ALMA — The relationship between the individual and the communities they are a part of is the focus of the 2022-23 Presidential Speaker Series at Alma College.
The college will welcome gun control activist David Hogg as its first guest in the series, with a speech scheduled for 7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 6, at Dunning Memorial Chapel. The event is free and open to the public.
“We are delighted to be back on campus and hosting this event as part of the Presidential Speaker Series,” Alma College President Jeff Abernathy said. “I am personally looking forward to listening to this important discussion of what it means to sustain ourselves and our communities in these challenging times. I believe David Hogg is the perfect speaker to get us started on this year’s series of guests.”
Hogg, 22, rose to prominence during the 2018 United States gun violence protests as a student survivor of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School shooting in Parkland, Florida. He co-founded March for Our Lives, a student-led demonstration that is considered to be one of the biggest youth-led protests since the Vietnam War era.
With his younger sister, Lauren Hogg, also a student at Stoneman Douglas, David Hogg co-wrote “#NeverAgain,” a New York Times best-seller. The Hoggs also contributed to the best-selling book, “Glimmer of Hope: How Tragedy Sparked a Movement,” a compilation of writing from the founders of March for Our Lives.
A prolific voice on social media with more than a million followers, Hogg uses his platform to promote civic engagement, activism and voting. He will speak to Alma students, staff and faculty on the subject of community and personal responsibility, through the lens of gun violence in schools.
“While it is an unfathomable tragedy of our times that these issues are at the forefront of our national conscience, I’m glad to be having this discussion on such a relevant topic at the Presidential Speaker Series,” said Andrew Pomerville, director of the Center for College and Community Engagement (3CE) at Alma, who organizes the series. “I am grateful for the opportunity to host David Hogg, an individual who has empowered Generation Z to use their voices to create positive change in their communities.”
More speakers will be announced in weeks to come.
The 2022-23 Presidential Speaker Series theme is focused on communities — which ones we are a part of, what they owe society at large, and what it means for an individual in a community to “do their part.” It comes on the heels of the creation of the 3CE, a program designed to create collaborative opportunities for the college and greater Alma area.
Members of the public may reserve tickets by visiting alma.universitytickets.com. Members of the Alma College campus community should use the Alma Connect app, which is available on Apple iOS and Android, to get in. The event will also be livestreamed at youtube.com/almacollege.
The Presidential Speaker Series schedule will continue to be updated as we move further into the academic year. For the most up-to-date speaker schedule and information on how to access each event, visit alma.edu/presidential-speaker.
