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Welcome to our e-newsletter
Minds in Motion
Welcome to our back to school issue! This month we are over the moon about our brand new group of students. Read on for exciting funding news and hear what alumna Charmaine Nichols has to say about being on the other side of the Free Minds interview process.
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A Big Welcome to the Class of 2014!
The Free Minds Class of 2014 kicked off the academic year with an orientation on August 15 and the first class on August 19. This new cohort of 23 learners includes musicians and theater enthusiasts, first-time college students and folks returning after a long hiatus from school. The group spent their first few classes getting to know each other and hearing more about the subjects and texts they will be studying in the coming months.
Preparing them for the philosophy unit and for the way philosophers think, Professor Matthew Daude Laurents asked students to probe their own beliefs and values. "What is it that makes a belief worthy of being believed?" he asked. "If we look for that, we might be surprised." Whatever the next nine months brings, there will be plenty of surprise and discovery ahead for the newest members of the Free Minds community.
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from left (Matthew Daude Laurents, Vivé Griffith, Pauline Strong, and Patricia Garcia)
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Meet the Free Minds Faculty of 2014
Free Minds is team-taught by professors from UT Austin and Austin Community College, giving students the opportunity to experience different teaching styles, disciplines, and texts. The theme for our fall curriculum is, "Who do we think we are?" and will explore questions of identity. We are thrilled to welcome our 2014 faculty members.
Dr. Matthew Daude Laurents, Department Chair of Philosophy and Interim Dean of Arts and Humanities at ACC, returns to the Free Minds classroom to teach philosophy. He will focus his unit on Plato's Republic.
Dr. Patricia Garcia is a lecturer in UT's Department of English and an affiliate in the Center for Mexican American Studies. Professor Garcia is teaching in Free Minds for the first time this year. During the literature unit, students will read Othello and attend a live performance by Actors from the London Stage.
Vivé Griffith, director of Free Minds, returns to teach creative writing. This fall, she will teach elements of the craft of poetry, looking at key 20th century American poets.
Dr. Pauline Strong is a professor of anthropology at UT, as well as the director of the Humanities Institute. In keeping with our fall theme, Professor Strong will spend her unit guiding students through a series of American autobiographies, from Benjamin Franklin to Texas writer Richard Flores.
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 TG Awards Three-Year Grant to Free Minds
In addition to celebrating a new class, Free Minds is also celebrating the big news that TG Philanthropy has awarded us a three-year grant totaling $199,000. We are thrilled with this generous and major gift, which will support our classes of 2014, 2015, and 2016 as well as our graduates and community programming. TG has funded Free Minds twice in the past, allowing us to offer our alumni credit-bearing classes, to graduate several cohorts of students, and to embark on new initiatives, including our freshly-launched mentorship program. We are deeply grateful for TG's ongoing partnership and look forward to working together for the next three years and beyond.
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Come Write With Us
Our latest community workshop starts soon! Join us to share your stories, tap into your creative potential, and grow as a writer.
All are welcome.
Tuesdays, Oct. 1 - Nov. 19
6:30 - 8:30 pm
*location TBA
Space is limited. To sign up, call 512-610-7961
or email FreeMinds@foundcom.org.
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Special Thanks
The past month has been a full one. We want to give a big shout out to everyone who helped with our interview and selection process for the Class of 2014, as well as those who helped put together a very successful open house.
Interview Helpers and Volunteers
Juanita Andrade Harolyn Collins Andy David Michelle Faires Polly Levers Valerie Lopez Liliana Mendoza Katie Navine Charmaine Nichols Open House Organizers and Speakers Nick Banach Jackie Blair Kellee Coleman Rev. Freddie Dixon Julian Huerta Walter Moreau Donna Williams
If you are interested in volunteering with or supporting Free Minds, you can find more information on our website.
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Minds in Motion
Archive
With a new administrative home and interviews for the Class of 2014 underway, new beginnings are in the air this July.
This month, we're recruiting a new class and peeking behind the scenes.
May 2013
For the Free Minds Class of 2013, nine months of hard work pays off this May!
April 2013
With graduation, a writing workshop, and a new mentorship program ahead, we think April is the sweetest month.
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The Final Word
Alumna Charmaine Nichols Has Looked at the Free Minds Interview from Both Sides Now
 I remember receiving the brochure about the Free Minds Project. A co-worker of mine had been a part of the program and thought this would be a great experience for me. It had crossed my mind a few times to return to school but not in a few years. When I received the e-mail for my interview I was excited and scared all at the same time. You should have seen my face--smiling, with tears in my eyes, and I had not even gotten in the program.
The day came quickly, July 14, 2008, 7pm at the Cepeda Branch Public Library. I would meet with Project Director Vivé Griffith (I thought to myself, is she French?) for an interview to discuss what the Free Minds Project was all about. You talk about nervous--I was scared out of my mind. All of that went away the moment I heard Vivé's soothing voice. Her words of encouragement and understanding of my past situation made me feel so comfortable and smart. I received a call from Vivé while at work saying that I made it into the program, and it felt great! My first thought was "I can do this--nothing can stop me now." I was embarking on a journey that would change my life. The books, meals, professors, classmates, and special events would shape me and prepare me for college.
As an alum of the program it was an honor and a privilege to be asked to help with the 2013-14 Free Minds interview process. The feeling of excitement was overwhelming once again but in a different way. I was excited for the men and women that would have the same opportunity I had. To see the faces and hear the reasons this was important to them made me want it for them just as much as I had wanted it for myself. Each and every person selected for this program has something special to bring to the table. Their life experience and knowledge will make the class of 2013-14 as unique as they are.
To the Class of 2014, take the bull by the horns! Stay strong, stay involved, stay focused, and make a lifelong friend. Take full advantage of all that will come to you, and apply it to your future. Good luck, happy learning, and congratulations!
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A program of Foundation Communities, in partnership with the University of Texas at Austin and Austin Community College, Free Minds offers a two-semester college course in the humanities for Central Texas adults who want to fulfill their intellectual potential and begin a new chapter in their lives.
Free Minds Project
Foundation Communities
3036 South 1st Street
Austin TX, 78704
Project Director: Vivé Griffith Program Coordinator: Amelia Pace-Borah Ph: 512-610-7961 F: 512-447-0288
www.freemindsaustin.org |
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