Campus Inquirer
President's Letter
The following article is from the Secular
Humanist Bulletin, Volume 19, Number 1.
Dear CFA Members,
 I’d
like to tell you about several pieces of very exciting news. First, the Campus
Freethought Alliance (CFA) is continuing to grow and expand in various ways.
Thirteen new groups have affiliated with the CFA during the last winter and the
beginning of Spring 2003 semester, and our national series of critical debates
and presentations on science education, theism, naturalism, and church-state
separation is constantly expanding and improving. You can find the latest
schedule of CFA events on our home page at www.campusfreethought.org.
As of the time of this writing, I am looking forward to our
next major national event, the conference “One Nation Without God? Secularism,
Society, and Justice” in Washington, D.C., April 10–13. Along with special
CFA events, there will be many speakers and presentations of special interest to
those interested in church-state separation and science education, including
Reverend Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of
Church and State; Dr. Eugenie Scott, executive director of the National Center
for Science Education; Massimo Pigliucci, esteemed evolutionary biologist; and
Michael Newdow, plaintiff in the Pledge of Allegiance case.
It will also be a great opportunity to meet other members
of CFA from across North America and around the world—a great opportunity to
see old friends both during the conference and at the special CFA events.
Another major event to look forward to is the Center for
Inquiry Summer Session 2003 [see p. 6). Last year’s Summer Session was
incredible for everyone involved, and I’m sure this year’s will also be
fantastic. I strongly encourage all CFA members to attend. Transferable
undergraduate credits, as well as a limited number of assistantships, are
available. Read the description elsewhere in this Bulletin for more information.
I hope you are all enjoying success in your current
semester and are able to participate in some of the national or regional events
that CFA has planned in cities across North America. As always, do not hesitate
to contact the CFA if we can be of any assistance.
In Reason,
Debbie Goddard
CFA Student President
Temple University
CFA Introduces New Web Services
In the last issue of the SHB, CFA announced its new Web
site, listing the dozens of online resources to help CFA members be more
effective organizers and supporters of humanism and skepticism on their
campuses. These resources include the new Guide to Successful CFA Lectures and
Debates (CFA puts on about 100 each academic year on campuses across North
America); the new CFA Speakers and Debaters Listing; new downloadable CFA
posters and flyers; the downloadable CFA Affiliate Group Organizing Guide;
teaching guides and syllabi for supportive faculty and staff; and many other
off-site resources on evolution and science education. Also mentioned were the
new video clips from select lectures and debates, the listing of the 145 CFA
Affiliate Groups, the Campus Inquirer sign-up box, the new Free Promotional
Materials order form, and much more! To get involved, join CFA (even if you are
an off-campus supporter) by visiting www.campusfreethought.org.
CFA’s Online Forum is quickly becoming a home for
discussion and debate among high school and college students, faculty, and
off-campus supporters of CFA. Forum categories include College and High School
CFA Activism, where students share their strategies for promoting critical
inquiry on campus, lively debates such as “Are Psychics Real?” and “Can
You Be Good Without God?,” and many other threads of discussion of interest to
freethinkers.
Please get involved, whether you are on or off campus, by
visiting the “Forum” link at www.campusfreethought.org.
Major Upcoming CFA Events
CFA is pleased to announce the following events will occur
(or have already occurred by publication) during spring semester 2003.
If you attend or live near one of these following campuses, be sure to
get involved.
March 27: Matthew Shepard Symposium for Social
Justice, University of Wyoming. DJ Grothe: “Is There A Middle Ground in the
Homosexual-Rights Debate?”
April 8: Veritas Forum, Harvard University. DJ
Grothe will debate Rich Halvorson on “Is the Secular Worldview Defensible?”
April 17: University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Doug Krueger and Richard Howe will speak on “Does God Exist?”
April 23: Americans United for Separation for Church
and State Forum, Georgetown University. DJ Grothe and David Noebel spar on
“Clergy in the Classroom: Is Secular Humanism the Religion of the Public
Schools?”
April 24: Johns Hopkins University. DJ Grothe and
Rich Halvorson debate “Battle for the Mind: Secular Humanism vs. the Christian
Biblical Worldview.”
First CFA/CSH Conference to Be Held in April
The Council for Secular Humanism and the Campus Freethought
Alliance will hold their first joint conference in Washington, D.C., April
10–13, 2003: “One Nation Without God? Secularism, Society and Justice.”
In addition to special CFA educational and organizing
events, conference speakers included Vanity Fair columnist Christopher
Hitchens, philosopher and Center for Inquiry Chairman Paul Kurtz, activist
Michael Newdow, and actress and comedian of Saturday Night Live fame,
Julia Sweeney, among many others.
Check the next issue of SHB for pictures!
 Secular
Humanism Online Library
| 
Join to Receive the Secular Humanist Bulletin