Every two years, the Council on Contemporary Families hosts a meeting for scholars, practitioners, and members of the media to discuss pressing issues confronting U.S. families in a world that is becoming increasingly complex. Few issues are in greater need of discussion, debate, and action than raising children in an era of rapid technological change, political, and environmental change, with all of the conflict, uncertainty, and opportunity that comes with such change. The 2020 biennial conference, therefore, will shine a light on the challenges of raising children today, featuring leading experts in the field. The keynote speakers include Professor Christia Spears Brown of the University of Kentucky, a psychologist whose new book helps parents try to raise children free of negative stereotypes, and Professor Cecilia Menjivar of UCLA, a sociologist whose recent research explores the special and timely case of the children of Latino/a migrant worker families in the Midwest. Other sessions will focus on such hot-button topics as raising children in the social media age and in the context of family addiction, and the conference will also feature discussions with experts about creating partnerships across the fields of research, policy, and media. Throughout the conference, the theme will be that investing in children today is a way of helping the world tomorrow, recognizing that raising children is the responsibility of a large number of people beyond parents and something that lasts long after children have entered adulthood.
UT Student and Faculty registration is free, but does not include lunch.
Keynote speakers:
Dr. Christia Spears, Professor, Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Kentucky, and Director of the Center for Equality and Social Justice
Dr. Cecilia Menjívar, Professor and Dorothy L. Meier Social Equities Chair, Department of Sociology, The University of California, Los Angeles
As well as other nationally known speakers on family and our own unique format of short talks and lively discussion.