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Special Events 2023-2024

2023-2024 Distinguished Visiting Scientist
Dr. Anne Pringle

Last Chance to Know? The Changing Biogeography of American Mushrooms and The Death Cap
Wednesday, April 10, 2024 • 7:00 pm • Free and open to the public, but registration is required.

Mycologist, Fungal Biologist, and Lichenologist Anne Pringle is L&S Mary Herman Rubinstein and Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor of Botany at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Register here

 

 

 


 

Save the Date for The Institute on Consent and Healthy Relationships for Educators!
Hosted by Friends' Central School, 1101 City Avenue, Wynnewood, PA 19096
Tuesday, June 25-Thursday, June 27, 2024 • 9:00 am-4:00 pm • Open to all K-12 school colleagues (teachers, staff, and, administrators) - more details and registration to come closer to the event!

Overall Goals: 

  • To provide practical suggestions for implementing principles of consent and healthy relationships into classrooms, school policies and procedures, and professional development opportunities
  • To make the link between a school’s work in consent and healthy relationships to the larger work of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging
  • To explore the past, present, and future theoretical framework behind consent and healthy relationship education

 

Past Events and Lectures at FCS

 

2022-2023 Distinguished Visiting Justice Speakers: Andrew Nadkarni '13 & Dr. Nalini Nadkarni
Dr. Nalini Nadkarni, Professor Emeritus of Biology at the University of Utah, studies the biota that live in rainforest canopies and documents the numerous critical ecological roles they play in tropical and temperate forests. Andrew Nadkarni ’13 is a queer multiracial filmmaker currently based in Brooklyn, NY. His award-winnning directorial debut documentary, Between Earth & Sky, highlights Dr. Nalini Nadkarni's personal journey along with her groundbreaking treetop research. 
October 16, 2023

2022-2023 Distinguished Visiting Justice Speaker: H. Bernard Hall
An Assistant Professor of Urban Teacher Education at Drexel University, H. Bernard Hall’s scholarship on the intersections of hip-hop pedagogy and English education has been published in peer-reviewed academic journals and edited volumes and featured at international and national education conferences.
April 27, 2023

2023 Distinguished Visiting Humanities Lecturer: Patrick Rosal
Patrick Rosal, author of five full-length poetry collections including The Last Thing: New and Selected Poems and winner of, among other awards, the William Carlos Williams Book Award from the Poetry Society of America, a Fulbright Fellowship, and the Association of Asian American Studies Book Award
March 20, 2023

Winged Wonders Monarch Butterfly Program
A Free science program for Children ages 2 1/2 to 6 and their families, held at the Lower School
September 17, 2022

2021-2022 Distinguished Visiting Humanities Lecturer: Jon Grinspan '02
Curating the Past, Present, and Future of Our Democracy
Jon Grinspan, Curator of Political History at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History and author
April 14, 2022

2021-2022 Distinguished Visiting Justice Leader: Dr. J. Marshall Shepherd
How Cities Affect Weather-Climate Systems
Dr. J. Marshall Shepherd, leading international expert in weather and climate and  the Georgia Athletic Association Distinguished Professor of Geography and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Georgia
March 15, 2022

2020-2021 Distinguished Humanities Lecturer: James Ijames
Live virtual Q&A with James Ijames, award-winning Philadelphia-based playwright, director, performer, and educator. Ijames discussed his work, including his play Fat Ham, being premiered in digital form at the Wilma Theater.
April 22, 2021

2020-2021 Distinguished Visiting Scientist: Dr. Robin Hopkins
Dr. Robin Hopkins, the John Loeb Associate Professor of Natural Sciences and Associate Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University.
April 7, 2021

2020-2021 Distinguished Visiting Justice Leader: André Robert Lee
André Robert Lee, director of Virtually Free, a documentary exploring an unlikely Richmond partnership and its effort to transform the justice system and stop mass incarceration
October 27, 2020

2019-2020 Distinguished Visiting Humanities Speaker: Daniel Immerwahr '98
Author and associate professor at Northwestern University, specializing in 20th-century U.S. history within a global context
Virtual Visit - spring 2020

2019-2020 Distinguished Visiting Scientist: Helen White
Haverford College Associate Professor whose work as a geochemist has focused on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill 
Virtual Visit - spring 2020

A Night Out in the Classroom 2019
A special opportunity for parents and guardians to become Friends’ Central students for just one night. With plenty of offerings from Microscopy and the Science of Browning to Islamic Architecture and Quaker Schools & Climate Change, this year's program was A Night Out to remember. 
November 25, 2019

2019-2020 Distinguished Visiting Justice Leader: Dr. Steven Larson
Dr. Steven Larson, subject of the HBO documentary Clínica de Migrantes, is Co-Founder and Executive Director of Puentes de Salud, a nonprofit organization that promotes the health and wellness of Philadelphia’s rapidly growing Latinx immigrant population. 
October 29, 2019 

Friends' Central and Children's Book World hosted author Raina Telgemeier, New York Times bestselling author of Smile
October 16, 2019 

Winged Wonders Monarch Butterfly Program
A Free science program for Children ages 2 1/2 to 6 and their families, held at the Lower School
September 22, 2019

2018-2019 Distinguished Visiting Scientist: Rebecca Saxe
Cognitive neuroscientist and professor in the MIT Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Dr. Saxe shared her research. 
April 15, 2019

Kwame Alexander and Friends - The Versify Tour
Friends' Central and Children's Book World hosted Kwame Alexander - poet, educator, New York Times bestselling author of 21 books, and recipient of the 2015 Newbery Medal - and authors/illustrators from his new publishing imprint, Versify. Kwame and his authors and illustrators presented a performance unlike any other! 
April 5, 2019

2018-2019 Distinguished Visiting Humanities Lecturer: Daniel Torday
Author and Associate Professor and Director of Creative Writing at Bryn Mawr College, Daniel Torday spoke about his latest book Boomer1: A Novel . 
March 13, 2019

Dr. Kenneth Ginsburg: Raising Children & Adolescents Who are Prepared to Thrive in a Challenging World
Dr. Kenneth Ginsburg, professor of pediatric medicine at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, shared his research on fostering resilience in young people, translating the best of what is known from research and practice into practical approaches for parents.
January 17, 2019

A Night Out in the Classroom 2018
With classes ranging from Microscopy and Yoga to Shakespeare and Gender, A Night Out  gave the FCS community a chance to travel back in time and be a Friends' Central student for an evening. The evening began with a keynote by Head of School Craig N. Sellers, followed by a unique 45-minute class taught by an outstanding FCS teacher. 
November 19, 2018

2018-2019 Distinguished Visiting Justice Leader: Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha
Co-Sponsored by Lankenau Hospital
Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, whose research exposed the Flint water crisis, is a pediatrician, professor, public health advocate, and author of What the Eyes Don’t See: A Story of Crisis, Resistance, and Hope in an American City
October 30, 2018

Friends' Central and Children's Book World hosted An Evening with Sarah J. Maas
#1 New York Times bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series and A Court of Thorns and Roses series Sarah J. Maas visited Friends' Central to discuss her new book CatWoman: SoulStealer
August 7, 2018

The 2018 Education Forum for Families with Intellectually Curious Students
April 15, 2018

2017-2018 Distinguished Visiting Scientist: Douglas Emlen
Author and evolutionary biologist
April 11, 2018

Philadelphia Area Independent School Fair
April 10, 2018

An Evening with Chill Moody & Hardwork Movement
February 22, 2018

Friends' Central and Children's Book World hosted author & activist Marley Dias 
February 3, 2018

Friends' Central and Children's Book World hosted author Kate DiCamillo
Newbery Award-winning author of Flora & Ulysses and The Tale of Despereaux

October 15, 2017

Screenagers Movie Screening and Parent Program
October 5, 2017

An Afternoon with Sarah J. Maas
#1 New York Times bestselling author of the Throne of Glass series and A Court of Thorns and Roses series
September 16, 2017

2016-2017 Distinguished Humanities Lecturer: Elizabeth Milroy
Art Historian and author
"Inventing Public Parks: Frederick Law Olmsted & Philadelphia's Green Places"
January 11, 2017

2016-2017 Distinguished Visiting Scientist: Janna Levin
Artist and author
April 5, 2017

Friends' Central and Children's Book World hosted
Chris Colfer, Golden Globe-winning actor & author
July 13, 2017