The Great Conversations conference occurred over Zoom on Saturday, March 27. The conference allowed participants to have two in-depth conversations lasting 45 minutes each.
Shimer Great Books
This event was first presented by Stuart Patterson of the Shimer Great Books program at NCC.
“The point of the event is to bring people who want to share ideas in touch with each other. That, to me, is the most powerful thing a college can do: to provide a forum for the mutual sharing of ideas,” said Patterson.
The Shimer Great Books school follows a curriculum designed around literature. A Great Books program is a different kind of learning opportunity. It’s led by the curiosity and commitment of students through discussion.
Additionally, this program at NCC offers four degrees, along with a number of courses that promote learning facilitated by conversation and hands-on activities.
Likewise, conversations help facilitate the spread of knowledge and ideas. Word-of-mouth was originally the primary method of communication. The world has adapted to different ways of conversing, however, this form of communication still thrives. Examples include negative dialogue, such as gossip, and positive dialogue, which empowers individuals.
Great Conversations conference
The Great Conversations conference sought to create a more positive dialogue, so there were minimal guidelines among individuals.
“The topic can be related to research a student has done or it can be any idea that a student or group of students found intriguing and submitted to us as a proposal. With a text as their guide, each group will be able to engage in their own intellectual exchange of ideas,” said Claire Mikulcik, ’23, co-organizer of the Great Conversations Conference.
Additionally, participants submitted topics that peaked their personal interests. This opportunity allowed for more meaningful participation.
One presenter, Peyton Shulz, ’22, submitted the question, “Is racism a white person’s problem?”
“I loved how simplistic the proposal process was for this conference. It wasn’t a lot of work where it would discourage applicants from proposing a topic,” Lexie Pagel, ’22. “I also really enjoyed how laid back and social all the participants were. The conference had a great atmosphere and that calmed my nerves for presenting.”
Future conversations
Overall, the consensus was that the conversations were very engaging. Mikulcik hopes to lengthen the conference next year so that more socialization among participants can occur.
Moreover, there is the hope that this will become an annual event. There is also speculation that the next conference will include some form of in-person interaction.
“(This event) is really meant to be everybody, anybody and everybody. It’s not for a particular major … anyone can submit a proposal, anyone can come,” Mikulcik said.
