Lecture Series: Fall 2025 – Places and Spaces

Unlock the Meaning Behind the Spaces We Inhabit

How do places shape identity, culture, and memory? This interdisciplinary honors lecture series dives into the dynamic relationship between place, space, and meaning. It integrates insights from literature, astronomy, geosciences, ecofeminism, philosophy, history, preservation, design thinking, and beyond, exploring how spaces play a role in shaping perspectives.

Students will explore how individuals and communities interpret physical and conceptual environments. They will uncover connections between identity, power, spirituality, and belonging. Through the lens of eco-criticism and animal studies, this series examines the convergence of human and nonhuman experiences. It questions traditional ideas of ownership and habitat, emphasizing the concept of shared space.

By bridging the humanities and sciences, this program highlights the transformative role of art and creative expression in shaping fresh perspectives. Students are encouraged to think critically and innovatively within the space they occupy. This approach fosters sustainable solutions, ethical stewardship, and meaningful community-building.

Join us for a thought-provoking journey into the spaces we occupy—and the impact they have on the world around us. We encourage you to ponder how each space offers a unique narrative.

Lecture Schedule

August 25	Course Introduction: Considering Space(s) and Place(s)	Philip E. Phillips, Honors/English
September 1	LABOR DAY	NO CLASS
September 8	Placing Yourself in the Space Between Your Ears: Imagining Literature’s Transformative Power	William E. Engel, Sewanee: The University of the South
September 15	Reading the U.S. Constitution	University Honors College (BTC Activity)
September 17*	We the People: The Place of the U.S. Constitution in Students’ Everyday Spaces	David Brooks, New York Times (BTC Activity)
September 22	The Life of Cemetery School: Light to Dark to Light Again	Vincent Windrow, Cornucopia Consulting Group
September 29	Milieu Mindfulness in Design Thinking	Janis Brickey, Human Sciences
October 6	Sacralizing Secular Spaces Through Ritual, Sound, and Imagination	Rebekka King, Philosophy/Religious Studies
October 13-14	FALL BREAK	NO CLASS
October 20	Turning Down the Pressure Cooker: How Public Spaces Can Reduce Inequitable Heat Exposure and Increase Community Health and Resilience	Alisa Hass, Geosciences
October 27	Space, Place, and How to See Unseen Worlds	Jeremy Aber, Geography
November 3	Who Speaks for Space?	Chuck Higgins, Physics/Astronomy
November 10	Soil Stories: Feminist Composting and Historical Memory in Australian Fiction	Laura White, English
November 17	Woman’s Place in Public Space: Tennessee Women Claiming teh Public Sphere	Mary Evins, History
November 24	Applying for Fellowships and Scholarships	Laura Clippard, Honors
December 1	Honors Student Presentations

Want to revisit past lectures?

Visit the Lecture Series Archive, or check out the Lecture Series videos to explore past discussions about space.