Vanderbilt in the City: Conversations on America

Thursday, April 10 and Thursday, May 1

At Vanderbilt University

440 W. 21st St. btw. 9th & 10th Aves.

BY SCOTT STIFFLER | Good news for those greeted with bad news when they tried to register for the at-full-capacity April 10 event from Nashville, Tennessee-based Vanderbilt University: The free event just relocated to a much more spacious venue (The Refectory)–and is once again accepting reservations. (Click here to do so.) More on what’s in store come April 10 in a moment–but first, a bit of context:

After last year’s multi-month kerfluffle involving the search for a source capable of saving the seriously strapped General Theoloical Seminary (GTS), a solution was found that saw formerly cross Chelsea residents all smiles (by and large), and with previously puckered mouths moving to shape the word, “Welcome.” And so it came to pass that Vanderbilt has  a long-term lease that sees them establish an academic presence in West Chelsea (on the GTS property known as “The Close”–W. 20th to 21st Sts., 9th to 10th Aves.).

Vanderbilt has pledged—publicly and repeatedly–to engage with their Chelsea neighbors, and is making good on that pledge with its first piece of public programming. The three-part Vanderbilt in the City: Conversations on America is curated in a manner befitting an academic’s restless curiosity, Conversations on America, they tell us, “will convene faculty and thought leaders for discussions that explore big questions” by highlighting “the dynamic perspectives of what it means to be an American today as our role in the world is shifting.”

On March 6, the theme was America and the World.

On April 10, American Humor has award-winning authors and Vanderbilt faculty members Lorrie Moore (Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of English) and Major Jackson (Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of English) exploring the power of humor and storytelling to bridge divides. Moore reads from I Am Homeless if This Is Not My Home, and Jackson reads from Razzle Dazzle: New & Selected Poems. Afterward, they’ll discuss humor’s role in society and writing’s cultural power and political impact. The evening begins with a reception from 6pm to 7pm, with the panel discussion/reading from 7pm to 8:30pm.

On Thursday, May 1, 7pm-8:30pm, the series closes with Health in America: Challenges and Opportunities. Experts from NYU, Wake Forest, Vanderbilt, and the American Journal of Public Health will touch upon topics such as health equity, science-based policymaking, and the rise of “healthism” and self-directed health—examining their implications for the future of U.S. health policy. Jonathan Metzl, Director of Vanderbilt University’s Department of Medicine, Health, and Society, moderates the panel.

The April 10 and May 1 events are open to the public; registration is required. Click here to do so.

For the full story via Vanderbilt’s Feb. 6, 2025 press announcement, click here.

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