Reworking the University: Visions, Strategies, Demands Call for Ideas
April 24-26, 2009, University of Minnesota
The current
“financial meltdown” has exacerbated the ongoing
crises within the university, resulting in even greater budget cuts,
tuition hikes, hiring freezes and layoffs. Responses from university
administrations have been predominantly reactive and have served to
fortify the university as an institution of neoliberal
capitalism. The administration and others have narrated this
crisis as an external force that, while dramatic in the short run, can
nonetheless be managed properly. It is clear to many,
however, that the neoliberal logic that has been used to transform the
university over the past few decades has failed at a systemic level;
the neoliberal death spiral has come home to the university.
In contrast to these reactionary responses, we seek to create a space
for collective re-evaluation of the university in crisis as an
opportunity for real transformation. Last year’s conference,
“Rethinking the University: Labor, Knowledge,
Value” (April 2008), sought to challenge the supposed
inevitability of the neoliberal university. As a continuation
of this project, “Reworking the University” seeks
to draw together academics, artists, and activists, to share and
produce political visions, strategies and demands for building an
alternative university in common.
“Reworking the University” seeks to generate a
vibrant, political exchange by troubling the traditional format of the
academic conference. To this end, we hope to produce spaces
for individuals and groups from different backgrounds and across a
variety of institutional boundaries to converge. While the
conference will include the presentation of papers on the topic of
“Reworking the University,” the
committee’s selection process will prioritize workshops,
roundtables, trainings, art installations, film screenings,
performances, and other forms of creative engagement.
The conference organizing collective has selected several questions and
themes that emerged out of the 2008 conference that we will address in
various formats. If you have interest in participating, please provide
us with a description of your proposed contribution. We
encourage you to self-organize a session (i.e. a performance, workshop,
roundtable, training, etc.) and submit it as a whole. Feel
free to use the blog (http://rethinkingtheu.wordpress.com) to help
facilitate session organizing.
Below is a list of possible topics and we, of course, welcome
additional suggestions. In submitting your ideas for
sessions, please give us as much information as
possible—suggestions for themes, other participants and the
session format.
The Reworking the University conference coincides with
“Reclaim Your Education – Global Week of Action
2009” (April 20-27:
http://www.emancipating-education-for-all.org/). Organizers also
encourage suggestions for additional actions as part of this event.
Send your submissions (of up to 500 words) to
comradmn@gmail.com.
The deadline for submissions is
February 10, 2009.
The schedule and proceedings
from last year’s conference can be found at: makeumnpublic.org/conference
Sincerely,
Committee on Revolutionizing the Academy (ComRAD)