For about 30 alumni, college will begin again on Friday. And Professor Byron Nichols expects the group of his former students to be up-to-date on assigned reading and prepared for a spirited discussion on the moral and political issues surrounding illegal immigration.
The alumni will embark on the College’s first Alumni College Symposium, which continues through Sunday. The alumni – who range from the Classes of 1971 to 2006 – completed Nichols’ Moral Dilemmas of Governing course. The alumni were sent reading material, asked to write an essay and will break off into discussion groups during the three-day event, according to Nichols.
“The whole purpose of college is to have students become serious about the use of their mind and to reflect on important issues in society. That’s something that is an important challenge for the rest of their lives,” Nichols said.
The symposium begins with a Friday night dinner, followed by remarks from President Stephen C. Ainlay and Nichols and a group discussion in the Nott Memorial. Saturday’s events will include reports from alumni working in immigration-related fields and additional discussion periods and lectures.
The College hopes to stage similar symposiums for alumni each summer.