The Hastings College Coalition for Great Plains Research will present its 2011 Spring Symposium,  “Unveiling a Ponderous Landscape,” Saturday, April 30 from 1:00-4:30 p.m. at the Nebraska Nature and Visitor Center (9325 S Alda Rd, Alda, Neb.). The symposium is free and open to all who are interested in the Great Plains.

Featured speakers:
John Janovy Jr., Varner Professor of Biology at UNL, author of many books on the life of the Great Plains, including “Pieces of the Prairie,” will present “Viewing the Great Plains through a microscope.” 

Lisa Knopp, Associate Professor at UNO, author of creative nonfiction essays and books including “Interior Places” and the feature “Meandering” in “Nebraskaland Magazine,” will present “From the Center: Writing about the Midwest and Great Plains.”

David Lovekin, Professor of Philosophy at HC and photographer, whose work appears in “Prairie Schooner” and is featured at Modern Arts Midwest, will present his latest project, “The problem of a philosophy of landscape—Lebanon, Kansas: Geospiritual center of the United States.”

Thomas Lynch, Associate Professor of English at UNL whose latest book project is “Artifacts and Illuminations,” a collection of scholarly essays on the works of Loren Eiseley, will present “The Lilac by the Door: Settler Colonial Women’s Narratives in the U.S. and Australia.”

The HC Coalition for Great Plains Research is dedicated to understanding, appreciating, and developing awareness of the Great Plains and its people.

Hastings College, founded in 1882, is a private, four-year liberal arts institution affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). A total of 64 majors in 32 areas of study and 12 pre-professional programs are offered to more than 1,190 students. Hastings College was named among “America’s Best National Liberal Arts Colleges” by U.S. News & World Report, a “Best in the Midwest” by The Princeton Review, and a “Best Buy in College Education” by Barron’s. Visit www.hastings.edu for more information.

For more information contact Bill Beachly, symposium organizer, at wbeachly@hastings.edu or Renee Laegreid, Director for the HC Coalition for Great Plains Research, at rlaegreid@hastings.edu.