8:30 a.m.–2:45 p.m.
This conference examines the future of higher education in an increasingly authoritarian global environment marked by democratic backsliding, political polarization, and intensifying state efforts to control knowledge production. Across regions, universities face intersecting pressures: geopolitical instability, new technologies, shifting patterns of mobility, growing demands for measurable “impact,” and deepening contests over truth, history, and public trust.
A central concern of this convening is systemic autonomy in higher education: the capacity of teaching and research to be guided by scholarly standards rather than direct political instruction. Universities are never separate from politics, law, the economy, or media. The question is which institutional arrangements allow these relationships to support, rather than undermine, free inquiry.
The Schnitzer School of Global Studies and Languages invites all to attend and engage!
✒️Register here *Attendance is free
11:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.
Come join the party! The Charleston Marine Life Center is turning 10!
Free entrance to the CMLC from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Hang out with your favorite critters
- Learn to speak whale
- Take our exploration challenges
Free boat tours at Charleston Marina's B Dock from noon to 4 p.m.
- R/V Megalopa -- UO's research vessel
- The Western Flyer -- the historic fishing vessel, which carried John Steinbeck and Ed Ricketts on their famous 1940 expedition to the Gulf of California, inspiring Steinbeck's The Log from the Sea of Cortez
CMLC is the public outreach center of the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology.
5:00–8:30 p.m.
The Women Amplify the Voice of Electroacoustic (WAVE) Festival is an electroacoustic music festival founded to showcase the creative and brilliant contributions of women to the field. In celebration of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, the theme of this year’s festival is the diversity of Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander cultures.
6:00–8:30 p.m.
Yoisho Hai Yoi Yoi!🦆🐁 Ahiru Daiko, the UO's Japanese drumming ensemble, will be holding "Yoisho!", our 2026 spring concert! We will be showcasing both old and new repertoire. Doors open at 5:30pm and entry is FREE so feel free to pull up and bring your friends. We are excited to see you there‼️ Event will be streamed on our YouTube.
4:00 p.m.
The Department of History; Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies; and the Knight Library present a screening of Singing for Justice, a film about Faith Petric, with co-director Estelle Freedman. Followed by a singalong!
Singing for Justice (2024) is the story of Petric (1915-2013), a political radical, musician, mother, worker and grandmother who united folk music and activism through almost a century of American social movements. Over her long and purposeful life, Petric inspired all to take responsibility for social change, women and elders to defy stereotypes, and everyone she met to sing along.
Freedman is the Edgar E. Robinson Professor in US History (Emerit) at Stanford University and co-founder of Stanford’s Program in Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. She is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and the Center for Advanced Study in Behavioral Sciences, where she is currently a Stanford Faculty Fellow. Freedman’s ten books on the histories of women, feminism, and sexuality include two prize-winning studies of prison reform–Their Sisters' Keepers and Maternal Justice; the surveys No Turning Back: The History of Feminism and the Future of Women and (with John D'Emilio) Intimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in America; and the multi-award winning Redefining Rape: Sexual Violence in the Era of Suffrage and Segregation. She is currently writing about narratives of sexual assault and harassment in 20th century women’s oral histories.
Free and open to the public.
5:00 p.m.
The Dawn is Too Far shares the untold stories of eight Iranian Americans in the San Francisco Bay Area and shares the longer arc of history (beyond the 1979 revolution) that recounts events both in Iran and the US. The film features aspects of the Bay Area Iranian diaspora community and the way their lives and work were influenced by this region of California, but how they have contributed and helped shape it as well. The film offers a poetic and complex narrative that undermines the barrage of negative headlines that dominate our news media and features rare archival footage.
Persis Karim is the former director of the Center for Iranian Diaspora Studies at San Francisco State University where she also taught in the Department of Humanities and Comparative and World Literature. She is the editor of three anthologies of Iranian diaspora literature, and has published numerous articles about Iranian diaspora literature and culture for academic journals, as well as poetry and essays in non-academic publications. The Dawn is Too Far: Stories of Iranian-American Life is her first film and reflects her interest in documenting and sharing the larger history and personal stories of those who are part of the global Iranian diaspora.
Made possible by the Department of Anthropology, SSWANA, and the Department of Art’s Center for Art Research.
7:00 p.m.
Please join the Department of History for the May pub lecture. Associate Professor Julie Weise will discuss "From Oregon to Qatar: A History of ‘Temporary’ Migrant Workers."
Free and open to everyone! Food and drink available for purchase.
The UO Department of History presents a series of talks with scholars about history, from the local to the global. Join us for stories, food, and conversation in a casual setting!
2:00–3:20 p.m.
Join the Department of Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies for a talk on “Feminist Futures in Pasifika: Student and Community-Led Pathways to Decolonization, Intersectional Racial Justice, and Healing” with Sarina Saturn, CHamoru and Indian scholar-activist.
This talk explores how Pasifika students, educators, and community leaders are building feminist futures through grassroots action, mutual aid, and healing-centered justice work. Drawing from transinstitutional and institutionless efforts, including the ADVANCE Journal: Individual and Institutional Transformation for Social Justice, QTPI Village, and Guma' Gela', the presentation highlights student- and community-led pathways to decolonization, reproductive justice, climate resilience, and collective care. Centering ancestral wisdom and intergenerational leadership, this presentation offers a vision of Pasifika futures rooted in liberation, relationality, and community healing.
Sarina Saturn, PhD (she/they), is a CHamoru and Indian scholar-activist, educator, psychologist, neuroscientist, former tenured professor, community scientist, and public scholar whose work bridges higher education, health equity, and social justice. She has taught across psychology, neuroscience, and health sciences while advancing inclusive learning environments grounded in trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and liberatory practice. Her scholarship and community work center decolonization, intersectional racial justice, collective healing, intergenerational leadership, and reverse and reciprocal mentorship, with longstanding engagement in BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+, and feminist communities
3:30–5:00 p.m.
The Department of History is pleased to welcome Estelle Freedman, Edgar E. Robinson Professor in U.S. History (Emerit) at Stanford University and co-founder of Stanford’s Program in Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, for the 2026 Pierson Lecture: "Speaking of Sexual Violence: Voices from Women’s Oral Histories in the Twentieth Century U.S."
How can historical research contribute to understanding silence and speech about sexual violence? Based on her analysis of a large text database of oral history collections, Professor Freedman will explore how women from diverse backgrounds remembered and reacted to unwanted sexual advances during the twentieth century. She applies both quantitative digital humanities tools and qualitative close readings of relevant women’s narratives to consider two topics: stories of sexual assault handed down in African American families, and varied responses to educational and workplace harassment.
Freedman is the Edgar E. Robinson Professor in U.S. History (Emerit) at Stanford University and co-founder of Stanford’s Program in Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. She is the recipient of fellowships from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, and the Center for Advanced Study in Behavioral Sciences, where she is currently a Stanford Faculty Fellow. Freedman’s ten books on the histories of women, feminism, and sexuality include two prize-winning studies of prison reform--Their Sisters' Keepers and Maternal Justice; the surveys No Turning Back: The History of Feminism and the Future of Women and (with John D'Emilio) Intimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in America; and the multi-award winning Redefining Rape: Sexual Violence in the Era of Suffrage and Segregation. She is currently writing about narratives of sexual assault and harassment in 20th century women’s oral histories. Freedman co-directed (with Christie Herring) the 2024 documentary film, Singing for Justice, about S.F. Bay Area folk musician and political activist Faith Petric (1915-2013).
The Annual Pierson Lecture is a Department of History tradition that spans back to 1993, when it was founded to honor Stan and Joan Pierson. The Piersons were both exemplary citizens of the community, dedicated to history and education as proven by their distinguished records of intellectual accomplishment and community involvement. This lecture series brings distinguished scholars to the University of Oregon, so that they may share their work in alignment with the Piersons’ interests in cultural, intellectual, and political life.
noon
Looking for a part-time job this summer in Eugene? Looking ahead for fall job opportunities on campus? Or want to learn more about future work-study opportunities during your time at UO? Stop by the UO Part-Time Job & Work-Study Fair, Wednesday, May 13, from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. in the Tykeson Hall 1st Floor Commons area to meet local and on-campus employers hiring for seasonal employees! Bring your resume and apply on the spot, or just look around and learn more about the great ways you can get work experience and build career readiness skills during your time at the UO.
FYI: Work-Study is a specific type of part-time job available to students based on financial need. If a job says it requires Work-Study, you must have accepted an award on Duckweb. To learn more about the program and how to find your award, check out https://career.uoregon.edu/jobs-and-internships/work-study
There will still be LOTS of jobs at this event that do not require work-study in order to apply--something for everyone!
Register in Handshake to keep up to date on which employers are coming to the fair and what jobs you can be applying for!
Special thanks to Chick-Fil-A