Q: “Dr. Takaragawa, please give us an idea of your role as a Wilkinson College Associate Dean, especially how you and other leaders in the college were inspired to launch the “Engaging The World” themes in addressing an array of vital contemporary social issues, including DEI, health equity, environmental justice , race, and gender and sexuality.”

A:

Wilkinson College is committed to leading the conversation in our community on issues of humanity, unity and justice. As such, the college has undertaken, semester-long examinations of key societal issues, that began in fall 2020 with The Significance of Race (2020-2021). These interdisciplinary, campus-wide conversations promoted thoughtful dialogue; mindful reflection; social tolerance; awareness and respect; peace and kindness. Engaging the World (ETW) was developed to create a unifying academic program for the Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Science. The self-proclaimed Heart & Soul of Chapman University, the college is home to many General Education Courses, over 100 Full Time Faculty, and 8 academic departments.  The purpose of ETW is to incorporate one general theme across the college that will be taught in FFC courses to all the incoming Wilkinson College majors, and across other classes in the college, creating to create a sense of cohesion each year. Experts in the field from academics, journalists, artists, and others are invited to campus in a constellation of events that support the curriculum of the FFC courses. Our first event hosted over 1000 people on zoom in June 2020 during the pandemic and in the wake of George Floyd’s murder as the college led the conversation on issues of race in the United States.

Since 2020 the Wilkinson College has led the conversation on Race, Environmental Justice, Ethnic Studies and Health Equity. This year, the topic is Gender and Sexuality, and we welcome keynote speaker Roxane Gay, best-selling author and social commentator to discuss her work, including her most well-known work Bad Feminist. We want to bring world-class speakers to our campus, to talk about important issues to our students, as we educate them about the topics in our classrooms. We also highlight the scholarship and creative work of our own faculty, this year providing a forum for a film by Dodge faculty Sally Rubin, the artwork of art faculty Micol Hebron, and the scholarship of Professors Sandra Alavrez (Political Science), Minju Kwon (Political Science), and Adwoa Opong (History). Along with Sally Rubin’s film, Mama Has a Mustache, we will screen additional films and bring collaborators of the film to speak as well. Our purpose for the 2024-25 ETW series is to promote informed, sustained, and enriching dialogues through an in-depth exploration of gender and sexuality.

Tickets available to purchase for Roxane Gay available here!