Back-to-School Classes

February 10

7:30 p.m. ET

Legacies and Land: The Preservation of King’s Bottom and the Potential of #LandBack 

With Rose Stremlau, Charles A. Dana Professor of History; Maria Whitehead ’95; Lydia Locklear Canty (Lumbee) and Dr. Wenonah G. Haire (Catawba)

Register via Zoom by Friday, February 7.

Join Maria Whitehead ’95, vice president of land for the southeast through the Open Space Institute (OSI), in a discussion with Dr. Wenonah G. Haire (Catawba), executive director of the Catawba Cultural Center, and Lydia Locklear Canty (Lumbee), tribal attorney for the Catawba Nation. The panel will explain how the OSI and Catawba Nation partnered to preserve a 600-acre tract of historical, cultural, and natural significance in Lancaster County, SC. The King’s Bottom Tract will eventually become a South Carolina state park. Protecting this land from commercial development ensures that Catawba potters will continue to access and co-manage an ancestral clay pit that the Catawba regard as a sacred resource. The initiative provides a model for how Davidson College may partner with the Catawba Nation in future land preservation initiatives as part of Dútα Bαhiisere Kus Ráˀhere (We Know Corn Together), the collaboration between the Catawba Nation and Davidson College. The conversation will be facilitated by Prof. Rose Stremlau, Charles A. Dana Professor of History. 

February 11

7:30 p.m. ET

Shaping Davidson's Future: Giving Through Your Estate

with Jamie Stamey, Director of Gift Planning, and JJ & Virginia Summerell ’80 

Register via Zoom by Monday, February 10.

It’s never too early or too late to start thinking about the impact you want to make! Join us for an engaging session on how you can help shape Davidson’s future through an estate gift. Jamie Stamey, our Director of Gift Planning, will guide you through planned giving options such as bequests, beneficiary designations, and charitable gift annuities in this beginner-friendly session. Plus, hear from JJ and Virginia Summerell ’80 as they share their inspiring reasons for supporting Davidson in this meaningful way. Everyone is welcome to join and learn how you can make a lasting difference!

February 27

7:30 p.m. ET

Family Wellness 101: Cultivating Wellness at Home

with Trenita Brookshire Childers ‘05

Register via Zoom by Tuesday, February 26.

Whether we grew up in a home with positive models of healthy relationship behaviors or not, our childhood experiences shape the relationships we have in adulthood. And if you are a parent, your own behaviors in the parent-child relationship will shape how your children engage in their future relationships. This class will dive into two main questions 1) What are the basic characteristics of healthy family relationships? and 2) What does it take to cultivate healthy family relationships at home? Dr. Trenita Brookshire Childers ‘05, a sociologist and mom of three boys, describes a framework for family wellness which includes 5 core areas: health and safety, identity, connection, belonging, and legacy. In this discussion, Dr. Childers will walk through ways to intentionally cultivate these 5 core areas of family wellness as we shape relationship dynamics in our homes. 

March 3

7:30 p.m. ET

Higher Ed Storms in the Sunshine State

With Eric Walker ‘75

Register via Zoom by Friday, February 28.

What does the hostile takeover of New College in Sarasota, FL tell us about the future of public liberal arts education in an America awash with Florida politics? Eric Walker ’75 will spotlight this and several high-profile crises of late in Florida public higher education, including the battle over the presidential stakes at UF (the Ben Sasse controversy), system-mandated curricular reforms targeting DEI, boards of trustees newly active in faculty hiring and tenure and the precarious status of faculty unions on all these fronts. As an emeritus professor of English, former president of the Faculty Senate at Florida State University, member of the FSU Board of Trustees, and member of the statewide Florida Council of Faculty Senate presidents Eric has a strong interest in keeping a close eye on these matters during his retirement.

April 7

7:30 p.m. ET

With These Hands: A Discussion of Davidson’s True History 

With Virgil Flood ’80; Lia Newman, Director & Curator of Art Gallery/Adjunct Assistant Professor; Cintra Pollack ’99 and Hilary Green, James B. Duke Professor of Africana Studies 

Register via Zoom by Friday, April 4.

Join us for a special virtual class commemorating With These Hands, a powerful representation of the contributions of those who helped shape Davidson College but who have previously been downplayed or unacknowledged. 

In 2019, members of the Board of Trustees were given the charge to rectify the wrongs of omission and obfuscation, to acknowledge vital contributors to our school history and to help Davidson reclaim its history in a fuller, more just, and more accurate way. They commissioned With These Hands as a part of that reconciliation.

Members of this committee will lead a discussion about creating the commemorative site and delve into the untold stories of labor, resilience, and legacy, fostering a deeper understanding of our shared history. The essence of the committee’s work is to acknowledge the past and imagine a new future. 

Through engaging discussions and reflections, alumni will reconnect with the enduring values of community and purpose that define Davidson.