Mellon Community Engagement

Read the Fall 2023 Call for Proposals by clicking on this link

1. “Devised Theatre and Collaboration for Social Engagement”: To be taught by professors from two CCA institutions, NCF (Professor Diego Villada) and Florida State University (Professor Eliza Ladd), and in partnership with the Sarasota-based CreArte Latino Cultural Center (CreArte), this class will train undergraduate students in the techniques of Devised Theatre to collaboratively create and perform an unscripted new work. The devised theatre piece, with themes chosen by CreArte’s community members, will travel to three locations: NCF’s Black Box Theater, CreArte’s home space, and a rural Latinx-focused performance scenario near Arcadia, FL.
2. “Museum Studies in Theory and Practice”: This course, proposed by NCF Professor Katie Brion and Chief Museum Curator for Marie Selby Botanical Gardens Dr. David Berry, will offer students a theoretical foundation in museum studies while also introducing them to curatorial work and interdisciplinary exhibition development. Students will collaborate on the creation of a science-based exhibition (with content from dolphin research, see course #3), and establish a model for representing research occurring at New College that engages local communities.
3. “New Stories, New College: An Interdisciplinary Laboratory on Showcasing New College/Community Science and Conservation through Curatorial Interpretation and Interactive Design”: This course will be a collaboration between NCF Professor Heidi Harley, the Sarasota Dolphin Research Program (SDRP), and museum studies faculty (see course #2) to create an interactive exhibit that interprets NCF/SDRP science via methods of museum exhibit design. Together, the courses aim to create a prototype for the creation and implementation of future exhibits designed to represent New College research and engage local communities.
4. “Growing Up Amish in Sarasota”: A collaboration between NCF Professor Manuel Lopez and local Mennonite community member JB Miller, this course will explore the historical, religious, and economic role the Amish community has played in Sarasota since their arrival in 1925. The course will include a series of public lectures and a photographic exhibition by a local Amish photographer.
5. “Theory and Practice for the African American Historical and Cultural Center in Sarasota”: In this course, NCF Professor Uzi Baram and Vickie Oldham, President/CEO of the Sarasota African American Cultural Coalition, will teach students about developing a historical and cultural center for the Sarasota community. Undergraduates will draw on oral history, anthropology, museum studies, and African American heritage studies to reimagine exhibits and curate display content for the new community-based museum.
6. “Exploring Local Microbes through Community Media Projects”: Taught by NCF Professor Erika Diaz Almeyda and with twelve community partner guest speakers, this course will introduce students to microbes through a community-based, place-based lens. The final projects will use local data on the diversity of microbes and document local microbial histories via photography, artwork, and texts to create a multi-media exhibition.

CCA Mixer

In collaboration with The Ringling Museum of Art and Design, the Mellon II Grant funded a Cross College Alliance (CCA) mixer for faculty in Fall 2023. The well-attended event served to celebrate the new semester, as well as to strengthen the relationships between the faculty of the several local colleges included in the CCA.

CDIP

The Mellon II Grant continued its support of the CEO’s Community-Driven Internship Program (CDIP) for a third year, funding 18 off-campus student internships throughout the Fall 2023 and Spring 2024 semesters. These internships were hosted by 16 different local organizations, including Healthy Teens Coalition of Manatee County, Sarasota Ballet, Sarasota Housing Funding Corporation, WSLR, and more.

ISPs

• Dr. Fred Prione and Dr. Uzi Baram ran an ISP in the January 2024 interterm, Content Creation and Virtual Exhibitions. The project focused on “Visualizing the Ancient Cultural Landscape of Sarasota,” through which students produced digital content including 3D models, photographs, and landscape drawings of historical significance. The funding from the Mellon II Grant secured equipment such as 3D scanners for the Public Archaeology Lab, which will be available for continued use for future endeavors.

• The “Modular Production Studio Design” ISP designed by Dr. Ashkan Tabatabaie and SCF’s Dr. Peter Carney, ran through the January 2024 interterm with their sights set on revamping several music rooms within the Caples Fine Arts complex with maximum student engagement and involvement. The funds the project received from the Mellon II Grant allowed them to purchase audio equipment needed to elevate the space. The result of their hard work is the Modular Production Studio which has a TA and is now operational and available to NCF students.

Spring 2024 Course

Dr. Lin Jiang and collaborated with Anastasia Sallen, Associate Vice President for Education at Selby Gardens, and Dr. Shawn McCourt, Curator of the Living Collection at Selby Gardens on a Spring 2024 course, “Advanced Environmental Chemistry.” Mellon II Grant funds were utilized to purchase materials and to cover costs associated with off-campus endeavors. The class focused on a project titled, “Renewable Energy and Sustainability,” activities for which included field trips to Marie Selby Botanical Gardens to practice real-life application of knowledge gained in the class lectures. Toward the end of the semester, students held presentations of infographics developed for the class, as well as live demonstrations for groups of middle school students.