Local event will convene a public dialogue featuring thought-leaders to explore local perspectives of American values and identity.
Contacts:
FOR ALL INQUIRIES
Caroline Hopper
The Aspen Institute
(202)721-2337 / caroline.hopper@aspeninstitute.org
Topeka, KS, October 10, 2016 – The Aspen Institute Citizenship and American Identity Program and Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library will host a public dialogue featuring local thought-leaders to explore local perspectives of American values and identity. Library CEO Gina Millsap will moderate the conversation with law student Matthew Conklin, Reverend T.D. Hicks, KPR statehouse bureau chief Stephen Koranda and retired Topeka Chamber vice president Marsha Sheahan.
The event will take place at Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library in Topeka, KS on October 23, 2016, beginning at 2:00 p.m.
The event is part of the “What Every American Should Know Library Series”, a public dialogue series by the Aspen Institute’s Citizenship and American Identity Program in partnership with libraries around the country. The series aims to bring critical local perspectives on American values and identity into the national dialogue.
“What Every American Should Know” was created to explore how this country can cultivate a sense of shared destiny and common civic purpose in this age of increasing diversity and widening inequality. The Aspen Institute’s Citizenship and American Identity Program is inviting the American public and cultural leaders to build a crowd-sourced national list of facts and references every American should know in order to be civically and culturally literate. Individuals can submit top 10 lists of what they think every American should know at www.WhatEveryAmericanShouldKnow.org. All submissions are then combined in to an aggregated national list.
“Now more than ever, a diversifying U.S. needs a shared base of knowledge,” says executive director of the Citizenship and American Identity Program, Eric Liu. “But a 21st century sense of civic and cultural literacy must be as intentionally inclusive as possible”.
“The timing of this discussion, just prior to our November 8 elections, is perfect,” adds chief operating officer Robert Banks. “We are pleased to host the Aspen Institute and this important conversation.”
For more about the “What Every American Should Know Library Series,” visit www.aspeninstitute.org/programs/citizenship-and-american-identity-program/every-american-know-library-series
The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, DC. Its mission is to foster leadership based on enduring values and to provide a nonpartisan venue for dealing with critical issues. The Institute is based in Washington, DC; Aspen, Colorado; and on the Wye River on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. It also has offices in New York City and an international network of partners. For more information, visit www.aspeninstitute.org.
The Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library is the 2016 Library of the Year, due, in part, to our commitment to improving the community. Learn more about the library’s Community Impact Goals.