WASHINGTON – (November 8, 2018), The Howard University Graduate School is proud to announce its participation in the “Engaging Scientists in the Science and Religion Dialogue” project by the Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion (DoSER) program of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Howard University is one of six U.S. research institutions chosen through a competitive application process.

The Graduate School will host on-campus events for Howard scientists and researchers that will focus on the intersection of science, faith, and religion. This is an emerging collaborative interdisciplinary research area for Howard University Graduate School education and training.

The first of these events is a Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, November 14, 2018 in the Dunbarton Chapel on the Howard University Van Ness Campus at 2900 Van Ness Street NW, Washington, DC from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. This event is open to the public and no RSVP is required. A reception will follow immediately after.  

Speakers include:

• Benard Richardson, Ph.D, town hall co-moderator and dean of the Howard University Andrew Rankin Chapel
• Se Kim, town hall co-moderator and AAAS/DoSER Program representative
• Thomas Searles, Ph.D., assistant professor of the Howard University Physics and Astronomy Department
• Bahiyyah M. Muhammad, Ph.D., professor of the Howard University Sociology and Criminology Department
• Phillip Kurian, Ph.D., research professor of the Howard University Graduate School
• Latifa Jackson, Ph.D., research assistant in the Department of Pediatrics and Child Health at Howard University
• Carla L. Easter, Ph.D., branch chief at the National Human Genome Research Institute
• Melissa Clarke, MD, of the Medical Home Development Group

Dean of the Graduate School Gary L. Harris, AAAS DoSER staff and guest speakers will lead a community science-faith dialogue at the Town Hall Meeting. The meeting will bring together Howard University scientists, faculty, community representatives, and other diverse publics that are interested in this area of research. Dean Harris is the primary investigator for the partnership with AAAS DoSER.

“As a collaboration between DoSER and the AAAS Center for Public Engagement with Science and Technology, the project supports scientists in becoming more effective ambassadors for their interests, their disciplines, and for science as a whole with a broad and diverse spectrum of publics, and particularly with religious individuals and communities,” according to a statement issued by AAAS.



There will also be information provided about an upcoming awards competition to recognize public science engagement activities by early career and established scientists involved with science-faith dialogue. The AAAS DoSER project will sponsor awards for Howard University graduate students, staff and faculty to develop public science engagement projects and activities with religious communities and institutions.

Additionally, as part of the AAAS DoSER project, there will be a Communications Workshop scheduled for February 27, 2019 in the Interdisciplinary Research Building (IRB) from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. AAAS staff will provide Howard University scientists and researchers with effective, dialogue-driven engagement strategies for communicating about science in the classroom, in research settings, and with the greater community.

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About Howard University Graduate School

Howard University offered its first master’s degree in 1867—the same year it was established. In 1934, the Graduate School was formally established and reorganized to its current structure with divisions in the arts and humanities, biological and life sciences, engineering and physical sciences, and social sciences. The school awarded its first doctorate degree in 1958 in the field of chemistry. The school offers 24 master’s, 31 Ph.D. and 7 M.D./Ph.D. Programs. The Graduate School has consistently issued on average over 100 doctoral degrees per year for the last three years.  For more information, visit, www.gs.howard.edu 

Media Contact:  Jamie A. Triplin, Director of Communications & Development for the Graduate School, 202-806-4670 or jamie.triplin@howard.edu. 

About Howard University

Founded in 1867, Howard University is a private, research university that is comprised of 13 schools and colleges. Students pursue studies in more than 120 areas leading to undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees. The University operates with a commitment to Excellence in Truth and Service and has produced four Rhodes Scholars, 11 Truman Scholars, two Marshall Scholars, one Schwarzman Scholar, over 70 Fulbright Scholars and 22 Pickering Fellows. Howard also produces more on-campus African-American Ph.D. recipients than any other university in the United States.  For more information on Howard University visit www.howard.edu

Media Contact: Imani Pope-Johns, Office of University Communications,  Imani.popejohns@howard.edu