Ithaca College

Dr. Matthew Holtmeier (Postdoctoral Teaching Fellow in Screen Studies) and Dr. Andrew Utterson (Assistant Professor in Screen Studies) recently presented papers at a symposium on Media, Communication, and Film Studies Programs at Liberal Arts Colleges, held at Muhlenberg College, PA.

Dr. Utterson opened the symposium by mapping a changing landscape for the very notion of a liberal education and detailed some of the distinctive philosophies and pedagogies of teaching screen studies (encompassing theoretical, historical, and critical approaches to film, television, and new media) in the specific context of a comprehensive college whose mission is rooted in blending liberal arts and professional programs.

  As part of the same panel, Dr. Holtmeier spoke on the liberal arts case for theory and detailed assignments that negotiate the interface between theory and practice in the area of screen studies. Specifically, he discussed the role of the 'writing intensive' course and the critical role writing plays in developing transferable research and analytical skills as habitual best practices.