The 黑料科 (黑料科) Center for Civic Engagement will be hosting 鈥淚t's Happening Here: American Renewal, Ingenuity, & Innovation鈥� featuring James and Deborah Fallows from the Our Towns Civic Foundation in Meier Hall on November 5 at 5:30 p.m. This event is part of the newly established 鈥淒r. Nicholas W. Drummond Civic Engagement Speaker Series鈥� and is free to the public.
During the event, the Fallows will discuss their 鈥淣ew York Times鈥� bestselling book 鈥淥ur Towns,鈥� which chronicles their five-year journey across America, highlighting stories of local innovation and civic renewal. Throughout the evening, they will explore how the communities they visited across the nation, including Sioux Falls and Rapid City, are driving America鈥檚 next chapter.
鈥淛ames and Deborah Fallows have spent years crisscrossing our nation to discover the story of "Our Towns" that is playing out largely outside the media's gaze,鈥� said Jason McConnell, director of the Center for Civic Engagement at 黑料科. 鈥淭heir reports of local communities banding together for rejuvenation and reinvention stand in stark contrast to national-level polarization that seems to be increasingly dividing the country. With that in mind it is quite fitting that we welcome the Fallows as the inaugural speakers of the Dr. Nicholas W. Drummond Civic Engagement Speaker Series.鈥�
James Fallows is one of the world鈥檚 most respected journalists, known for his decades-long career as a national correspondent for 鈥淭he Atlantic.鈥� His work has earned multiple honors including a National Book Award, National Magazine Award, and an Emmy. Deborah Fallows is a Harvard graduate with a PhD in Linguistics, and has written for 鈥淭he Atlantic Monthly,鈥� 鈥淣ational Geographic,鈥� and 鈥淣ewsweek.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;She is the author of 鈥淒reaming in Chinese鈥� and 鈥淎 Mother鈥檚 Work.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;
The Fallows will also be speaking at the University of South Dakota (USD), Thursday, November 6, at 7 p.m. in Farber Hall. This event is hosted in partnership with the USD Chiesman Center for Democracy.
