SOCRATIC STAGE DIALOGUE SERIES

ABOUT THE SOCRATIC STAGE DIALOGUE SERIES

The New College of Florida Office of Public Policy Events seeks to advance civil discourse and engagement through facilitating events that foster open discussion and debate on relevant public policy issues. Such debates or group forums will provide opportunity for a wide range of viewpoints and perspectives to be presented. These events will be open to the public and will include speakers from within and without the state university community that hold broadly divergent and opposing perspectives.

For questions about The Socratic Stage events, please contact: Alexandra Islas Deputy Chief of Staff & Director of Public Policy Events [email protected]

Spring 2025 Socratic Stage Events

A Conversation on Gender: Culture and Academia

Dr. Judith Butler interviewed by New College presidential Scholar in Residence Dr. Stanley Fish 

February 18, 2025 | 6:00 – 7:30 PM | Mildred Sainer Pavilion – New College of Florida

Gender has become one of the most divisive topics of the 21^st Century. Arguments persist across our political and cultural fabric: “There are only two genders.” “There are numerous genders, and the same person can identify with multiple genders in their lifetime.” “Gender is a culturally constructed idea, and there should be no boundaries assigned to it.”  Dr. Judith Butler, is one of America’s foremost scholars in feminist philosophy and gender studies. Judith will discuss their years of research, their own views, and answer challenging questions about the roots of various gender ideologies. 

A Conversation on the Value of Liberal Arts Education Today

Dr. Joshua T. Katz, Tom Steiner, and Dr. David Rancourt

February 25, 2025 | 6:00 – 7:30 PM | Mildred Sainer Pavilion – New College of Florida

Much of the focus in higher education this century has been on the expansion of STEM education and establishing quotas on STEM degrees awarded. While STEM has an undeniable role in our present and future, there is no future-proof STEM degree. Artificial Intelligence makes thousands of jobs obsolete each year, and the pace is increasing. The timeless facets of a liberal arts education are key to making our citizenry malleable in these changing times, ready to lead and move our nation forward in the face of any technological advancements. This conversation will lay bare the value of liberal arts as an essential part of modern higher education, and explore what New College is doing to create a mold for universities across the nation to follow.

Defeat, Hope, and the Creation of the Hebrew Bible

Dr. Jacob L. Wright and Dr. David Edwards 

March 6, 2025 | 6:00 – 7:30 PM | Mildred Sainer Pavilion – New College of Florida

Dr. Jacob L. Wright is Professor of Hebrew Bible at Emory University’s Candler School of Theology and is the author of several award-winning books as well as the recipient of multiple fellowships and grants. His popular massive online open course (MOOC), “The Bible’s Prehistory, Purpose, and Political Future,” has enrolled tens of thousands of students since its launch. Welcomed and introduced by New College faculty Dr. David Edwards, Dr. Wright will delve deep into the creation of a book that shaped history.

The Politics of Medicine: Who Controls the Future of Medical Education?

Dr. Scott Atlas and Dr. Stanley Goldfarb

March 8, 2025 | 5:00 – 6:30 PM | Mildred Sainer Pavilion – New College of Florida

Drs. Scott Atlas and Stanley Goldfarb have a conversation about what is an underreported and highly important story – the distortion of medical school education toward diversity, equity, and inclusion, and its impact on the quality of America’s doctors and ultimately on medical care that threatens the health and future of medical care access and quality for everyone. 

Borders, National Sovereignty, Rule of Law: What’s Next for U.S. Immigration Policy?

Chad Wolf and Special Guest

March 20, 2025 | 6:00 PM | 6:00 – 7:30 PM | Mildred Sainer Pavilion – New College of Florida

With controversies ranging from DACA recipients to the erection of a border wall, immigration and border security have been in the spotlight over the last 20 years. Former Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf and Special Guest discuss the importance of strong borders, immigration policies that aren’t routinely flouted, and ensuring respect for law and order at the border. Few have the experience to so thoroughly assess where immigration policy has gone wrong and what can be done to put things right.

[Speaker to Be Revealed] on Free Speech, Censorship, and Cultural Power

TBD, 2025 | 7:00 PM | Sarasota Opera House 

Truth, Bias, and Power: How the Transformation of America’s Media is Reshaping Society

Dr. Scott Atlas, Ben Domenech, Mollie Hemingway, and TBD

May 6, 2025 | 5:00 – 6:30 PM | Mildred Sainer Pavilion – New College of Florida

America’s media is rapidly being transformed, and that transformation is accelerating. Over 20 years, traditional news organizations lost more than half of their daily newspaper circulation. Beyond technology, the shift to social media was driven by a plummeting of trust in national news outlets, whose reporting was often overtly biased and false. Ironically, after social media platforms emerged as the new town square, they rapidly became tools for censorship, at times in collusion with government, most vividly on display during COVID. Censorship and false reporting may have inadvertently caused the backlash and re- election of President Trump. Coupled with Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter, social media is now becoming a real-time source of hard news. Trust in social media has steadily increased, especially among younger adults. This forum will explore the future of social and legacy media in the search for objective information, especially as we enter the era of artificial intelligence.

Justice or Politics? The Weaponization of Law in Modern America

Alan Dershowitz and Steven Donziger 

May 22, 2025 | 6:00 – 7:30 PM | Mildred Sainer Pavilion – New College of Florida

Alan Dershowitz and Steven Donziger have spent their legal careers standing up for the unfairly targeted. Both have seen the government and private industries manipulate the legal system as a way to punish their adversaries. Donziger himself was disbarred and incarcerated after his international legal victories over Chevron, and his conviction has drawn calls for a pardon from leaders across the political spectrum. Two grizzled courtroom veterans relive their toughest fights, both in triumph and defeat, while conveying just how easy it can be to find the target landing on your own back.