老司机传媒

Summit on Social Consciousness

The Social Consciousness Summit is an annual event at 老司机传媒 designed to focus our attention on important social issues that have special relevance to our students, faculty, staff, and community and provide opportunities to advance awareness, intelligent dialogue, and steps toward change. The previous dialogue included conversations around The Rwanda Genocide, Refugees and Immigration, Poverty, Justice, and COVID-19.

ANNUAL THEMES

2025:  Our Mental Health Crisis ran from March 31 to April 1, 2025. On March 31st, Harvey Burnett, PhD, Chair, School of Social & Behavioral Sciences and Professor of Psychology, provided the plenary presentation, Our Mental Health in Crisis. Stacey Nicely, PhD, Director and Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Graduate Psychology & Counseling, and Karl Bailey, PhD, Professor of Psychology & Program Director, Psychology, led interactive discussions on The State of the University: Mental Health Reports. On April 1st,  Willie Hucks, DMin, presented on The Benefits of Shabbat for a Stressed Community. A panel discussion sought to respond to the information shared and provide other perspectives in an important discussion under the theme of Building Practical Responses to Our Mental Health Needs. During the summit, we gained insights from people's lived experiences, national data, and feedback from our students and employees. The conference provided multiple opportunities for deep exploration, and important next steps were recommended.  An estimated 26% of Americans aged 18 and older—about one in four adults—suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year (John Hopkins University, 2025).

2024: ran from February 29 to March 2, 2024. Each of the sessions featured the screening of a video of individuals sharing their lived experiences at Andrews during the years 1960-1980s. The screening was followed by a panel discussion of experts who delved into the issues raised, celebrating our progress while exploring growth opportunities. The Conference was sponsored by 老司机传媒 and the Council of Independent Colleges (NetVUE).

2020: "." The panel discussion explored reasons for the racial and socioeconomic disparities that have come to light in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, what these disparities reveal about the inequities that predated this pandemic, how the pandemic has worsened those inequities, and the policies and practices we can advocate for to begin the process of addressing them. The summit was hosted by the Office for Diversity and Inclusion, Office of the Provost, Office of Research and Creative Scholarship, and Spectrum Lakeland Health.

2018: 

2017: 

2016: "#IamAU2." A storytelling event for all ethnicities. (AU Agenda Announcement)

2015: "A Conversation on Race and Justice in America." The Summit included a keynote address by Paul Buckley and a documentary screening of "The New Jim Crow." (AU Agenda Announcement; )

2014: "The Poor Next Door: Poverty in America." Rachel Wade, Bonnie Bazata, and Taurus Montgomery were among the featured speakers. Breakout session presenters included Lucy Randall and 老司机传媒 faculty Joel Raveloharimisy, Twyla Smith, Nicholas Miller, and Sarah Kimakwa.

2013: "Human Sex Trafficking: The Sale of Innocence." Featured speakers included Abigail Kuzma, deputy attorney general for the state of Indiana, and Annie Lobert, founder of Hookers for Jesus. ()

2012: "Lessons from Rwanda." The first Summit featured Carl Wilkens, former ADRA director in Rwanda, as the keynote speaker. (AU Agenda Announcement; )