Professor, Saint Thomas University School of Law

Stand Your Ground: Discretion, Race, and Culture

Tuesday, April 1, 2014
Allison Great Hall – 7 p.m.

An engaging conversation about how discretion, which is exercised at all levels of the criminal justice system, can affect the outcomes of criminal cases, including claims of self-defense and the right to stand-your-ground.  The dynamics of the discretionary decisions made by legislatures, prosecutors, judges, and juries, in controversial homicide cases like the Trayvon Martin / George Zimmerman case, the Marissa Alexander case, and the Michael Dunn case, as well as other high profile criminal cases, will be discussed.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the Division of Student Development and the Women’s and Gender Resource Center.

Biography (provided by the speaker)
Tamara F. Lawson is a tenured professor of law at Saint Thomas University School of Law. She joined the Saint Thomas Law faculty in 2004 where she teaches criminal law,criminal procedure, evidence, and a seminar on race and the law. Professor Lawson has twice been awarded Professor of the Year at St. Thomas. Prior to joining the law faculty, Professor Lawson served as a deputy district attorney Read more

Tuesday, March 25, 2014
Stern Center, Great Room – 7 p.m.

The Snowden leaks of classified information over the last several months have highlighted a number of important issues, including the lawfulness of certain surveillance programs of the National Security Agency, the proper balance between national security and privacy/civil liberties, and the impact the leaks have had on U.S. foreign relations and the intelligence community.  This panel discussion will address these issues with a general focus on the impact that the Snowden disclosures have had on the United States and its constitutional framework.

Panelists

Amy Gaudion, assistant dean for Academic Affairs, Penn State Dickinson School of Law
Bert Tussing, director of the Homeland Defense and Security Issues Group, Center for Strategic Leadership and Development, U.S. Army War College
Anthony Williams, visiting professor of security studies, Dickinson College
Harry Pohlman (moderator), A. Lee Fritschler Chair in Public Policy and executive director of the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues, Dickinson College

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues.

Biographies (provided by the panelists)

Amy C. Gaudion is the assistant dean for Academic Affairs, Penn State Dickinson School of Law.  Professor Gaudion’s scholarly and teaching Read more

**  Breaking Issue **

Thursday, March 6, 2014
Anita Tuvin Schlechter Auditorium – 7 p.m.

As the Sochi Olympics were drawing to a close, the long simmering tug-of-war between the EU and Russia over the future of Ukraine boiled over into street violence and political chaos in Kiev, the Ukrainian capital. This panel will examine the origins of this crisis, the interests at stake for Russia, the EU, and the US, and the possible outcomes and consequences for international relations and for Ukraine itself.

Panelists

R. Craig Nation – Visiting Professor of Political Science & Security Studies, Dickinson College;  and Professor of Eurasian Studies at the U.S. Army War College
Karl Qualls – Associate Professor of History, Dickinson College
Marybeth Ulrich – Professor of Government, Department of National Security and Strategy, U.S. Army War College
Russell Bova (moderator) – Professor of Political Science, Dickinson College

Biographies (provided by the panelists)

R. Craig Nation has been professor of strategy and director of Eurasian studies at the U.S. Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania since 1996. He also serves as a visiting professor of security studies at Dickinson College. Professor Nation specializes in the foreign policy and security affairs of the Europan Read more

Wednesday, February 26, 2014
Stern Center, Great Room, 7 p.m.

Participants

Michael Allison, professor, University of Scranton
Christine Wade, professor, Washington College

The two panelists will discuss current developments in Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras, and El Salvador as well as the general impact of Central America’s role as the key transshipment point for cocaine headed to the United States.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the Constance and Rose Ganoe Memorial Fund for Inspirational Teaching, courtesy of Professor J. Mark Ruhl, and also the Department of Latin American, Latino and Caribbean Studies.

Biographies (provided by the speakers)

Michael Allison is an associate professor of political science at the University of Scranton. He also directs the University’s Education for Justice program and is a faculty member in the Latin American Studies program. He graduated with a BA (1996) in politics and minors in Latin American and Caribbean studies and peace justice studies from Fairfield University in Connecticut. He received his master’s (2001) and Ph.D. (2006) in political science from Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida.

His teaching and research interests concern the comparative study of civil war and civil war resolution, particularly Read more

Professor, Bentley University

Market Monetarism and the Crash of 2008

Thursday, February 20, 2014
Stern Center, Great Room, 7 p.m.

By focusing on nominal GDP as an indicator of both economic conditions and a target of policy, the real problem with the financial crisis of 2008 was that policymakers misdiagnosed what was occurring.  Market monetarism can help us better understand the underlying nature of the 2008 crisis, along with current issues in monetary policy.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the Department of International Business & Management.

Biography (provided by the speaker)

Scott Sumner is a professor of economics at Bentley University and has taught there for the past 31 years. He earned a B.A. in economics at the University of Wisconsin and a Ph.D. in economics at the University of Chicago. Sumner’s research has been in the field of monetary economics, particularly the role of the gold standard in the Great Depression.  His other research includes liquidity traps, and how monetary policy can be effective at the zero interest rate bound.  Sumner’s policy work has focused on the importance of expectations, particularly policies aimed at targeting expectations in futures markets.  In Read more

Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Stern Center, Great Room, 7 p.m.

Kim Colby, senior counsel, Christian Legal Society
Heather Weaver ’99, senior staff attorney, American Civil Liberties Union
David O’Connell, moderator, professor, Dickinson College

Colby and Weaver will debate the issues of two freedom-of-religion cases that are currently before the Supreme Court: Greece v. Galloway, which concerns the constitutionality of starting a town council meeting with a prayer; and Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby, which addresses whether the Affordable Care Act can require a family-owned business to provide insurance coverage for contraceptives despite the religious objections of the owners.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the Departments of Religion and Political Science. This is a Clarke Forum Student Project Manager initiated event.

Biographies (provided by the speakers)

Kim Colby has worked for Christian Legal Society’s Center for Law and Religious Freedom since graduating from Harvard Law School in 1981. She has represented religious groups in several appellate cases, including two cases heard by the United States Supreme Court. She assisted in congressional passage of the Equal Access Act, 20 U.S.C. § 4071, et seq., which protects the right of Read more

Thursday, January 30, 2014
Stern Center, Great Room, 7 p.m.

Panelists

George Pomeroy, professor, Shippensburg University
Kirk Stoner, director of planning, Cumberland County
Nathan Wolf, attorney, Wolf & Wolf
John Henson, moderator, professor, Dickinson College

A panel of experts will discuss the complex array of environmental and economic-development issues surrounding the evolution of the Carlisle area as a major logistics center with the associated construction of mega-warehouses and the concentration of truck traffic.  The panel will be composed of representatives of academia, non-profit environmental groups, developers, the public sector, and the local community.

This event is sponsored by the Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues and co-sponsored by the Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce, League of Women Voters and the Carlisle YWCA.

Biographies (provided by the speakers)

George Pomeroy is a professor of geography – earth science and director of the Center for Land Use at Shippensburg University.  His teaching and research interests speak to community, land use, and environmental planning.  His degrees are in geography (B.A. Ed., M.S., Western Washington University) and in urban studies and public administration (Ph.D., The University of Akron).  For his research, Dr. Pomeroy has received the Distinguished Scholar Award of the Regional Development Read more

Former U.S. Senator, Arkansas (D)

Washington Gridlock

Tuesday, December 3, 2013
Stern Center, Great Room, 7:30 p.m.

Many public commentators are of the opinion that the election of President Obama in 2008 ushered in a new era of extreme partisanship. Senator Pryor will discuss and evaluate the state of politics in our nation’s capital.

The Clarke Forum for Contemporary Issues sponsored and planned this event in partnership with the Student Senate Public Affairs Committee.

Biography

David H. Pryor was born in Camden, Arkansas.  He received his B.A. from the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville and his LL.B. from the University of Arkansas School of Law.
In 1960 he was elected to the Arkansas State House of Representatives where he served three terms.  In November of 1966 he was elected to fill the unexpired term of Congressman Oren Harris and served three full terms in the U.S. House of Representatives.  In 1974 he was elected Governor of Arkansas, a position he held for four years.  In 1979 Governor Pryor was elected to the United States Senate and served until he retired from the Senate in 1996.

Since retiring from the Senate, he became a Fulbright Distinguished Fellow of Law and Public Read more