Program Description
Event Details
Comic-Con International and San Diego Public Library have teamed up for the Comic Conference for Educators and Librarians (CCEL). This FREE five-day conference will take place at the San Diego Central Library during Comic-Con® from July 19-23, and will explore the role comics play in promoting education and literacy for all ages. Those in the library and education fields are invited to learn creative and exciting ways to incorporate comics and other popular arts into their work. Through presentations and panel discussions, the Conference hopes to engage the community and promote comics as a medium for learning.
Sunday Schedule:
10:00–11:00 Admissions Departments Emitting Geek Vibes: College Course Focused on Pop Culture—It all may have started in the 1970s when Michael Uslan (Batman) started teaching a comics course at Indiana University. Since then, colleges nationwide have slowly started to offer comics and geek culture courses to their students. Academics Dr. Chris Wildrick (Syracuse University), Dr. Christina Knopf (SUNY Cortland), Rob Salkowitz (University of Oregon), Dr. Billy Obenauer (University of Maine), and recent MBA graduate Bailey Day explore the "best in class" of comic curses on college campuses today and what’s in store in the fall semester. Moderated by Professor Ed Catto (Ithaca College).
11:00–12:00 What Would Aunt May Do? Supporting Heroes: Bystander Intervention on College Campuses—Intervening in difficult circumstances is how we can be heroic in the real world, specifically on college campuses. Learn how the lessons in our favorite stories can teach us how to behave and confront potentially dangerous situations in a safe way. Alfred Day (UC Berkeley), Emilie Mitchell (UC Berkeley), JonJon Junpradub (College of the Siskiyous), Dr. Alison Cares (University of Central Florida), Dr. Matthew Atherton (CSU San Marcos), and Dr. Zachary Hays (CSU Bakersfield) hold an intriguing discussion.
12:00–1:00 GeekEd: The Marvels—Recent years have seen an increase in female-led genre properties like Black Panther: Wakanda Forever and Ms. Marvel. Here on Earth-Prime, women are leading the way in a different but related fashion. Come meet a powerhouse crew of college leadership who are also women of color and see how they have been inspired, frustrated, and driven by the portrayals of power in genre fiction versus the reality of leading their own institutions. Dr. Sunny Lee (UC Berkeley), Dr. Emily Sandoval (University of Southern California), Alex Belisario (UC Santa Cruz), Geralyn Williams (Pace Center), Dr. Martha Enciso (CSU Fullerton), and Dr. Marcelle Hayashida (UC Irvine) will share their insights.
1:00–2:00 GeekEd: Caring for the Nerd Mind—A group of higher education and mental health professionals discuss how they have applied their fandom and lessons learned from superheroes and popular culture to connect with students in crisis and develop best practices to promote resilience and well-being on college campuses. Panelists include Dr. David Surratt (University of Oklahoma), JonJon Junpradub (College of the Siskiyous), Christine Catipon (Stanford University), Edgar Palmer (USC), and Greedley F. Harris (USC).
2:00–3:00 GeekEd: Lessons from the Snap—Much like Puny Banner merging his intelligence with the Hulk’s strength many higher education professionals had to change the way they approached working with students and colleagues as they returned to campus after the pandemic. Panelists discuss how they found new ways of working and drew inspiration and parallels from their heroes. Featuring Brian MacDonald (UCLA), Alfred Day (UC Berkeley), Peter Limthongviratn (USC), La'Tonya Rease Miles (Higher Ed Consulting), Aysa Cook (Occidental College), and Greedley F. Harris (USC).
Space is limited and registration is strongly encouraged each day.
Comic-Con badge-holders with valid single same-day or four-day badges are welcome to attend and are not required to register.
In addition to CCEL, San Diego Public Library hosts themed San Diego Comic-Con programming leading up to and through the days of the conference. Please visit our website for more information.