Residential colleges and the Vanderbilt Visions program invite all Vanderbilt faculty, students and staff to nominate a book for the Class of 2028 Campus Reading. Next year’s theme is “Embracing the Debate.”
“The Campus Reading is a chance for students to draw on a shared experience as they begin the complex work of living in a diverse community, meeting new people and establishing a new set of experiences,” said Melissa Gresalfi, dean of residential colleges and residential education and dean of The Ingram Commons. “Our most successful books have offered students a story to which they can relate in some way, while also offering a new way of thinking about the world. Developing the skills and experience of engaging what is controversial, and learning to do so while making space to hear different perspectives, is exactly the kind of intellectual engagement that serves students in their academic experiences here at Vanderbilt and beyond.”
Incoming first-year students receive the Campus Reading over the summer and are asked to read it and complete a reflective essay before they arrive on campus. This assignment forms the basis for intellectual discussions and a community-wide dialogue that begins during orientation and continues in the Vanderbilt Visions classrooms.
To nominate a book, complete the online nomination form by Oct. 16. You can nominate up to three texts of any genre by current or deceased authors.
To be considered, a text must meet the following parameters:
- The text must take on a topic that invites different or competing perspectives.
- The text must be intellectually rigorous, inviting students to think in new or different ways.
- The text must be 300 pages or fewer and available in paperback and e-book formats.
- The text cannot contain graphic violence of any kind.
Submissions will be reviewed by a working group of faculty who will present three to four semifinalists to the Reading Recommendation Committee. If you have questions or need more information, email campus.reading@vanderbilt.edu.