Colman McCarthy

Tag: Colman McCarthy

Noted American pacifist asks “Is Peace Possible?” in university convocation

For the past 35 years, Colman McCarthy has “preached” the gospel of nonviolence as an award-winning journalist, author and educator.

McCarthy brings his pacifist message to Lawrence University Tuesday, Oct. 31 in the second address in the university’s 2017-18 convocation series. McCarthy presents “Is Peace Possible?” at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. A quesntion and answer session will follow immediately after McCarthy’s remarks.

The event is free and open to the public and will also be available via live webcast.

Colman McCarthy
Colman McCarthy presents “Is Peace Possible” Oct. 31 as part of Lawrence University’s 2017-18 convocation series.

During a teaching spanning decades, McCarthy often has been a critic of a system that traditionally features a curriculum long on wars and generals, but short on those who advocate nonviolent force to resolve conflict. He is fond of saying if we don’t teach children peace, others will teach them violence.

Since the mid-1990s, McCarthy has taught classes on peace literature throughout the Washington, D.C. area at various levels, including Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School, the University of Maryland, American University and Georgetown University Law Center.

In addition to his teaching duties, McCarthy serves as the director of the Center for Teaching Peace in Washington, D.C., an organization he founded in 1985 to assist schools launch or expand peace studies programs.

A stuttering problem as a youth turned McCarthy’s interests to writing. A voracious reader, McCarthy began working as a columnist for the Washington Post in 1969. With instructions to become “a solution finder,” McCarthy wrote frequently about people engaged in the art of peacemaking, such as activist David Dellinger and singer Joan Baez. He was recognized for his nationally syndicated column with the Peace Abbey Courage of Conscience Award. For the past 18 years, he has written biweekly columns for the National Catholic Reporter.

McCarthy also has written 14 books, including 2002’s “I’d Rather Teach Peace” in which he chronicles his experiences introducing the theory and practice of creative peacemaking to classrooms ranging from a suburban Washington, D.C. high school to a prison for juveniles to Georgetown University Law Center.

After graduating from Spring Hill College, a Jesuit institution in Alabama, in 1960, McCarthy spent five years at a Trappist monastery in Georgia as a lay brother. Assigned to the dairy crew, he tended to 150 head of cows, including shoveling manure, a task which has said,  was “a good preparation for journalism.”

In 2010, McCarthy was awarded the $30,000 El-Hibri Peace Education Prize, which honors an outstanding scholar, practitioner or policymaker in order to raise awareness of and to promote the expansion of the field of peace education.

McCarthy’s appearance is supported by the Class of 1968 Peace and Social Activism Fund. Established in 1993 by members of the Class of 1968 in honor of their 25th reunion, the fund supports individual or collaborative projects by students and faculty that address issues related to peace and social activism in a historical or contemporary context from a local, regional, national, or global perspective.

About Lawrence University
Founded in 1847, Lawrence University uniquely integrates a college of liberal arts and sciences with a nationally recognized conservatory of music, both devoted exclusively to undergraduate education. It was selected for inclusion in the book “Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About College.” Engaged learning, the development of multiple interests and community outreach are central to the Lawrence experience. Lawrence draws its 1,500 students from nearly every state and more than 50 countries.

President Burstein opens 2017-18 academic year, convocation series with annual matriculation address

President Mark Burstein officially opens Lawrence University’s 169th academic year and the university’s 2017-18 convocation series Thursday, Sept. 14 with his annual matriculation address.

President Mark Burstein
President Mark Burstein

At a time of national conflict and divisiveness, Burstein shares his thoughts on enduring values that could provide a community framework in the address “What Do We Stand For,” at 11:10 a.m. in the Lawrence Memorial Chapel. The event is free and open to the public. It also will be available via a live webcast.

Now in his fifth year as Lawrence’s 16th president, Burstein has focused on creating learning communities in which all members can reach their full potential during a career in higher education spanning nearly 25 years.

Prior to Lawrence, he spent nine years as executive vice president at Princeton University and 10 years at Columbia University as a vice president working in human resources, student services and facilities management.

Joining Burstein as convocation series speakers will be:

Colman McCarthy
Colman McCarthy

• Oct. 31 Award-winning journalist, educator and long-time peace activist, Colman McCarthy presents “Is Peace Possible?” The director of the Center for Teaching Peace in Washington, D.C., which he founded in 1985, McCarthy spent nearly 30 years as a columnist for the Washington Post. Since 1999, he has written a weekly column for The National Catholic Reporter.

As an educator who believes if we don’t teach children peace, someone else will teach them violence, McCarthy has taught courses on nonviolence and peace literature for more than 30 years.

He is the author of 14 books, including 2002’s “I’d Rather Teach Peace” in which he chronicles his experiences introducing the theory and practice of creative peacemaking to classrooms ranging from a suburban Washington, D.C. high school to a prison for juveniles to Georgetown University Law Center.

Jad Abumrad
Jad Abumrad

• Feb. 1, 2018 Jad Abumrad, the creator and host of public radio’s popular “Radiolab” program, explores what it means to “innovate” and how it feels to create something new in the address “Gut Churn.”

Abumrad was named a MacArthur Fellow, an honor commonly known as a “genius grant,” in 2011 and “Radiolab” show has been recognized twice—2010 and 2015—with the prestigious George Foster Peabody Award.

In 2016, he premiered a spinoff of “Radiolab” entitled “More Perfect,” which explores untold stories about the Supreme Court.

Ainissa Ramirez
Ainissa Ramirez

• April 3, 2018.  Author and science “evangelist Ainissa Ramirez, who spreads her “gospel” through books, TED Talks, online videos and the podcast “Science Underground,” presents “Technology’s Unexpected Consequences.”

Named one of the world’s 100 Top Young Innovators by Technology Review for her contributions to transforming technology, Ramirez spent eight years teaching mechanical engineering & materials science at Yale University and also has been a visiting professor at MIT.

She has written or co-written three books, including 2013’s “Newton’s Football: The Science Behind America’s Game,” an entertaining and enlightening look at the big ideas underlying the science of football.

Kenneth Bozeman
Kenneth Bozeman

• May 22, 2018 Voice teacher Kenneth Bozeman, the Frank C. Shattuck Professor of Music at Lawrence, presents “Voice, the Muscle of the Soul: Finding Yourself Through Finding Your Voice” at Lawrence’s annual Honors Convocation.

A member of the conservatory of music faculty since 1977, Bozeman is the author of the 2017 book “Practical Vocal Acoustics: Pedagogic Applications for Teachers and Singers.” He is frequently invited to speak at seminars and master classes on acoustic pedagogy at universities and interdisciplinary conferences.

Bozeman is one of only 11 faculty members in the history of the university to be recognized with both Lawrence’s Young Teacher Award (1980) and Excellence in Teaching Award (1996). He also was honored by the Voice Foundation with its Van Lawrence Fellowship in 1994 for his interest in voice science and pedagogy.