Residential Colleges invites all Vanderbilt faculty, students and staff to nominate a book for the Campus Reading for the Class of 2029; next year’s theme is Stories that Connect Us.
“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 engaging in 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 personally relate in some way, but also … lessons about how to be curious about others’ stories and experiences. This kind of curiosity is central to 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 the text and complete a reflective essay before they arrive on campus. This assignment forms the basis for a community-wide conversation that starts at orientation and continues in Vanderbilt Visions groups.
To nominate a book, complete the online nomination form by Oct. 4. You can nominate up to three texts of any genre by living or deceased authors.
To be considered, a text must meet the following parameters:
- Take on a topic that invites different or competing perspectives
- Be intellectually rigorous, inviting students to think in new or different ways
- Be 300 pages or fewer and available in paperback and e-book formats
- No graphic violence of any kind
Submissions will be reviewed by a working group of faculty, who will present up to four semifinalists to the reading recommendation committee. Email questions to campus.reading@vanderbilt.edu.
