Academics | Colgate Memorial Chapel , Basement
Colgate’s Heretics Club lunch discussion series was created to elevate the conversation on campus about life’s “big questions.”Our spring 2025 theme: We Disagree! (But We Do It Well!)Discussions begin at noon in the Chapel Basement.Lunch is provided. All are welcome!FEB 6th: Building Trust Across Difference How do we engage across difference in productive ways? In a time of intense polarization, this can seem impossible, but it is more important than ever. Join us for a conversation with Simon Greer, social entrepreneur and founder of Bridging the Gap.FEB 20th: Disagreeing Well with Our Political “Frenemies” Do you have friends whose politics you disagree with? Join us for a student-hosted conversation about ideological bubbles, political frenemies, and the importance of cultivating relationships with people who see the world differently than you.MARCH 6th: Disagreeing Well in the University (feat. President Casey!) Colgate’s mission statement focuses on the importance of cultivating open inquiry, mutual understanding, and a broadened perspective. Join us for a conversation with our own Brian Casey, who will talk about the key role that “civil disagreement” plays in this mission.APRIL 3: What Does It Look Like to “Disagree” with Yourself? Have you ever experienced a dramatic change in your worldview? How did you make sense of it? Join us for a conversation with Sohrab Ahmari, editor of UnHerd and author of From Fire, By Water: My Journey to the Catholic Faith (2019) and Tyranny Inc.: How Private Power Crushed American Liberty—and What To Do About It (2023).APRIL 24th: Disagreeing Well Across Religious Difference Religious differences have created some of humankind’s most longstanding disagreements. Join us for a conversation with Colgate’s Chaplains, Rabbi Barry Baron and Imam Ahmet Celik, about disagreeing well across religious difference.

Academics | Persson Hall, 27 Auditorium- Ground Floor
Feb. 6th- 12-1pm in 27 Persson AuditoriumMatthew Makofske (ECON)Assistant Professor of EconomicsTitle: Pretextual Traffic Stops and Racial Disparities in Their UseDescription: Moving-violation traffic stops are pretextual when motivated by suspicion of unrelated crimes. Despite concerns that they are subject to racial bias, and recent reforms hoping to curb the practice, we lack empirical evidence to inform our understanding of pretextual stops. Using a decade's worth of traffic citation data from Louisville, KY, I provide evidence suggesting that pretextual stops predicated on a particular violation—failure to signal—were reasonably common. While arrest rates range from 0.01 to 0.09 in stops citing other common moving violations, stops citing failure-to-signal yield an arrest rate of 0.42. Importantly, pretext for a stop requires just one infraction; the arrest rate is 0.53 when failure-to-signal is the only cited traffic violation, and 0.21 otherwise. Prior to departmental deployment of body-worn cameras (BWCs), Black motorists account for a disproportionately high share of likely pretextual stops, but are arrested in them at significantly lower rates than other motorists. Both disparities are substantially larger during daylight, when driver race is more easily observed; the latter disparity dissipates following BWC deployment. A departmental prohibition of vehicle search based on a subject's nervousness was abruptly announced in May 2019, and immediately followed by a sharp 58% relative decrease in the frequency of likely pretextual stops.

Academics | Palace Theater
President Casey will focus on the ambitious plans for the future of the Colgate campus and the impact on the greater Hamilton community.Presenter: Brian W. Casey is the 17th President of Colgate University and has served since his inauguration in 2016.

Academics | Olin Hall, Love Auditorium
Presentation by Simon Greer Social Entrepreneur & Founder of Bridging The GapThis presentation will be followed by a Q&A hosted by President Casey.Greer has been involved in social change work for the past 30 years, including some of our country’s most divisive political movements and moments. This work has included working as a community and union organizer in South Carolina in the 1990s, managing security at the turn of the century, global justice protests targeting institutions like the World Bank, and hosting a Courageous Conversations series with The Nantucket Project (which includes American Neighbor).Greer’s work is characterized by deep listening, powerful storytelling, and a search for common good values. All of these are skills he trains leaders to deploy in their efforts to tackle the most pressing issues in our communities.

Academics
Apply through Off-Campus Study.

Academics | Lathrop Hall, 207
Join us for Visiting Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies, Dr. Parvathy Binoy, for a discussion about her research in environmental justice. She will be exploring the multi-locationality of environmental justice between South Asia and upstate New York through her research and activism in these places.Hot wraps by Hamilton Whole Foods will be provided and will include gluten-free, vegan, and nut-free options. Please bring your own reusable water bottle.