Student Affairs

Fourth Annual Terry Piper Lecture

Monday, March 9, 2015 - 9:00am to 11:00am

Location:
Northridge Center, University Student Union
Cost:
Free
Shaun Harper

 

Faculty Colleagues,

As Co-Chair of the planning committee, I am pleased to share with you that the 2015 Terry Piper Lecture Series will feature Dr. Shaun Harper speaking to the university community in the USU Northridge Center on Monday morning, March 9th, from 9:30-11 a.m. following a coffee reception at 9:00 a.m.

Dr. Harper’s address will focus on the active role the institution must play in ensuring student success and what each of us as faculty, staff, and administrators can do to increase student engagement–especially among male students of color–as active participants in their journey.

Whether we interact with students in the classroom, in office hours, conducting research with them, as advisors to various student groups on campus, or simply pass by them on campus, each interaction is an opportunity to engage the student and affirm that they belong here and that we believe they will succeed. As Dr. Harper will discuss, the empirically-based academic literature is strongly in support of such behavior.

A well-respected and prolific writer among higher education researchers, Shaun Harper captured the attention of the selection committee and several of our CSUN colleagues including Dr. Boris Ricks (Political Science), Dr. Frankie Augustin (Health Sciences), Dr. Brandon Martin (Director of Intercollegiate Athletics), and Ms. Debra Hammond (Executive Director of the University Student Union), who are all familiar with his research. Debra Hammond shares:

I have known Shaun Harper since his graduate student days at Indiana University, Bloomington, where he was involved in my professional association, the Association of College Unions International, and I have continued to follow his career over the years. Shaun has always loved research and developing solutions to situations of inequity. One of his most impactful books, Creating Inclusive Campus Environments for Cross-Cultural Learning and Student Engagement, helped me shape how I strive to create opportunities for student engagement that value and appreciate diverse ways of operating in the world. Shaun is one of few researchers who offer practical advice for making our students more successful and our campuses more just.

Dr. Harper is a professor in the Graduate School of Education, Africana Studies, and Gender Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, where he also serves as Executive Director of the Center for the Study of Race and Equity in Education. Professor Harper's research examines race and gender in education, equity trends and racial climates on college campuses, Black and Latino male student success in high school and higher education, and college student engagement.

We hope that we have piqued your interest. We encourage you to join the campus community on March 9th to learn more about how we can help our students succeed, and to celebrate the legacy of Dr. Terry Piper.

Visit the website to learn more and to RSVP to attend as well as for links to Dr. Harper's publications.

Anticipating a great presentation,

Merril Simon, Educational Psychology & Counseling Department

Co-Chair, Terry Piper Annual Lecture Committee