August 29th PISA meeting minutes

PISA 2005-2006, August 29th


1. Your 2005-2006 PISA Officers:
a. President: Rebecca McCarthy – Rmccart9@fau.edu
b. Vice-President: Jacqui May - jmay@fau.edu
c. Treasurer: Rebecca Kuhn - rkuhn2@fau.edu
d. Secretary: Alessandra Senzani - asenzani@fau.edu

PISA Blog/Fourm: http://publicintellectuals.blogspot.com/

2. What is PISA? PISA stands for Public Intellectual Student Association. PISA represents all students in the Ph.D. Comparative Studies Program and acts as a place for information, networking, workshops as well as hosting a yearly academic conference. We hope this year to expand PISA’s role within the student community, encouraging more student participation and offering an outlet for socialization as well as academic pursuits.

a. In our hopes to create a more interactive forum for all students, we have launched a “PISA Blog.” All suggestions regarding this forum are welcomed and we hope that everyone will take advantage of this “space.” On the blog you will find information about conferences, workshops, general help, meeting dates, socialization dates, meeting minutes as well as a place specifically for our spring conference. You can access the blog at:

http://publicintellectuals.blogspot.com/

3. PISA Conference: For the last few years, PISA has hosted an academic conference in the spring. Last year’s theme was “Collective Memory” and no decision has been made about this year’s theme. Please take a moment to think on possible themes and speakers and leave a comment on the blog under the link “PISA’s Spring Conference.” As we do not have the funds to offer financial compensation, we hope to find speakers who will be happy with local “home” accommodations if they are traveling here, as well as home cooked food.

a. Last year’s PISA officers decided to charge the community a small fee for attending the conference, whereas students of FAU were offered free admission. This was decided as a “box” lunch was provided for the one day conference and it was hoped that the extra funds would help cover this cost. We are planning to do the same thing this year, unless there are other suggestions.
b. At today’s meeting, some suggested new ideas on how to raise funds for the conference and the organization. Here are some of them, please add your thoughts to them or add more ideas if you have some:
- Donation jar at the reception (usually the Friday preceding the conference) and at conference
- PISA T-shirts or bags for sale. If you like the idea, please make suggestions for possible logos
- Create a flyer for the organization with past conferences and workshops listed to distribute in the community and have “friends,” “benefactors,” “sponsors” options. Please give your inputs on what kind of groups we could target.
- Have a published copy of the conference proceedings available for sale

4. Workshops: In the past, PISA has held very successful workshops for students including a dissertation workshop. We hope to expand the workshops this year, and again, encouraged all students to offer suggestions on workshops they would like to see.
At today’s meetings, people have also suggested: a CV workshop, a publishing workshop, and finally an IRB (Institutional Review Board) workshop. Please, give us your feedback on these, and add your comments to the link “Workshops, Workshops, Workshops” on the PISA blog.

5. Beginning of the year party: Every year PISA throws a beginning of the year party for all students, staff and professors involved with the Comparative Studies Program. Last year, the party was held at the Boca Historical Society and we believe it would be a good location for the party this year as well, unless there are other (costless) suggestions.

a. What would be a good date for the party? We need three dates to approach the Boca Historical Society with.
The dates suggested today are towards the end of September (the 17th or the 24th) or, at the latest, the first of October.

6. Meetings: Today, we agreed to have 2 meetings a month, a formal and an informal one.

a. One meeting would deal specifically with business and organizational ideas that cover topics such as the PI conference, workshops, and other business including the possibility of creating a fund which will help students with conference costs. Fridays, SO 105 is available at 4 or 5 pm. Unfortunately, Monday-Thursday’s the room is booked for class. I suggest the last Friday of the month for “formal” meetings.
- At today’s meeting, some suggested that formal meetings should rather be held during the week, while everybody is still on campus. A possibility would be on Wednesdays, 4-5pm, but we’ll have to find an alternative room. Please give us your feedback, whether Fridays is inconvenient and if Wednesdays is a good alternative

b. The second meeting would be purely a stress relief/social occasion where students could meet, socialize and casually talk to each other about concerns, thoughts and fun. These meetings (events) would be held at various places. Some suggestions includes having a “bowling” night, a “karaoke” night, a general “bar setting” night or a weekend day “picnic” at the beach for entertainment and socialization. We suggest this because, as most returning student knows and new students will soon find out, finding a time to socialize is difficult at best while pursuing a Ph.D. and scheduled events tend to work better in these circumstances. Furthermore, it is important to have a balance with work, study and fun. These events will be open not only to students but family and friends as well. If you have a suggestion for a social activity, please let us know either at meetings or on the PISA blog.
- At today’s meetings, many suggested meeting for happy hour and many of view know a lot of good bars and pubs in the area. Please post under the “Fun, fun, fun” heading on the PISA blog all the places you know that would be great to get together and socialize!
PISA name: Rebecca Kuhn has brought a well observed point to our attention; the name PISA (Public Intellectual Student Association) sends a confusing message to the students in the Comparative Studies Program, as it does not seem to encompass all the different and emerging academic tracts that the program now offers. In an effort not to exclude any one academic tract, it has been suggested that we change the Student Association’s name. One suggestion, also offered by Rebecca Kuhn, was CSSA (Comparative Studies Student Association) or, as was also suggested, FACSA (Florida Atlantic Comparative Student Association). Please feel free to offer other creative acronyms and/ or suggestions on whether the change should be enacted under the link “New name for the Comparative Studies Student Association” on the PISA blog.

“Help, you know I need somebody”

Do you feel lost in the barnyard of FAU? In your Ph.D. studies? Are you, in general, dazed and confused? Well, help is on the way! Please use this space to ask general questions, concerns or thoughts and the Comparative Studies Community will do our best to help you with those concerns, questions and thoughts. Please use the “comment link” below and check back often to see who has replied!

Remember: “You are not alone.”

2005-2006 Colloquium Series!

The Colloquium Series is from 4-5:15 on Mondays. For those of you who have decided to take up Dr. Tamburri’s generous offer of earning a credit each semester (up to three credits possible and directed towards one of your elective requirements) for attending the colloquium series, there will be a required sign-in for each colloquium. Please remember to sign your name so that credit is given where it is due. We will be posting here the entire series, the speakers and topics and room numbers, as soon as it becomes available, so please remember to return to this page often!
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Writing About Race and Change: A Conversation
Professor Kitty Oliver
Communication
Monday, October 10
4 – 5:15 p.m.
Seminar Room, SO 105

Abstract:

Communication professor Kitty Oliver discusses methodology, critical approaches and creative representations of community oral history as a means of investigating race relations and change. Her dialogue with students will explore the role of race and cultural stories in the context of social advocacy, the history and development of the Race and Change community oral history project, and the innovative course she will teach in the Spring for Masters and Ph.D. students, Writing About Race and Change (CST 7905 and COM 6906).

Oliver is an author, oral historian and veteran journalist who has been an FAU professor for nine years in the departments of English and Communication. Her book, Voices of America: Race and Change in Hollywood, Florida, is a collection of oral histories of Blacks, Whites and immigrants relating their growing up and race relations experiences. Multicolored Memories of a Black Southern Girl is a collection of essays on coming of age with integration. She is a writer/producer of PBS video documentaries as well as a cultural diversity researcher and workshop leader and her books and videos are used widely in the public schools as well as universities. Over 100 archival Race and Change interviews are housed in Special Collections of the African American Research Library and Cultural Center in Fort Lauderdale, including projects conducted by FAU students under her direction in Delray Beach, Boca Raton, parts of Fort Lauderdale, and the Lake Okeechobee area. She is currently working on a new book on civil rights movement memories.


From Immigration to Liberation:
German Émigrés in the U.S. Army during World War II
Dr. Patricia Kollander
History
Monday, October 3
4 – 5:15 p.m.
Seminar Room, SO 105

Abstract:
Most works on the subject of German-Americans during World War II have not gone beyond the generalization that the vast majority of German-Americans opposed Nazism. Recently, however, the field has been enhanced by works that have shed light on the plight of thousands of German-Americans who were sent to internment camps, and two books and documentary films have highlighted the experiences of German-émigrés who fought in the U.S. army during the war. None of these works, however, have provided a scholarly treatment of the experiences of émigré soldiers as a whole. According to the U.S. Military History Institute, these men comprised a large cohort: over thirty thousand men of German birth served in the United States Army during World War II.

This colloquium will discuss results of preliminary research on the memories of several German émigré soldiers who served in the European Theater of Operations. It will demonstrate the singular place that these soldiers occupy in the history of World War II and the history of Nazism. It will provide information on why these men left Germany, and how they were received in the United States as immigrants and as members of the U.S. armed forces. It will highlight their contributions to the war efforts in general and to the resistance movement against Hitler in particular.

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The Black Middle Class in Predominantly White Environments:
An Examination of Communal and Individual Strategies
Dr. Art S. Evans Jr.
Sociology
Monday, September 26
4 – 5:15 p.m.
Seminar Room, SO 105

Abstract:

The structural changes stemming from the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s resulted in significant social and economic opportunities for African Americans, especially those in the middle class. Today, all State and Federal statutory barriers to blacks’ equal participation have fallen, and many of the social boundaries that once separated blacks and whites have become permeable. With the removal of race-based discriminatory practices, the black middle class was no longer forced to live and interact only in segregated social settings. Today, increasingly more middle class blacks live out a significant portion of their lives in predominantly white environments. The strategies used by blacks to help negotiate this social transition have been either communal or individual in nature. This work examines the positive and negative aspect of each of these strategies and their implications for social mobility.


For further information: 297-0155
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Economic Openness, Economic Openness, Volatility, and Political Democracy – Implications for the Compensation Hypothesis

Professor So Young Kim
Political Science
Monday, September 19
4 – 5:15 p.m.
Seminar Room, SO 105

Abstract:
A central assumption in the globalization literature is that economic openness generates economic insecurity and volatility. Based on this assumption, scholars of political economy have proposed an apparently counterintuitive argument called the compensation hypothesis. According to this hypothesis, globalization bolsters rather than undermines the welfare state by increasing social demand for state-provided social insurance against externally generated economic risks. The volatility assumption is dubious, however, on both theoretical and empirical grounds. This study, relying on the cross-sectional time-series data analysis for 174 countries, demonstrates that economic volatility is a mistaken link in explaining the positive relationship between economic openness and government spending. Furthermore, the study reveals that political democracy is a missing link in accounting for economic volatility; it reduces economic volatility in various ways, in particular, by putting greater constraints on policymakers to rely on drastic policy changes in response to an adverse economic shock.

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Florida Deconstructed
Dr. Simon Glynn
Philosophy
Monday, September 12
4 – 5:15 p.m.
Seminar Room, SO 105

Abstract:

Like much art, the artfully designed urban and suburban spaces of Florida, seek, as do similar examples elsewhere, to idealize material reality. Like the costumes and posturing of the ‘players’ who strut upon this ‘stage,’ these spaces exemplify life, imitating art, imitating an idealized form of life, or what Eco and Baudrillard would characterize as Hyperreal Simulacra of themselves! Indeed those raised in this ‘Dessert of the Real’ as Zizeck has characterized this environment, where iconic or visual media of outward display takes precedence over, to the point of eclipsing, the symbolic media of abstract thought and expression, are generally unable to satisfactorily script or thematize their lives. Consequently, along with other similar players in our globalized culture, they increasingly live their lives in terms of an ever narrowing and debilitating range of corporately contrived stereotypes in accord with which the Idolization of the Material increasingly replaces the Materialization of Genuine Ideals.

Workshops, Workshops, Workshops

Please folks, we urge you to let us know which workshops you might be interested in having. As workshops and speakers often cost PISA some of our precious finances, it is vital that we have at least six people interested in attending a workshop. Not only is money an issue, but if we invite and ask a speaker to offer a workshop, it is important to know people will show up for them. So please take a moment and review the information below and offer us feedback. Thanks

After receiving several suggestions both on the blog and in person, we have decided on the following four workshops – specific dates and information to follow:

CV workshop – in the fall.
Conference Workshop – on presenting papers and sitting on panels – in the fall.
Publishing Workshop – during the PISA Conference in the spring.
Dissertation Workshop – End of the school year in the spring.

Are you interested in these?
It has also be suggested that we “piggy back” with another department on a few speakers and we would like to know if you are interested in the following speakers and them possibly offering PISA a separate workshop. As each speaker would cost PISA money, we will only engage in this if there is ample interest – meaning at least 9 people for each individual speaker.

1. January 11th or 12th – Margaret Urban Walker, PhD, Lincoln Professor of Ethics, Justice and the Public Sphere, Arizona State University. Walker will give a public lecture on “Cycles of Violence” and will be offering a workshop based on “Death and the Maiden” the play by Ariel Dorfman (also motion picture starring Sigourney Weaver and Ben Kingsley). Walker is a noted moral philosopher whose research on transitional (restorative) justice includes attention to practices, and to gender, race, etc. as analytically significant. Walker is also the author of “Moral Understandings: A Feminist Study in Ethics.”

1. January 11th or 12th – Jonathan Shay, MD & PhD (US Dept of Veterans Affairs Staff Psychiatrist with Masters Degree in Classical Studies), Author of “Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Dissolution of Character,” and “Odysseus in America: Combat Trauma and the Trials of Homecoming,” both dealing with social and political issues arising from the organization of war and post-traumatic stress.

1. Spring 2006 (Date TBA) Joyce McDonough, PhD Department of Linguistics (Chair) and Brain and Cognitive Sciences University of scholar on the Navajo language, with Bachelors in Japanese. She is a member of the LSA Endangered Languages Committee and her lecture and workshop will address questions such as: What is linguistic diversity? How does it operate in communities? What happens when a language dies? What kind of loss is it? How do we understand linguistic diversity within communities? Is linguistic diversity worthwhile? What are its benefits? What are the issues at stake in multilingual communities? How do written and oral legal systems interact, for instance? How do we deal with intractable problems like language ownership and exclusivity that are inherent to linguistic diversity? What are the ethics of investigating and documenting the languages of indigenous communities? How can we work to support common goals across multilingual communities?

Fun, Fun, Fun

Life should never be about all work and no fun! Therefore, PISA wants to plan social events throughout the year to help balance out our life and provide an outlet for fun, fun, fun. Some suggestions have included a PISA picnic at the beach, a bowling night or a Karaoke night. Like these suggestions? Hate them? Have other suggestions? Let us know by leaving a comment!

Dates for PISA monthly social events have been set! Please join us for relief from studies, teaching and theorizing. Bring your family, your friends and yourself!

October 16th at 2 PM:

Host: FAU Comparative Studies Student Association
Location: Pompano Bowl at l2200 North Federal Hwy (US1), Pompano Beach, FL
When: Sunday, October 16, 2:00pm
Phone: 954-941-0968

Got the urge to step away from the computer and stretch your legs? Feeling social but having guilt at the thought of putting down the books to go out to play? Get over it and get the bowling ball out of the back of the closet! Come out to enjoy a casual afternoon with your fellow & beloved Ph.D. students! Friends, family and kids are all welcome to join in the fun and potential spectacle (as long as the kids aren't bowling prodigies who will embarrass us all)!Starting at 2:00 PM on Sunday, October 16 we'll be at the Pompano Bowl on US1 just south of Copans Road (see map for details). The Pompano Bowl offers reasonable lane rentals (vs. per game rates) a snack bar and the all important lounge. Shoe rentals, of course, are available. Important: This is a BYOS event (Bring Your Own Socks)! Hope to see you there! Be sure to RSVP so we can reserve lanes if there are going to be a substantial number of us!

November 12 at 4 PM:

Music and drinking at the Tiki Bar. Come enjoy cheap drinks, food, music, and easy access to the beach!

Directions to the Tiki Bar located in the courtyard of the Lighthouse Cove Resort:

The Lighthouse Cove Resort is located at the intersection of A1A and 14th Street in Pompano Beach.

Directions:
From Copans road and US-1/Federal Hwy go south on Federal to 14th Street. Head east on 14th street and cross over the Intracoastal. At the intersection of 14th Street and A1A go almost straight ahead into the parking lot of the Lighthouse Cove resort. Bar parking is to the right. If the lot there is full there is another lot directly west of the resort across A1A - a very short walk. Follow signs/enter thru lobby and bar area is outside on the left.

Friday December 9th at 7 PM:

Your finally paper has been submitted and the semester has come to a close. Come celebrate before you go on winter break. Location to be announced, but you can be assured that this will be one social event you won’t want to miss!

Sunday January 14th at 1 PM:

Bring your family and your favorite potluck dish for “Sunday in the Park with PISA”! Park and directions to be announced.

Friday February 11th at 8 PM:

February is known for the Carnival. With this in mind, will be off to listen to some blues or Jazz. Location TBA.

March

March’s social event will be in conjunction with the PISA Conference. More information to follow later.

Sunday April 9th at 4pm

Another family event. Suggestions are welcomed from all.

Friday May 5th at 8pm

You did it, you survived another school year. Come celebrate to music and dance and drink. Location at this time is TBA.

PISA’s Spring Conference

Conferences wait for no undecided bodies in space!  Therefore, the deadline for all suggestions and ideas from the Comparative Student Body is Friday September 30th.  We invite you to submit possible themes, topics and speakers you might want to have.  Please engage in this debate as the conference represents all of the students and not just our officers.  Thanks!

Even thought spring seems eons away, it will creep up sooner that we expect.  Therefore, planning for the Spring 2006 Comparative Studies Conference is on the way.  Our first concern is a theme for our conference.  When thinking on a theme, we want to make sure that all academic tracts within the Comparative Studies Program are represented (i.e. PI, LLL and the Art’s tract).  With this in mind, we welcome all suggestions for this year’s theme.  Please use the “comment section” of this post to submit ideas and thoughts about this year’s conference.  We are hoping to have a formal “forum” for the conference set up soon.

Thanks, your PISA Officers    

New name for the Comparative Studies Student Association

Do you think “PISA” is soooo yesterday and needs to be updated to reflect the evolving nature of the Comparative Studies Ph.D. program at FAU? Do you have a great acronym in mind? Do you think we should keep the PISA name as it is and “move on” with things? Whatever you stance, here is the place to be heard! Let us know what you think, your suggestions and/or concerns. Leave a comment!

Get to know your Officers 2005-2006

Welcome to the section where you can get to know a little bit about your officers:

President: Rebecca McCarthy--Email: Email Rebecca McCarthy

Rebecca McCarthy joined the PI program in the fall of 2004. She is interested in Irish Studies, Women’s Studies, Religious Studies and a bunch of other stuff. She has a BFA in acting and a MLS in Humanities. Rebecca is delighted to be of service to PISA this 2005-2006 year.

Her favorite quote is from her mom: “Don’t eat cheap tuna.”

Vice President: Jacqui May—Email: Email Jacqui May

Treasurer: Rebecca Kuhn—Email: Email Rebecca Kuhn

Year 2 in the program
PI Track
Area of Study: Sociology and Film
Research Intersts: Representations of Religion in the Media
Turn ons include: kareoke, british mysteries, going to the gym and long walks on the beach.

Secretary: Alessandra Senzani—Email: Email Alessandra Senzani

Second year in the LLL program.
Background: a master’s in conference interpreting and in English.
Area of Study: Film and Italian/American studies.
Research interests: humor (no joking :)), working-class studies, and Australian Aboriginal film and literature.
Hobbies: detective novels, old American film comedies, traveling as much as she can …!

PISA Calendar - Dates to remember

Future PISA Meetings. Fridays and Wednesdays were the most popular days suggested and so formal meetings will alternate between these days once a month. Here is the schedule and the rooms to date:


Friday January 27th at 12 PM – Room SO 105

Friday February 24th at 4 PM – SO 105

Wednesday March 29th at 5 PM – Room AH 209 (Proposed to change to Friday 31st, noon in SO 105)

Friday April 28th at 4 PM – SO 105

Wednesday May 31st at 5 PM – Room AH 209 (proposed to be changed to Friday 26th, noon SO 105)

Conferences, Conferences and more Conferences

So, you are a Ph.D. student . . . now what? Why not try out some conferences, propose a paper or join a panel! One of the best ways to find out what is going on in the world of conferences is through upenn.edu.

UPenn.edu offers a list subscribing service which updates information weekly on conferences around the world, calls for papers and new literary ezines or magazines. By following the instructions below, you too can stay informed and up to date. Everything delivered right to your email box!

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Welcome to PISA 2005-2006

Welcome everyone to the 2005-2005 Comparative Studies Program. PISA is YOUR student organization designed to make your life easier, promote participation and host a yearly conference. In the past, the organization has hosted wonderful and helpful workshops provided a “place” for student to meet and exchange information, act as a venue for networking and support. The Life of a Ph.D. student is a hard one and it is our hope that PISA can lift some of the burdens associated with the Ph.D. academic barnyard.

So, Book Mark This Page!

In this blog you will find useful information, links to academic resources, updates on meetings and information, as well as friends and collogues. We encourage you to participate fully because the more participation there is, the more PISA can offer YOU! After all, you are already a member so . . . why not?

Now for the details on how to use this blog. First, you will notice a “chatter’s box” to the right, please feel free to utilize this and to engage in conversation with your fellow members. For longer concerns or specific comments on posts, please use the “comments” link that you will find at the bottom of each post.

If you would like to view older posts, use the heading of “previous posts” to the right or the archives to the bottom right as well. Important information, such as the welcome post, where you can find out about conferences, or important contact information for FAU and PISA members will be accessible through permanent links to the right as well.

The Blog format is a new to PISA and we hope that because of its interactive nature you will find participation easier and more convenient. Please check back often as this blog will be continuously updated. Thanks and have a wonderful year!