SDRG

TO: Loyola College Faculty, Staff, Administrators & Students
FROM: Susan Donovan, Vice-President for Student Development/Dean of Students
SUBJECT: Student Development Spring Reading Groups
DATE: January 27, 2009

This spring, the Student Development Division is offering a new reading group program similar to the Diversity Reading Groups offered in the fall. Recognizing the inherent value in reading and discussing topics pertinent to our community, the reading groups will look at different facets of student life and student cultures on today’s college campuses.

The Student Development Reading Group Program offers a range of great reading opportunities designed to invite every member of the campus community into shared conversation around issues and topics that are relevant to our students. The goal is to create conversations across the campus about today’s college students and their culture so that we can better understand who they are and the challenges they face as students. Ultimately, we hope these groups can better inform our collective thinking as we engage in various ways with our students at Loyola.

Descriptions of the four books and registration details are listed below. Each group already has a set meeting time for the semester and will hold an organizational meeting during the week of February 9, 2009. Books will be available for purchase at the Loyola College Bookstore or you may choose to purchase your book online. To sign-up for a group, contact Krysten Fertonardo at kfertonardo@loyola.edu. Please include your name, position on campus and the book you would like to read.

I hope you will take this opportunity to join a conversation that will make a difference in your life and the lives of our students.

	Big Questions, Worthy Dreams: Mentoring Young Adults in Their Search for Meaning, Purpose, and Faith by Sharon Dolaz Parks Group Facilitators: Michelle Cheatem & Kathy Clark Petersen Meeting Times: Wednesdays at 11:00am -12:00pm First Meeting: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 at 11:00am in the Office of Sophomore Initiatives Conference Room (located in Seton Court 4508A) From Publisher: The "twenty-something" years of young adulthood are increasingly recognized as critical but puzzling. Building on the foundation she established in her classic work, The Critical Years, Sharon Parks urges thoughtful adults to assume responsibility for providing strategic mentorship during this important decade in life. She reveals also, however, the ways young adults are influenced not only by individual mentors but also by mentoring environments. In presenting both theory and practice, this book raises the conversation on the mission of higher education to new levels.
	Detour: My Bipolar Road Trip in 4D by Lizzie Simon Group Facilitators: Abigail Hurson & Pamela Griffin-Smith Meeting Times: Thursdays at 2:00pm -3:00pm First Meeting: Thursday, February 12, 2009 at 2:00pm in the Counseling Center Conference Room (Located in Humanities 150) From Publisher: By all appearances, Lizzie Simon was perfect. She had an Ivy League education, lots of friends, a loving family, and a dazzling career as a theater producer by the age of twenty-three. But that wasn't enough: Lizzie still felt alone in the world, and largely misunderstood. Having been diagnosed with bipolar disorder as a teenager, she longed to meet others like herself; she wanted to hear the experiences of those who managed to move past their manic-depression and lead normal lives. So Lizzie hits the road, hoping to find "a herd of her own." Along the way she finds romance and madness, survivors and sufferers, and, somewhere between the lanes, herself. Part road trip, part love story, Detour is a fast-paced, enduring memoir that demystifies mental illness while it embraces the universally human struggle to become whole.
	Guyland: The Perilous World Where Boys Become Men by Michael Kimmel Group Facilitators: Peter Paquette & Michael Puma Meeting Times: Thursdays at 11:00am -12:00pm First Meeting: Thursday, February 12, 2009, 11am in the Campion Tower Meeting Room (Room 115) From Publishers Weekly To a growing list of books about the myths and mysteries of American boys and young males, Kimmel, a sociologist and author of Manhood In America, adds this deft exploration grounded in research. Based on more than 400 interviews, over a four-year span, with young men ages 16–26, Kimmel's study shows that the guys who live in Guyland are mostly white, middle-class, totally confused and cannot commit to their relationships, work or lives. Although they seem baffled by the riddles of manhood and responsibility, they submit to the Guy Code, where locker-room behaviors, sexual conquests, bullying, violence and assuming a cocky jock pose can rule over the sacrifice and conformity of marriage and family. Obsessed with never wanting to grow up, this demographic, which is 22 million strong, craves video games, sports and depersonalized sexual relationships. In the end, Kimmel offers a highly practical guide to male youth.
	Sex and the Soul: Juggling Sexuality, Spirituality, Romance, and Religion on America's College Campuses by Donna Freitas and Lauren Winner Group Facilitators: Kimberly Becker and Jessica Pane Meeting Times: Mondays at 12:00pm -1:00pm First Meeting: Monday, February 9 at 12:00pm in the Office of Sophomore Initiatives, (located in Seton Court 4508A) From Publishers Weekly: Boston University professor Freitas (also an occasional contributor to PW) explores college students' spiritual and sexual lives in this fascinating, disturbing book. With the exception of evangelical collegians, who are still gunning for marriage and trying to remain chaste until then, almost all of the young people Freitas interviewed were engaged in hookup culture, often exploring their sexuality with near strangers in the hopes of eventually finding someone to date. And with the exception of evangelical students, who allow their religious views to permeate all life choices, including sexual boundaries, most college students don't see much connection between their sexual behavior—which, in candid interviews, they often regret—and their spirituality, which is important to them.

The Reading Groups will meet on a weekly basis, beginning the week of February 16th and running through the week of April 13th. Each reading group will have an organizational meeting during the week of February 9th to meet and determine a reading schedule.

Books will be available in the Loyola College Bookstore or can be purchased online through numerous book vendors.

To register, send an e-mail with your name, position on campus and book title to Krysten Fertonardo at kfertondardo@loyola.edu.