AACRAO is launching our first Book Club this
month. Books and the conversations they spark have long been a basis for community and mutual understanding. Our hope is that with this new venture we’ll be able to provide the same sort of platform for our members.
AACRAO’s Book Club will start with the help of our Caucuses, who will serve as the kick-off hosts. Every two months, we’ll announce a new book and virtual meeting time to discuss questions and takeaways.
The Caucus chairs had a lot to share when asked to serve as hosts of this new initiative:
Paul C. McCarty: “The author
James Baldwin said, ‘You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all
the people who were alive, or who had ever been alive.’ Those words resonate so strongly for many members of the LGBTQIA Caucus. For many of our members, books were one of the first connections we were able to form with our communities. We look
forward to the connections we can form as a greater AACRAO community.”
Christopher Huang:
“The membership of AACRAO have different experiences. The book club allows members a way to have a common, shared experience and be known in a smaller community. As leaders in higher education, we have a responsibility to learn and grow in our
knowledge and our relationships.”
Bianca Thompson-Owen: "One of the most rewarding and significant aspects of AACRAO is that the membership body comes from all walks of life. Through the lens of access and equality, engaging in a book club allows members to participate in deeper discussions on various phenomena that impacts our daily responsibilities. We are looking forward to the launch of this book club and the meaningful discussions and lessons gained by our community."
Ewa Nowicki: "The
networks we build when we collaborate with colleagues at other institutions can sometimes be difficult to maintain as they are often broad and spanning across the country, or countries. [The book club]...will help to facilitate a more intimate sense
of community with our colleagues, and hopefully will allow us to advance compassion and understanding more broadly in education..."
"For many of our members, books were one of the first connections we were able to form with our communities."
November Book Club
The Latinx Caucus will close out National Hispanic Heritage Month by hosting our first book - The Devil’s Highway by
Luis Alberto Urrea, a book that spoke to their mission and values.
Soraira Urquiza:
"The Latinx Caucus understands that while there is diversity among us, what connects us is our human experience. That is why the Latinx Caucus has selected the 2005 Pulitzer Prize nonfiction finalist The Devil's Highway to launch
the book club. This story humanizes the often-frightening experience that undocumented immigrants face when striving for a better future. The Latinx Caucus will lead the virtual discussion in hopes of sparking conversation about empathy and education,
and how we, as higher ed professionals, need to remain mindful of the possibility that our students may have endured a similar journey."
Our virtual discussion will be held on Tuesday, November 12. Join the email list to stay up to date on official details.