The event is sponsored by The Gerber Institute for Catholic Studies at Newman University in celebration of Cardinal Newman Week, and is free and open to the public.

Dr. Godfrey has published articles and delivered scholarly papers at national and international conferences on a variety of topics in Historical Theology and Christian Spirituality. His most sustained areas of interest for research are the Franciscan Tradition and the theology of John Henry Cardinal Newman. He has served as convener and moderator of the Thought of John Henry Newman Group of the Catholic Theological Society of America for the last seven years. He is a member of the Editorial Board and also Book Review Editor for the Journal of the Association of Franciscan Colleges and Universities.

Mr. Hunt will take questions from the audience immediately following the film. There will also be a brief reception and an opportunity to pre-order signed copies of Mr. Hunt’s forthcoming book “Life Interrupted: The Trials of Darryl Hunt.” The event is free and open to the public.

Mr. Hunt’s appearance is the result of a successful grant application made by Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice Jill Fort to the Gerber Institute last year.

For more information about Darryl Hunt or the Gerber Institute, please visit www.gerberinstitute.org.

The presentation will take place from 12:00 to 12:50 p.m. in the Tarcisia Roths, ASC Alumni Center in the Dugan Library and Campus Center. A complimentary lunch will be provided for the first 30 individuals who RSVP to Julie Brin by 5:00 p.m. this Friday, January 27. RSVP by calling (316) 942-4291, ext. 2483, or e-mailing Julie at brinj@newmanu.edu.

What: Part 1 of Gerber Institute Visiting Speakers’ Series on Land

When: Wednesday, November 2, 2011, 7:00-8:30 p.m.

Where: De Mattias Performance Hall, Newman University

As part of its 2011-2012 programming on the topic of Land, the Gerber Institute will welcome Fr. Bill Morton, a Catholic priest from El Paso, Texas, for a lecture at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, November 2, 2011. Fr. Morton will talk about the ongoing dispute over land use and property rights in the Lomas del Poleo region of Mexico, just south of the U.S.-Mexico border. Fr. Morton has been actively and intimately involved in this dispute since 2003. In 2006, as a consequence of his involvement, he was fined and forced to leave Mexico; however, he has continued advocating for the Lomas residents from El Paso. To learn more about Lomas see www.pasodelsur.com and/or Google “Lomas del Poleo.”

Fr. Morton has a BA in Philosophy from St. Thomas University in St. Paul, an MDiv from Weston Jesuit in Cambridge, and an MA in Theological Studies from LaSalle University in Philadelphia. He is past president of the Board of Directors of the US Catholic Mission Association and serves on the Board of Directors of Annunciation House, Inc., a house of hospitality for the undocumented in El Paso.

The talk will take place in the  of the De Mattias Performance Hall, located on the north side of the Newman University campus. Admission is free of charge and the public is invited.

In his talk, Prof. Miller graciously shared some personal reflections on his own alma mater, the Catholic University of Louvain in Belgium, where he earned his doctorate. He then offered some insight into Cardinal Newman’s relationship with what he considered his alma mater, Trinity College at Oxford, a place that Newman recalled much later as having “never been unkind” to him, even as he was shunned by the rest of Oxford for his conversion to Catholicism. Finally, Prof. Miller brought us some insights (based in part on unpublished end-of-year reports which Newman was obliged to submit annually to the bishops) about how Newman sought to ensure that the institution he founded, the Catholic University of Ireland in Dublin, would continue this tradition of nourishing its students’ minds and souls.

The presentation was accompanied by numerous pictures — of Louvain, of Oxford, of the Catholic University in Ireland — some of which brought back fond memories for those who attended the beatification of Cardinal Newman last September. We only wish more members of the Newman community could have attended this special Newman Week event. For those who did attend, feel free to add your comments below!

For a one year appointment, Fellows receive a stipend of $1,300 and a one course release from teaching responsibilities. In return, Fellows are expected to advance a research agenda as well as contribute to the Institute’s mission of promoting dialogue, with a special focus on engaging the Newman community in this dialogue.

Currently, the Gerber Institute is continuing to explore the theme of reconciling differences. In addition, as part of this broad thematic inquiry we plan to devote special attention during the upcoming year to the topic of education.

For more information, please contact the Institute’s director, Jamey Findling, or visit the Institute’s website at www.gerberinstitute.org.

Dr. Miller, Professor of Religious Studies at Gwynedd-Mercy College (Pennsylvania), has published his theological research in numerous books, including Newman:  Doctor of the Church (Oxford, 2007), Discourse and Context: An Interdisciplinary Study of John Henry Newman (Carbondale, 1993), Critical Essays on John Henry Newman (Victoria BC, 1992), and John Henry Newman on the Idea of Church (Shepherdstown, 1987).

This event is free and open to the public. For more information, please visit the Gerber Institute’s website at www.gerberinstitute.org.

ALFIE KOHN

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DON’T BEAT THEM, JOIN THEM:

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Exploring the Value of Cooperation in a Society Addicted to Winning

The Gerber Institute for Catholic Studies is pleased to announce that Alfie Kohn will be speaking in Wichita, Kansas, on Saturday, April 16, 2011, from 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. at Kapaun Mount Carmel High School, 8506 East Central Avenue, Wichita, Kansas. Kohn’s talk will deal with his influential ideas on teaching and parenting as they relate to the Gerber Institute’s ongoing theme of reconciling differences.

• EVENT DETAILS

Doors will open at 8:15 a.m., with complimentary coffee and bagels available before the presentation.

Break-out sessions and a pizza lunch will follow the talk ($5 for lunch, payable at the door).

The break-out sessions will be facilitated by Newman University professors on a variety of topics:

-Elementary Education, by Karen Rogers

-Secondary Education, by Steve Dunn

-Higher Education, by Steve Poulter

-Parenting, by Marguerite Regan

Alfie Kohn

Alfie Kohn is the author of twelve books on education, parenting, and human behavior, including PUNISHED BY REWARDS (1993), BEYOND DISCIPLINE(1996), THE SCHOOLS OUR CHILDREN DESERVE (1999), UNCONDITIONAL PARENTING (2005), THE HOMEWORK MYTH (2006), and FEEL-BAD EDUCATION (due out this spring). He has written for most of the leading education periodicals and has appeared twice on “Oprah.” Time magazine described him as “perhaps the country’s most outspoken critic of education’s fixation on grades [and] test scores.”  Kohn works with educators and parents across the country and speaks regularly at national conferences.   He lives (actually) in the Boston area and (virtually) at www.alfiekohn.org.