University Summer Forums 2013

Explore timely topics at UW-Madison

Take a free academic course with UW-Madison professors and current students addressing contemporary issues in an engaging classroom setting this summer. 

Continuing Studies and its campus partners are proud to sponsor two University Summer Forums open to the public at no cost and to registered students for the regular credit fees. Forums meet Tuesday and Thursday evenings on campus in the summer from 7-9 pm.

The Greatest Debate: Science and Religion

June 18-July 11, 2013, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7-9 pm
1100 Grainger Hall, 975 University Ave (map)

Prof. Larry ShapiroScience and religion offer distinct and often incompatible answers to a variety of important questions: Can belief in miracles be justified? How did animals and plants come to populate the Earth? Is there life after death? Are minds physical? In this course we'll be considering the arguments that scientists (or scientifically minded philosophers) and theists use to support their positions on these and other issues.

Instructor: Prof. Lawrence Shapiro, Department of Philosophy

Art and Political Activism

July 16-August 8, 2013, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7-9 pm
H.F. DeLuca Forum, Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, 330 N. Orchard St. (map)

Dr. Kristin HuntThis course examines the relationship between art and political and social activism in a set of case studies of artists whose work is directly or indirectly engaged in political or social activism. In conjunction with a series of guest speakers and artists' workshops, students will undertake analysis not only of activist art itself, but also of the cultural, social, and political engagement each artist is creating and/or encouraging through his or her work. Students will also continually engage with critical questions about the nature of art, the role of the artist in society, and the ethics and tactics of persuasion. The class’s temporal focus will be on relatively recent material—work that is ongoing or that was completed in the last 200 years, and topics may include documentary, mashup, spoken word and hip-hop, graffiti, culture jamming, art as/of public protest, and queer performance.

Instructor: Dr. Kristin Hunt, associate faculty associate, Theatre & Drama and Integrated Liberal Studies

Registration

The Forums are free and open to the public. Advance registration is requested. Click to register now.

Students taking a Summer Forum for course credit must register through MyUW.

Parking

The Greatest Debate: Science and Religion (Grainger Hall)

Pay-as-you-go parking is available in:

  • Grainger Hall Underground Parking Garage (Lot 7), accessed from N. Brooks Street
  • Fluno Center Parking Ramp (Lot 83), accessed from N. Lake Street or N. Frances Street

Art and Political Activism (WID)

Pay-as-you-go parking is available in:

  • Union South underground parking garage (Lot 80), accessed from Dayton Street
  • Lot 20, accessed from University Avenue
  • Lot 17, behind Engineering Hall and Camp Randall Stadium and can be accessed via North Randall Avenue

Pull a ticket as you arrive, and visit the cashier station or pay-on-foot station to pay for your parking prior to exiting the lot. Parking costs $1 per 30 minutes for the first two hours and $1 per hour thereafter. For more information, please contact our Transportation Services office.

Please contact Continuing Studies at 608-262-3598 with questions about the forums.