Seminole State College Speaker Series 2019-20

Each year, the Seminole State Speaker Series welcomes speakers representing diverse views and interests.

We will have the schedule of speakers for the 2019-20 academic year available soon. 

All events are free and open to the public. To request accessibility accommodations, please email Disability Support Services

The views expressed by these speakers are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Seminole State College of Florida, its Board of Trustees, employees, students, alumni or partners.

Dr. Kinitra Brooks, Chair of Literary Studies at Michigan State University

Zora 2020 Festival logo
Photo of Dr. Kinitra Brooks who is the Audrey and John Leslie Endowed Chair of Literary Studies at Michigan State University
  • When: Jan. 29, 2020, at 7 p.m.
  • Where: Building C, Sanford/Lake Mary Campus
  • Topic: Is this Lemonade Organic? Placing Beyoncé in Zora Neale Hurston’s Legacy in Conjure Feminism  

In partnership with the 31st Annual Zora Neale Hurston™ Festival of the Arts and Humanities (ZORA!™ Festival), the Seminole State Speaker Series presents Dr. Kinitra Brooks, author of The Lemonade Reader: Beyoncé, Black Feminism and Spirituality. 

Book Cover: The Lemonade Reader edited by Kinitra D. Brooks and Kameelah L. Martin

Dr. Brooks will discuss how Beyoncé embodies the conjure woman in her iconic audiovisual work Lemonade as a contemporary revision of Zora Neale Hurston’s groundbreaking study of conjure and its place in black women’s spirit work.

The presentation will conclude with a Q&A period. A reception and book signing will immediately follow the presentation.

Seminole State's Speaker Series is co-sponsored by Addition Financial. For more information, please call 407.708.2776. To view a list of previous speakers at Seminole State, visit seminolestate.edu/community/speakers.

Nich Carr Head Shot

Nicholas Carr, Acclaimed Writer on Technology, Economics and Culture

  • When: Sept. 19, 2019, at 7 p.m. 
  • Where: Building C, Sanford/Lake Mary Campus
  • Topic: What Our Smartphones Are Doing to Our Minds

Nick Carr is a compelling writer and speaker whose work focuses on the intersection of technology, economics, and culture. He is currently the Richmond Visiting Professor at Williams College in Massachusetts and was formerly the executive editor of the Harvard Business Review.

Photo of the cover of author Nicholas Carr's book "The Shallows What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains
Carr will sign copies of his book following his remarks. 

A journalist by trade, Carr is the author of several acclaimed books, including The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains (2010), a Pulitzer Prize finalist and a New York Times bestseller, and The Glass Cage: Automation and Us (2014), which examines the personal, social, and business consequences of our ever-growing dependency on computers, robots, and apps. His most recent book, Utopia Is Creepy: And Other Provocations (2016), uses a collection of his seminal essays to further explore the Internet’s impact on society. He also maintains the popular blog Rough Type.

Over just the last ten years, smartphones and social media have reshaped the way we live. In this timely and provocative presentation, bestselling author Carr will draw on recent scientific research to examine the hidden cognitive, psychological, and social costs of our love affair with technology.

The presentation will conclude with a Q&A period. A reception and book signing will immediately follow the presentation.

Seminole State's Speaker Series is co-sponsored by Addition Financial. For more information, please call 407.708.2776. To view a list of previous speakers at Seminole State, visit seminolestate.edu/community/speakers.

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