The Raft Debate, a much beloved William & Mary tradition, will be held at the Commonwealth Auditorium in the Sadler Center, on Sept. 22, 2011 at 6:30 p.m.
The three survivors of an imaginary shipwreck — a scientist, a social scientist, and a humanist — achieve a delicate balance between comedy and , lecture as they debate the value of their respective discipline for the rest of humanity.
Only one of these professors can return to civilization in the life raft. A fourth faculty member, a devil’s advocate, joins the survivors and argues sarcastically that none of the academic disciplines are worth saving. The winner of the debate is chosen by a judge based on audience reaction. Join the excitement as the professors cajole, plead, pontificate, and resort shamelessly to props and costumes until the final, lone survivor is decided.
This year’s survivors representing their disciplines and the fate of humanity are:
Humanities: Boyd Distinguished Associate Professor of Classical Studies Vassiliki Panoussi.
Social sciences: Associate Professor of History Andrew Fisher.
Natural and computational sciences: Mathematics Professor Larry Leemis.
The devil’s advocate will be played by Associate Professor of Education Pamela Eddy.
The judge will be played by Dean of Graduate Studies and Research Laurie Sanderson.
The Raft Debate, sponsored by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, the Graduate Center, and the A&S Graduate Student Association, is free and open to the public. A reception will follow in the Tidewater A of the Sadler Center.
For more information, visit the webpage
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