Pedagogy 2025
Abstract
Pedagogically speaking, there exists a wealth of inquiry into methodologies positioning academia to serve as a dynamic agent of change by embracing practices that transcend traditional boundaries and foster interdisciplinary, impactful engagement. This involves the transformation of academia into a more inclusive, engaged, and outward-facing entity that addresses contemporary challenges and opportunities. As part of the Reap College of Creative and Professional Studies at Marywood University, we are particularly interested in the role of experimentation and creative processes in this context.
We see several issues at play: New opportunities for collaboration between academia and industry that emerge as these relationships develop. The new tensions that exist between ‘real-world’ impact and traditional ‘values-based’ education. A higher education system that seeks opportunities for its students to engage in social advocacy, engage with industry and foster community. The contemporary deliberations on the overlap of needs between the community, profession, students and academics that often drive institutional decisions.
With this in mind, we invite you to consider the following questions:
-How can we integrate emerging pedagogies into these broader academic frameworks?
-What are the structures and practices that support academia’s engagement with industry, community and global partnerships?
-How do we reimagine institutional priorities to promote adaptability and inclusivity through professional partnership?
-How can academia leverage the transformative potential of technology to foster innovation while embracing ethical, social, and cultural responsibilities?
-What are the models for successfully transferring these methodologies across disciplines and contexts?
Nausheen Husain is a writer and an assistant professor at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School Of Public Communication, teaching journalism with an emphasis on data analysis, underreported communities and civil liberties. Her research and reporting focuses on the past and present “War on Terror” and its counternarratives. Her work has been published in The Nation, The Huffington Post, Prism, The Appeal and The Chicago Tribune, among other outlets.
Maya Bird-Murphy is a Chicago-based architectural designer, educator, and cultural producer. At the age of 25, while working full-time and completing her Master of Architecture, she launched Mobile Makers, an award-winning nonprofit that makes design education accessible through workshops, community engagement, public installations, and pop-ups hosted out of a retrofitted mail truck. Bird-Murphy’s practice centers on expanding access to design education, empowering people to see themselves as agents of change in the spaces they inhabit, and advocating for change in the built environment. Her work challenges the gatekeeping that often defines the profession and has welcomed thousands of children and community members to engage in architecture. Bird-Murphy loves designing spaces, but excels at creating new systems that explore architecture beyond four walls. She was named a 2024 United States Artists Fellow, a 2023 Harvard Wheelwright Prize Finalist, and a 2022 winner of the Hublot Pierre Keller Award.
As an architect, educator, and researcher, Bobby Vance bridges theory and practice, advancing design and construction innovation through academic and professional channels. He is an Assistant Professor in Building Design and a Fellow in the Center for Design Research at Virginia Tech, building on a career spanning design leadership, modular construction practice, and international competition management. Through founding Vance Design Company, co-directing the Housing Innovation Challenge, and leading the award-winning FutureHAUS Dubai team, he has integrated interdisciplinary expertise, emerging technologies, and community-driven engagement. At the core of his work is a belief that impactful design must be inclusive, adaptable, and forward-looking, creating opportunities for both students and communities to thrive.
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm
Friday 21st November, 2025