Laura C. Harris Series

Upcoming Events

Image for “How to Govern the Future”
“How to Govern the Future”
- Slayter Auditorium
Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Alondra Nelson.

About the Series

Photo of Laura C. Harris

The objective of the Laura C. Harris Series is to enhance and promote the education of young women as students and as professionals, and to promote career opportunities and carry on the pioneering spirit of women students at Denison University.

The Laura C. Harris Series annually invites a roster of thought leaders from diverse fields and perspectives to share their expertise with Denison students. Each year, the Harris Series establishes a theme to guide the selection of guest speakers. Additionally, the Harris Series offers co-sponsorships for various interdisciplinary academic events.

Dr. Laura C. Harris was a pioneer in the medical profession and embodied the Denison ideal of the value of a liberal arts and sciences education. A member of the Class of 1916 (earning the Ph.B., or Bachelor of Philosophy), Harris was the first woman to receive a medical degree from Syracuse University. She pursued postgraduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania before establishing her medical practice in New York in the 1920s.

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Series Archives

2025 - 2026

Flamenco performance

The Department of Modern Languages presents Flamenco February.

A photo of Dr. Hadeel Assali
Palestinian Collective Memory as Feminist Decolonial Methodology: On the Paraguay Transfer Scheme

Denison's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Dr. Hadeel Assali Feb. 19, 2026.

Poster for event
The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech’s Hype and Create the Future We Want

Denison's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes coauthors Dr. Emily M. Bender and Dr. Alex Hanna

Terese Shechter
My So-Called Selfish Life

Denison's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes filmmaker Therese Shechter presenting "My So-Called Selfish Life" Oct. 28, 2025.

Close up image of material woven into a circular pattern; image taken from cover of "Pedagogies of Interconnectedness: Feminist-Queer Collaborative Transformation"
Pedagogies of Interconnectedness: Feminist-Queer Collaborative Transformation

The Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Barbara Shaw and Isis Nusair to talk about their new co-edited anthology, "Pedagogies of Interconnectedness."

2024 - 2025

Cristina Masters
'On Butler & Butler: Liveability, vulnerability and non-violence'

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Cristina Masters.

Ruha Benjamin
'Not All Speed is Movement': Innovation, Inequity, and Imagination in the 21st Century

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Ruha Benjamin.

Lauren Klein
'Why AI Needs Feminism'

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Lauren Klein.

Cricket Keating
Popular Education and Decolonial Political Praxis workshop

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Cricket Keating.

2023 - 2024

Falami Devoe
'Self-Care for Educators in Higher Education: Cultivating a Culture of Wellness as Resistance'

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Falami Devoe.

Jamie Margolin
'The Child Stars At The End of The World' - The Youth Climate Movement Phenomenon and What Comes Next

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Jamie Margolin.

Nicole Ektnitphong
Training for Change workshop

The Laura C. Harris Series presents the Training for Change workshop with Nicole Ektnitphong.

Samar Yazbek
The Role of Literature, Narrative Non-fiction, and Art in War دور الادب والسرد التوثيقي والفنون عامة في الحرب

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Syrian writer and journalist Samar Yazbek.

2022 - 2023

Robin Wall Kimmerer
'We the People': Expanding the Circle of Citizenship for Public Lands

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Robin Wall Kimmerer.

Zahra Ali
'Iraq 20 years after the US invasion: انتِ-فاضة / Uprising and the Political Imagination'

The Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Zahra Ali presenting a lecture.

Judy Batalion
'The Light of Days' with Judy Batalion

The Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Judy Batalion discussing her book.

Joy Harjo
An Evening with Joy Harjo: Women’s Empowerment, Indigenous Poetry, and Native Literature

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series and Beck Series welcome Joy Harjo.

Ester Gotfried Rwela
'Solidarity from the South: Albinism Activism in Tanzania'

The Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Ester Gotfried Rwela and youth activists presenting a virtual panel discussion.

Jasbir Puar
'Homonationalism, Militarism, and the Waning of LGBTQ Rights'

The Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Jasbir Puar presenting a lecture.

Olena Nikolayenko
'Youth Movements and Elections in Eastern Europe'

The Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Olena Nikolayenko presenting a lecture.

Thiossane West African Dance Institute
Thiossane West African Dance Institute

The Laura C. Harris Series is excited to welcome the Thiossane West African Dance Institute.

'Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice in Post-Dobbs Ohio'

The Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Jessie Hill, Alana Jochum and Michele Storms presenting a virtual discussion.

2021 - 2022

Black Snake Rising
RYAN! Feddersen Artist Talk

Join us as we welcome visiting artist RYAN! Feddersen, creator of 'Black Snake Rising,' currently on view at the Denison Museum through May 13, 2022.

Red Sky
Red Sky Performance

Denison University’s Dance Department, Laura C. Harris Series and Vail Series presents Red Sky Performance.

"They Are Still Talking"
'Ꮟ ᎠᏂᏬᏂ They Are Still Talking'

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Maura García and Ahyoka Youngdeer.

Black Snake Rising
Black Snake Rising

The Denison Museum presents “Black Snake Rising” by RYAN! Feddersen

Will Wilson, Insurgent Hopi Maiden, Melissa Pochoema, Citizen of the Hopi Tribe, 2015, printed 2019, Archival pigment print from wet plate collodion scan, 50 x 40 in. Art Bridges.
Will Wilson Artist Talk

Join us for an evening artist talk with Will Wilson.

Alaina Roberts
Black Freedom on Native Land

The Department of History, Black Studies Program, and Laura C. Harris Series welcome Alaina Roberts.

Kim TallBear
'Decolonizing Indigenous Sexualities and Research-Creation'

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Kim TallBear.

Will Wilson, Insurgent Hopi Maiden, Melissa Pochoema, Citizen of the Hopi Tribe, 2015, printed 2019, Archival pigment print from wet plate collodion scan, 50 x 40 in. Art Bridges.
In Conversation: Will Wilson

The Denison Museum presents “In Conversation: Will Wilson,” organized by Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art.

2020 - 2021

Ashlee Abraham
Workshop: 'Defending Ourselves as Women of Color'

The Laura C. Harris Series presents an IMPACT Safety workshop, "Defending Ourselves as Women of Color."

Isis Campos
'Network of Central American Communities in the U.S.'

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Isis Campos.

Kim TallBear
Kim TallBear Book Discussion

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Kim TallBear.

Hanne Blank
Faculty Research Spotlight Featuring Hanne Blank

Denison University's Hanne Blank discusses her new book "Fat."

Isis Campos
Latinx Studies and Digital Humanities Workshop, Featuring Professor Isis Campos

Denison University welcomes the Laura C. Harris Scholar-in-Residence Isis Campos.

2019 - 2020

Jane Gallop
'Sexuality, Disability, and Aging'

Denison University welcomes author Jane Gallop presenting "Sexuality, Disability, and Aging."

Elena Conis
‘A Mother’s Responsibility? Feminism and Contemporary Vaccine Hesitancy in the U.S.’

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Elena Conis.

Deirdre Cooper Owens
'What Genealogies Reveal'

Deirdre Cooper Owens presents a talk, "What Genealogies Reveal: Slavery, Gender, and the Origins of American Gynecology."

Nancy Folbre
'The Rise and Decline of Patriarchal Systems'

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Nancy Folbre.

Heather Corinna
'Mutually Inclusive: Self Defense Against Selfish Sexuality'

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series speaker Heather Corinna presents a workshop, "Mutually Inclusive: Self Defense Against Selfish Sexuality."

Heather Corinna
'Sex Ed for the Real World: A Conversation with Heather Corinna and Hanne Blank'

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Heather Corinna and Hanne Blank.

Nadia Costa, Joshua Safran and Debbie Peagler
Film Screening and Q&A: 'Crime After Crime'

Denison University presents a film screening and Q&A of the documentary "Crime After Crime."

Leah Piepzna-Samarasinha
Workshop: 'Disability and Sexuality'

Denison University’s Laura C. Harris Series speakers Shanna Katz Kattari and Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha present a workshop.

Shanna Katz Kattari
'Disability and Gender Justice'

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Shanna Katz Kattari and Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha.

Uzo Nwankpa
'The Neuroscience of Surviving America'

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Uzo Nwankpa.

2018 - 2019

Laila Farah
‘Weaving the Maps: Tales of Survival and Resistance’

Denison's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Laila Farah and Isis Nusair

Jen Taylor Friedman
‘Texting God: Women Who Write Torah’

Denison's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Jen Taylor Friedman

Bear Bergman and Zetta Elliott
‘What’s so subversive about inclusive kid’s lit?’

Denison University's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Bear Bergman and Zetta Elliott presenting "What's so subversive about inclusive kid's lit?"

Photo of Mary Frances Berry
MLK keynote with activist Mary Frances Berry and student performances

Mary Frances Berry presents a keynote address titled "Race, Protest, and Politics: Where Do We Go From Here?" in conjunction with student performances

Paul Taylor
Vanderbilt professor Paul Taylor

Denison's Laura C. Harris Series welcomes Paul Taylor, professor of philosophy at Vanderbilt University, presenting a talk.

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