HCC Social Sciences Lecture Series (Online)

Howard Community College (HCC) hosts a series of virtual lectures showcasing professors from the Social Sciences and Teacher Education Division on Tuesdays at 6 p.m. during the months of February and March. Faculty will speak on their areas of expertise, covering such timely topics as American politics, sex and gender, culture, the Fourth Amendment, and de-escalation techniques in policing. Each lecture includes time for questions from participants. Find more information here. 

Free and open to the public, this series is sponsored by the Rotary Club of Columbia Patuxent, with support from Howard County Library System. Participants are asked to RSVP by clicking the link below. Information about accessing the virtual lectures will be provided closer to the event date. Click here to register for your choice of sessions. 

Tuesday, February 23, at 6 p.m.
"Inter(esting) Sex: Beyond the Binary”

Talk by Dr. Laura Cripps, professor of anthropology and geography
In the words of Gloria Steinem, “the first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn”. Debates on non-binary gender identities covering topics ranging from bathroom bills and educational curriculum to Sam Smith and Caitlyn Jenner have been grounded in assumptions of a binary biological classification of sex, with the supposition that gender fluidity is fundamentally unsupported by the sex-binary. Except, sex isn’t binary. This presentation will illustrate the differences between the identification of sex and gender, and establish that the biological reality of non-binary sex has always been part of humanity.

Tuesday, March 9, at 6 p.m.
"What’s Going On? American Politics 1970–2020”

Talk by Dr. Michael Heffren, professor of social sciences
In 1970, the year that Howard Community College opened, the country was deeply divided with political protest, social unrest, conflicts over racism, and urban riots. Marvin Gaye wrote the song “What’s Going On” that year to ask the question “Why?”. We could ask that same question today. Is this a case of the more things change, the more they stay the same? In fact, it’s quite different. In this talk, trace the changes in American politics over the past 50 years and try to answer the question: “What’s Going On?”

Tuesday, March 16, at 6 p.m.
The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution: Know Its Meaning and How It Protects Your Rights”

Talk by Evelyn Del Rosario, assistant professor of criminal justice
This talk delves into the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Learn the history of the Amendment, and its significance in protecting our privacy and limiting the power of the government. 

Tuesday, March 23, at 6 p.m.
"De-escalation Techniques From Behind the Wall”

Talk by Dr. Eric Clark, assistant professor of criminal justice

In the past several years, our American criminal justice system has been widely criticized for routine police encounters resulting in citizen deaths. Much of this scrutiny emanates from the failure to use de-escalation techniques, which have been found to be effective in correctional settings. This lecture seeks to examine how closed-custody correctional de-escalation methods could improve outcomes in police detention and arrest incidents with the public.