Provost’s Office Initiatives Provide University-wide Opportunities for Connection and Community
The Provost’s Office has recently launched several events, workshops, and initiatives with the goal of fostering a supportive and inclusive environment at The New School. Through Pedagogy as Praxis, The Moment Is Now: In Dialogue with Changemakers, The Provost’s Reading Group, and Spark, these events, both large and small, are providing opportunities for connection across the university.
“As a scholar, I’m interested in exploring how we can teach, learn, disrupt, query, and challenge in ways that uphold the unique opportunities and obligations of an education, from creative practice and co-curricular activities to the day-to-day experiences in the classroom. We want to provide resources and opportunities across the university that will prepare our community with the tools to navigate complex discussions, build empathy, and bridge gaps of understanding,” says Dr. Renée T. White, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs.
Recently the dancer and multimedia artist Edisa Weeks was named the current Changemaker scholar-in-residence. During her time here, the university community will have the opportunity to learn from Weeks’ creative process and her approach to transformative, interdisciplinary art that centers justice and equality. In the Pedagogy as Praxis series, Weeks joined the legendary performer Nona Hendryx for a discussion, moderated by Gayle Fekete, a professor of professional practice, on the future of art, activism, and radical storytelling and the ways in which performance and creative practice can be used to challenge dominant narratives and serve as a catalyst for social change. Overseen by Gabrielle Williams, an assistant professor of literary studies and Provost Faculty Fellow, Pedagogy as Praxis brings artists, scholars, and activists to The New School to explore collaboration between teachers and learners to create transformative experiences.
Weeks’ residency is part of The Moment Is Now: In Dialogue with Changemakers series, which returns this semester. This series brings to campus prominent and emerging scholars, thinkers, artists, and practitioners of various disciplines who effect positive change in the world and whose work aligns with the university’s academic strengths and mission. Launched in 2022, the series explores and addresses current topics in art, politics, race, and culture and allows students, faculty, staff, and the surrounding community to engage with a range of perspectives and reimagine change. Past changemakers have included minister, essayist, and cultural critic Danté Stewart and Tracie D. Hall, the former executive director of the American Library Association.
In addition, the Provost’s Reading Group was launched this fall, providing a forum for discussion of equity, inclusion, and social justice in higher education and of compassion, empathy, and community through the exploration of the work of Black scholars.
The group has discussed works such as Toni Morrison’s essay “The Future of Time” and “The World House,” an essay from Martin Luther King Jr.’s book Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, as a means of exploring challenging questions, building empathy, and bridging gaps of understanding.
Also returning this spring is Spark, an annual showcase of the scholarship and creativity of students, faculty, and staff from across the university. The series includes recitals, readings, performances, and discussions of interdisciplinary research, offering the entire New School community the chance to celebrate this outstanding work.
“Spark is our opportunity to honor the creative spirit and intellectual rigor of our scholars, creators, and practitioners who are at the forefront of their industries and disciplines,” says White. “We often conduct our research and creative practice in seclusion, so I’m delighted that we’ve been able to create a space where the entire university community can come together to celebrate and uplift one another and the incredible creative energy that defines The New School.”