NEWS RELEASE

Immediate:  March 20, 2018

The Nassau Community College Cultural Program
Spring 2018 Speaker Series

Garden City, NY – Nassau Community College presents its Spring 2018 Cultural Program Speaker Series, which features presentations by Masaki Sato, a 25-year veteran human resources officer for United Nations peacekeeping operations; CNN Political Commentators Bakari Sellers and Alice Stewart; Syrian refugee Mariela Shaker; and more.

Spotlight on Faculty
United Nations Peacekeeping Operations in Haiti
Masaki Sato
During his 25-year career as a human resources officer for United Nations peacekeeping operations, NCC Japanese Language Instructor Masaki Sato has travelled to many places where "ordinary" people are not allowed. What are the differences between the UN's and private charities' approaches to sustainable development?
Monday, April 9 at 2:00 p.m., CCB, Room 252/253

Censorship in Public Colleges and Universities
Don Parker
Students, faculty members and administrators in public institutions of learning are guaranteed their constitutional First Amendment rights. Nonetheless, incidents of censorship include administrative control of the student press, prohibition of lectures by faculty, refusal to recognize a student organization, and attempts to ban the performance of a controversial play. Guest speaker Don Parker is an organizer of the Long Island Coalition Against Censorship. 
Wednesday, April 11 at 9:30 a.m., CCB 252/253

Gunsense in AmericaShenee Johnson
The Community Outreach leader for Moms Demand Action for Gunsense in America (Suffolk chapter), Shenee Johnson will speak about her teenage son's violent death in 2010, what she has done since, and how you can become a gun sense champion in your community.
Monday, April 16 at 11:00 a.m., CCB 252/253

Special Event 1922: The Year the World Broke in Two
NCC students and faculty will talk about how the year 1922 changed the way we think about jazz, painting and feminism, with a keynote address at 2:00 PM by Billy Goldstein (NBC host of Weekend Today in New York), whose best-selling book explains the relationship between Virginia Woolf and literary modernism.
Wednesday, April 18 from 11:00 a.m.-3:15 p.m., Tower, 11th floor

A Civil Conversation on Gun Control, Immigration, and Russia: Is It Possible?CNN Political Commentators Bakari Sellers and Alice StewartModerator: NCC History/Political Science Professor Stephanie Sapiie
CNN Political Commentator Bakari Sellers has championed progressive policies since his election to the South Carolina state legislature at age 22. Time magazine named him one of its "40 Under 40", and he is a rising star in the national Democratic party. CNN Political Commentator and Emmy Award-winning journalist Alice Stewart has been the Communications Director for several Republican presidential candidates, including Ted Cruz, Mike Huckabee and Michelle Bachman.
Monday, April 23 at 12:30 p.m. CCB, Multipurpose Room
*Please note time and date change

Alive From Aleppo: A Syrian Refugee's Story of Music, Suffering, and Love
Mariela Shaker
26-year old Mariela Shaker is a Syrian violinist who fled the war in Aleppo based on a music scholarship she received in the United States in 2013. Today, an internationally-successful musician, she will speak and perform at NCC about her personal struggle to survive and leave war-torn Syria, and, to quote her, will "tell the story of my suffering city and people. I am so keen to deliver a beautiful message through my violin — a message of peace over war and love over hatred. May music help heal the pain our world has felt."
Thursday, April 26 at 10:00 a.m., CCB 252/253

All programs are free, open to the public and accessible to the disabled. For more information about the spring 2018 Cultural Program at Nassau Community College, call 516.572.7148.

Media Contact: Alicia Steger 516.572.9634
alicia.steger@ncc.eduncc.edu/newsreleases

About Nassau Community College Nassau Community College is an institution where more than 20,000 full-time, part-time, Workforce Development and continuing education students start and continue their successful journey through higher education. More than 70 fields of study are offered on a 225-acre campus located in the center of Long Island. As the largest single-campus two-year college in New York State, Nassau Community College maintains a national reputation for excellence. For more information, visit www.ncc.edu.

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