08-20-2018
Bayrasli, a professor of international affairs at Bard College, says that both presidents are trying to appear strong to their core supporters at home by scoring cheap political points.
08-20-2018
The judgment in Weyerhauser Co. v. United States Fish and Wildlife Service will be another indication of the court’s view on judicial deference to federal agencies, writes Steven Mazie.
08-14-2018
Community Action Awards Spotlight
My name is Eric Raimondi and I am a joint History and Middle Eastern Studies major in my senior year at Bard. This summer I worked with Samos Volunteers in Greece where I helped refugees living in a former military detention center. My work included registering refugees, sorting donated goods, washing clothing, and cleaning bathrooms at the camp. Working in the camp was physically and emotionally exhausting. I often worked in the mid-afternoon—this meant it was unbearably hot; it also meant that the refugees’ tents were practically uninhabitable, as they heated like saunas. Despite these conditions, I found my work to be extremely rewarding and enriching. I was invited into people’s tents and was often treated as a guest. One time during Ramadan, an old woman gifted me the most delicious stuffed zucchini. In front of the backdrop of injustice, some people continue life as normal for as long as they can. For the first time in my life, I felt completely useful. The experience I had with Samos Volunteers cannot be replicated. I don’t imagine I can see the world the same as before.
July 2018
07-27-2018
Franco ran Spain with an iron fist for decades, writes Encarnación, and created myths about his rule that are only now starting to come undone.
07-25-2018
The political science major and Bard Raptors pitcher is spending the summer doing one of the things he loves best: playing baseball.
07-13-2018
With fascist salutes, defenders of Spanish dictator Franco gathered recently to protest the new Socialist government's plan to dig up his remains. Professor Encarnación offers context.
07-13-2018
In America Classifies the Immigrants, Professor Perlmann “provides a cogent and compelling analysis of the muddle of meanings” of classification terms used in the Census.
07-03-2018
Tivoli’s newly reopened Broadway Bridge has been dedicated to educator, historian, and village trustee Bernard Tieger, who taught sociology at Bard from 1967 to 1988.