Hamilton will host its inaugural undergraduate philosophy conference, “Philosophy of Film and Television,” on Friday, May 3, beginning at 10 a.m., in Dwight Lounge, Bristol Center. The conference is sponsored by the Philosophy Department and the Danny Kaleikini Foundation, and is free and open to the public.

Many Hamilton students and alumni talk about the value of the “Hamilton network” in helping them explore careers, find internships or jobs, or simply provide advice. For nine students interested in filmmaking that network came alive when Benjamin Eckstein ’01 conducted an intense two-day workshop on the Hill on April 20-21.

The Department of Music presents the Hamilton College Orchestra on Friday, May 3, at 7:30 p.m., in Wellin Hall, Schambach Center for Music and the Performing Arts. The concert is free and open to the public.

In a country as vast and multicultural as the United States, it’s difficult to pin down what exactly constitutes an American identity. Do self-indentifying “Americans” have specific traits that they all hold in common, and if not, what unites them under the red, white and blue flag? A panel of Hamilton community members discussed this complex question during the panel  “What Does It Mean to Be American?” presented by La Vanguardia.

WAMC/Northeast Public Radio’s Academic Minute will feature Visiting Assistant Professor of History John Ragosta's essay on National Day of Prayer on Thursday, May 2. Ragosta, author of the newly published Religious Freedom: Jefferson's Legacy, America's Creed, provides a brief summary of the role of prayer in U.S. history. The broadcast can be heard locally at 7:34 a.m. or 3:56 p.m. at 90.3 FM and at InsideHigherEd.com.

Richard Burns '77, executive director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) Community Center in New York City, will present a lecture, “LGBTQ Rights: Past, Present and Future” on Wednesday, May 1, at 5 p.m., in the Red Pit, KJ. Burns will discuss how he connected his passion for social justice to a career and what he sees as the past, present and future of the LGBTQ rights movement. The lecture is free, open to the public and sponsored by the Days-Massolo Center.

Hamilton President Joan Hinde Stewart participated in a round table, “Women and Literary Tradition:Breaking the Sequence,” in honor of Wellesley College Professor of French Vicki Mistacco’s retirement. The April 30 event was hosted by La Maison Française of Wellesley College.

Professor of Biology Sue Ann Miller presented a poster, “Designing Effective Student Presentation Assignments that Include Thoughtful Peer Assessment,” at the celebration of the 125th anniversary of the American Association of Anatomists.

Grace Lee, a candidate for May graduation from Hamilton, has been awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to Russia.  A Russian studies major, she spent the 2011-12 academic year studying at Bard-Smolny College in St. Petersburg, Russia, where she served as an English tutor.

Associate Professor of Anthropology Chaise LaDousa and Hamilton seniors Paige Cross and Anna Zahm presented papers at the Northeastern Anthropological Association Conference.