Spring Talks Highlight Community Issues

A series of three talks will highlight community partners and issues including Black history and housing, environmental health, and what is necessary to make a living wage in NEPA.
Spring 2023 CBL Talks speakers Glynis Johns, Tonyehn Verkitus, Julie Schumacher Cohen, and Meghan Loftus
Spring 2023 CBL Talks speakers Glynis Johns, Tonyehn Verkitus, Julie Schumacher Cohen, and Meghan Loftus

The Office of Community-Based Learning (CBL), in collaboration with campus partners, is pleased to offer a series of three "CBL Talks" in the Spring 2023 semester. The goal of these talks is to provide University students, as well as the wider community, with information and insights into some of the major challenges and opportunities facing the Scranton area and how they can be part of positive change. This spring's talks will focus on: Black History and Housing in Scranton; Environmental Health; and the Living Wage Study 2022 Report.

Each of the CBL Talks will be offered as a live session, beginning with a presentation from guest speakers, followed by Q&A. These sessions will also be recorded to serve as a resource for CBL courses and reflection questions will be provided to student attendees after each event. The CBL Talks can be used as a teaching resource for CBL faculty members. This year’s series is also a special collaboration of the Office of Community-Based Learning with the Panuska College of Professional Studies T.A.P.E.S.T.R.Y. program. The talks can also be attended by the wider university and Scranton community.   

The spring 2023 CBL Talks are:

Black History and Housing in Scranton with Glynis Johns

On Thursday, Feb. 9 at 6 p.m. in the Moscowitz Theater, Glynis Johns, CEO and Founder of the Black Scranton Project, a local history and heritage initiative, will discuss the Black history of Adams Avenue in the downtown Scranton area where a predominantly African American neighborhood existed prior to redevelopment in the 1970s. This CBL Talk will explore themes around Blackness, housing, racial discrimination, and affordability that remain relevant today.

Registration required at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CBL23BlackHistoryHousing

This event is sponsored by the Office of Community-Based Learning in collaboration with the Office of Community Relations and the Multicultural Center. It is also part of the Scranton’s Story, Our Nation’s Story project supported by the NEH and in collaboration with the Black Scranton Project and other community partners. 


Environmental Health with Tonyehn Verkitus, Physicians for Social Responsibility Pennsylvania

On Thursday, March 23 at 11:45 a.m. in The DeNaples Center Ballroom, Tonyehn Verkitus, Executive Director of Physicians for Social Responsibility Pennsylvania will provide a discussion on how environmental factors such as air and water quality are one of many determinants of our health and well-being. These and other environmental factors can lead to disease and health disparities in the places where people live, work, learn and play. This discussion will highlight how existing environmental disparities in communities exposed to a combination of poor environmental quality and social inequities lead to more sickness and disease than you see in wealthier, less polluted communities.

Registration required at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CBL23EnvironmentalHealth

This event is sponsored by the Office of Community-Based Learning in collaboration with the Office of Community Relations, the Office of Sustainability and the Environmental Studies Concentration. This event is also a part of the University's 2023 Earth Month events.

Living Wage Study 2022 Report with Julie Schumacher Cohen, The University of Scranton and Meghan Loftus, Friends of the Poor Scranton

On Friday, April 14 at 3 p.m. in the Moskowitz Theater, Julie Schumacher Cohen, AVP for Community Engagement & Government Affairs at The University of Scranton and Meghan Loftus, President & CEO of the Friends of the Poor Scranton will highlight the Living Wage Report 2022, including key findings of the study and its recommendations related to what constitutes a living wage in NEPA and issues related to economic justice, racial disparities, and public policy action through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching. Meghan Loftus, university partner and alumna, will discuss the work of Friends of the Poor around the realities of poverty and the need for systemic change.

Registration required at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/CBL23LivingWage

This event is sponsored by the Office of Community-Based Learning in collaboration with The Ellacuría Initiative and the Center for Ethics and Excellence in Public Service.

For more information on the CBL Talks program, please visit www.scranton.edu/cbltalks or email cbl@scranton.edu.

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