A Road Scholar Program by Heineman & Marcotte

Take a magic carpet ride to ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt in story and song with storyteller Judith Heineman and musician Daniel Marcotte in an engaging and interactive performance. Learn how tales like Star Wars and Harry Potter got their start. Hear of ancient quests, magic, monsters, epic battles between good and evil, and how mummies are made. Replica artifacts, early musical instruments (the oud), and period costumes enhance their lively presentation. The epic story of the world's first superhero, Gilgamesh, deals with the basic qualities of what it means to be human-courage, strength, friendship, loss, betrayal, death, and the quest for immortality. It lay hidden for over 4500 years until it was literally unearthed about 150 years ago. This program brings these lost stories to life.

Mark Twain said "Inventors are the creators of the world-after God." This presentation is a first-person Chautauqua style program by Warren Brown as Mark Twain. You will journey on water, land, and air sharing insights from the "Diaries of Adam and Eve" to friendships with inventors and thoughts about Galileo and Newton. "I have found out there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them."- Mark Twain.

Author and activist Anne Elizabeth Moore will be a special guest at Valois, this Thursday, November 5 from 7:00pm -8:00pm. 

In a piece entitled Women are Diamonds: A Brilliant Future for Cambodia Means Creating Female Employment Now, author and activist Anne Elizabeth Moore explores the dwindling employment opportunities for young Cambodian women. She writes, "While education may be a way to move the country forward, and volunteerism an excellent means to bolster education with hands-on skills, the fact remains that Cambodia's job opportunities are few and far between. A full 40 percent of the country is in poverty, and most Cambodians survive on only a dollar a day."

Moore gives the reader background on Cambodia's economy: "In recent years, Cambodian industry - most natural resources save rice were destroyed under the Khmer Rouge regime - had begun to edge away from agriculture toward garment export. Women's long association with textiles made them the go-to labor force in the emerging market. This sudden increase in women's economic opportunities had begun to shift, however slightly, the assumption that women were valueless."

In a piece entitled Women are Diamonds: A Brilliant Future for Cambodia Means Creating Female Employment Now, author and activist Anne Elizabeth Moore explores the dwindling employment opportunities for young Cambodian women. She writes, "While education may be a way to move the country forward, and volunteerism an excellent means to bolster education with hands-on skills, the fact remains that Cambodia's job opportunities are few and far between. A full 40 percent of the country is in poverty, and most Cambodians survive on only a dollar a day."

Moore gives the reader background on Cambodia's economy: "In recent years, Cambodian industry - most natural resources save rice were destroyed under the Khmer Rouge regime - had begun to edge away from agriculture toward garment export. Women's long association with textiles made them the go-to labor force in the emerging market. This sudden increase in women's economic opportunities had begun to shift, however slightly, the assumption that women were valueless."

Journey Stories tells how we and our ancestors came to America. From Native Americans to new American citizens and regardless of our ethnic or racial background, everyone has a story to tell.

Our history is filled with stories of people leaving behind everything - families and possessions - to reach a new life in another state, across the continent, or even across an ocean.

Many chose to move, searching for something better in a new land. Others had no choice, like enslaved Africans captured and relocated to a strange land and bravely asserting their own cultures, or like Native Americans already here, who were often violently removed by newcomers.

This exhibition runs from October 24 - December 6, 2009.

Join us as Evelynn M. Hammonds, Dean of Harvard College, discusses “Diversity in Higher Education.” Prior to her tenure as dean, Hammonds served as Harvard University’s first Senior Vice Provost for Faculty Development and Diversity from July 2005 to June 2008. She is also the Barbara Gutman Rosenkrantz Professor of History of Science and of African and African American Studies.

Her scholarly interests include the history of scientific, medical, and sociopolitical concepts of race and sexuality; the history of disease and public health; gender in science and medicine; and African-American history.

Welcome and introductions will be made by Professor Barbara Ransby, Director of Gender and Women’s Studies at UIC; Michael Tanner, Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs; and Professor William Walden, Special Assistant to the Provost for Diversity.

Journey Stories tells how we and our ancestors came to America. From Native Americans to new American citizens and regardless of our ethnic or racial background, everyone has a story to tell.

Our history is filled with stories of people leaving behind everything - families and possessions - to reach a new life in another state, across the continent, or even across an ocean.

Many chose to move, searching for something better in a new land. Others had no choice, like enslaved Africans captured and relocated to a strange land and bravely asserting their own cultures, or like Native Americans already here, who were often violently removed by newcomers.

This exhibition runs from October 24 - December 6, 2009.

A Road Scholar Program by Penelope Bingham

Nine out of ten Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving, and most do so around a family table. Food and tradition are the heart and soul of this most-loved, most-observed holiday. Thanksgiving has become the origin myth of America and the expression of deeply held American cultural ideals. As it considers the evolution of Thanksgiving, from the "First Thanksgiving" in 1621 to the present day, this program invites the audience to think about what this holiday and its food traditions mean for American culture and identity.

Journey Stories tells how we and our ancestors came to America. From Native Americans to new American citizens and regardless of our ethnic or racial background, everyone has a story to tell.

Our history is filled with stories of people leaving behind everything - families and possessions - to reach a new life in another state, across the continent, or even across an ocean.

Many chose to move, searching for something better in a new land. Others had no choice, like enslaved Africans captured and relocated to a strange land and bravely asserting their own cultures, or like Native Americans already here, who were often violently removed by newcomers.

This exhibition runs from October 24 - December 6, 2009.

An exciting lecture and slide presentation that delves into the dark side of Illinois history, from the frontier killers at Cave-in-Rock to later horse thieves, bandits, and murderers. Groups such as the Brown Gang, the Johnson Gang, and the Berry Gang - and outlaws like Joe Brice, Ed Maxwell, and Frank Rande - will be discussed, and then slides, based on lithographs and historic photographs, will depict some of the outlaws and the locations associated with their nefarious activities. The lecture will also include comments on the early lawmen and vigilantes who tracked down the desperadoes.

As a follow-up to an earlier discussion about Lake II, presented by the Citizens Club of Springfield, this program will engage audiences in regional, national, and global conversations that effect more than just the local watershed and ecological zone. The discussion will also include the growth of Illinois industries related to ethanol and biofuels, as well as access to and control of petroleum resources.

Throughout all of these complex issues, questions emerge: Do we share common values about how these resources are managed in the region? Who controls access to these resources? What are the relationships between policy, access, and use? Where should broader, regional conversations about managing these resources be happening? And, how do we create an environment to discuss the ethical issues that emerge?

Panelists:

Journey Stories tells how we and our ancestors came to America. From Native Americans to new American citizens and regardless of our ethnic or racial background, everyone has a story to tell.

Our history is filled with stories of people leaving behind everything - families and possessions - to reach a new life in another state, across the continent, or even across an ocean.

Many chose to move, searching for something better in a new land. Others had no choice, like enslaved Africans captured and relocated to a strange land and bravely asserting their own cultures, or like Native Americans already here, who were often violently removed by newcomers.

This exhibition runs from October 24 - December 6, 2009.

A Road Scholar Program by Mark Pohlad

This presentation describes the photographs of Abraham Lincoln as they appear in the history of photography. Lincoln was the first extensively photographed President, and the first for whom the media helped sway an election. The sixteenth President once described his most frequent photographer, Mathew Brady (1823-96), as "the man who put me in the White House." Through vivid, large-scale projected images, art historian Mark Pohlad - a specialist in photo history - will trace the images of Lincoln and his circle while describing the nature and challenges of photography in the mid-nineteenth century.

The Illinois Humanities Council (IHC) invites grant applicants to attend a free public Community Grant Application workshop. Any nonprofit organization or institution is eligible to apply to IHC for financial support of a public project in the humanities.

IHC Program Officer Dimitra Tasiouras will field questions about guidelines for the Community Grants Program, as well as about grant support for various kinds of projects -- local and community history projects, oral history projects, documentary film projects, and reading/discussion programs, for example.

Registration is required. When registering, please provide your name, the name of the organization you will be representing, and the organization's address and phone number.

The Illinois Humanities Council (IHC) invites grant applicants to attend a free public Community Grant Application workshop. Any nonprofit organization or institution is eligible to apply to IHC for financial support of a public project in the humanities.

IHC Program Officer Ryan Lewis will field questions about guidelines for the Community Grants Program, as well as about grant support for various kinds of projects -- local and community history projects, oral history projects, documentary film projects, and reading/discussion programs, for example.

Registration is required. When registering, please provide your name, the name of the organization you will be representing, and the organization's address and phone number.

A Road Scholar Program by Penelope Bingham

Nine out of ten Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving, and most do so around a family table. Food and tradition are the heart and soul of this most-loved, most-observed holiday. Thanksgiving has become the origin myth of America and the expression of deeply held American cultural ideals. As it considers the evolution of Thanksgiving, from the "First Thanksgiving" in 1621 to the present day, this program invites the audience to think about what this holiday and its food traditions mean for American culture and identity.

A Road Scholar Program by Simon Cordery

The saying, "a hog can travel non-stop from coast to coast, but a person must change in Chicago," confirms the Windy City's status as the hub of the American railroad system. But Chicago is only one facet of the fascinating history of Illinois railroads. Simon Cordery, railway historian and historical advisor to the National Railroad Hall of Fame, explains the expansion of the railroad industry in the Land of Lincoln, demonstrates how the Prairie State fits into the pattern of national railroad development, and explores the national political significance of the history of railroads in Illinois. All aboard!

Mark Twain said "Inventors are the creators of the world-after God." This presentation is a first-person Chautauqua style program by Warren Brown as Mark Twain. You will journey on water, land, and air sharing insights from the "Diaries of Adam and Eve" to friendships with inventors and thoughts about Galileo and Newton. "I have found out there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like people or hate them than to travel with them."- Mark Twain.

A Road Scholar Program by Jane Ann Moore

In 1836, pro-Slavery mobs attacked and destroyed the presses of the Alton Observer three times. The editor, Elijah Lovejoy, continued to publish the paper until November, when a fourth mob captured the press and murdered the co-founder of the Illinois State Antislavery Society. Elijah Lovejoy's martyrdom rejuvenated the national antislavery movement. In the words of his brother Owen, "I vowed on my knees before God never to forsake the cause for which his blood was sprinkled." In this presentation, Jane Ann Moore presents the story of Elijah and Owen Lovejoy and their tireless work through churches, newspapers, lecture tours, political parties, and other antislavery groups to establish equality for all people in the United States.

Bruno Bettleheim in The Uses of Enchantment, Jane Yolen in Touch Magic, and other acclaimed writers and psychologists have discussed the power of fright in children as a necessary and useful tool. Listening to narrow escapes and horrible demises in ghost stories and gothic tales strengthen human survival instincts. The imagination is primed to act in reality should these dangerous situations arise, thus justifying the enjoyment shared in hearing a good scary story. This program challenges the popular, modern versions of fairy tales by reinstating the original gothic tales long before the stories were edited in the Victorian era. For example, what happened after Sleeping Beauty is awakened by the Prince's kiss? Most people believe they lived happily ever after, but this was far from the truth or intent of the original tale. Find out more through this innovative program.

A Road Scholar Program by Ellie Carlson

This was originally presented as a series of four weekly classes but can be produced as a single session. Elizabeth Carlson has researched cooking techniques, period appropriate ingredients, and recipes for four eras in American Homemaking history. She will present each session in costume. Recipes and ingredients reflect the time period, season of the year, and economic climate of the time. Changes in food preparation techniques, the enactment of food laws, and scientific discoveries regarding food safety are discussed. Participants make and consume the food for each session. Cookbooks are provided as take-away.

Weaving music with stories, Lee Murdock presents a compelling story of Irish immigrants in Illinois. As they came to America to build their new lives in a foreign land, they were also essential hands in building the canals, railroads, and towns that became Illinois and America. Both traditional ballads and modern historical songs are featured in this illuminating presentation.