#97-03-15
For Release: March 17, 1997
Contact: Peter Bailley

Knox College to Host Conference on Technology in Education

Knox College in Galesburg will host representatives of 14 midwestern liberal arts colleges for a conference, "Information Technology and the Humanities," held March 21-23. The conference, sponsored by the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, will examine the impact of information technology on teaching and research in the arts, humanities and related social sciences.

Richard Lanham, of the University of California at Los Angeles, will give the keynote address, "Digital Literacy and Academic Disciplines," on Friday, March 21, at 7:45 p.m. at Jumer's Continental Inn, Galesburg. Delegates will be welcomed by ACM president Elisabeth Hayford and by Knox president Rick Nahm. Other conference sessions will be held Saturday and Sunday, March 22-23, on the Knox campus.

"New technologies are already having an influence on teaching and research," said Stephen Bailey, associate dean of Knox College and a member of the conference planning committee. "While implementing new technologies can be expensive and controversial, they also create new opportunities for students and faculty."

The conference will take advantage of computer facilities on the Knox campus, including Founders Lab in Seymour Union, which can accommodate as many as 50 users. Conference delegates also will tour the Educational Technology Center in Galesburg, a community computer facility operated by Knox, Carl Sandburg College and Galesburg School District 205.

The conference will feature discussions and presentations by faculty from schools in the ACM on using technology in humanities classes. In addition, librarians from ACM colleges will hold a panel discussion on the impact of technology on libraries, and several students will show how they have used computer technology in their research.

Founded in 1837, Knox is an independent, four-year, liberal arts college, located in Galesburg, Illinois, with 1,100 students from 42 states and 33 nations. Knox's "Old Main," a National Historic Landmark, is the only building remaining from the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates.

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Conference Schedule "Information Technology and the Humanities"

Friday, March 21 at Jumer's Continental Inn, Galesburg

7:45 p.m. Keynote Address "Digital Literacy and Academic Disciplines."

Richard Lanham, Professor Emeritus of English, UCLA

Saturday, March 22 at Knox College

9:00-10:30 a.m. Panel Discussion: "Technology in the Humanities Classroom" Round Room, Ford Center for the Fine Arts

Douglas Northrop, English, Ripon College; Jonathan L. Chenette, Music, Grinnell College; Rob Smith, English, Knox College

Elizabeth R. Hayford, President, ACM

11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Workshops: "Technology in the Humanities Classroom" Ford Center for the Fine Arts

Ofer Ben-Amots, Music, Colorado College; Shawn Gillen, English, Beloit College; Leland Guyer, Spanish, Macalester College; Art Robson, Classics, Beloit College; Bill Wallace, Speech Communication and Theatre Arts, Monmouth College

2:00-3:30 p.m. "The Future of the Library at Liberal Arts Colleges." Seymour Library

Sharon Clayton, Seymour Library, Knox College; Jim Cubit, Donnelly Library, Lake Forest College; Leroy Smith, Tutt Library, Colorado College

8:00-9:00 p.m. Panel Discussion: "The Effect of Information Technology on Student Research in the Humanities"

Students: Leah Ray, Grinnell College; Aisha Ansari, Knox College

Faculty: Vicki Bentley-Condit, Grinnell College, Charles Farley, Knox College

Sunday, March 23 at Knox College

9:00-10:15 a.m. -- "The Student Web-Site Portfolio," Founders Lab, Seymour Union

10:30-11:30 a.m. -- "The Future of the Classroom, the Campus and the ACM"

Members of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest:

Beloit College

Carleton College

University of Chicago

Coe College

Colorado College

Cornell College

Grinnell College

Knox College

Lake Forest College

Lawrence University

Macalester College

Monmouth College

Ripon College

St. Olaf College