From whiskey and wine tasting to discussions about politics and apocalypse, The Honors College’s 21st award-winning fundraiser, The Great Conversation, welcomed a variety of conversations between professors, students and donors during its banquet.
The Great Conversation began in 1993 through the collaboration of founding Dean Ted Estess and alumna Jane Cizik and has served as The Honors College’s most important fundraiser, raising more than $2 million in the past 20 years.
“The event has been kept alive and is still very vivid and successful. It is a fundraiser, which is very important, but more than that, it helps raise the profile of the University and The Honors College in the city,” said Cynthia Freeland, a professor at the college and chair of the Department of Philosophy, who has attended the event since it began.
“Every year, I look forward to meeting new people and seeing how the conversation goes,” Freeland said.
True to its name, The Great Conversation’s purpose is to provide an atmosphere similar to the freshman Honors course, The Human Situation, where students are engaged in a year-long Socratic dialogue with professors and influential literature. Every table at the banquet has a different topic on which the professors, students and donors discuss over a three-course dinner.
This year’s discussions brought guests to muse over art, literature, philosophy, science, politics and even wine through topics such as “Frenemies: American Foreign Policy in the Middle East” and “Apocalypse When? Post-Nuclear Dystopias in the Movies.”
“I’ve enjoyed Dr. (Lawrence) Currey’s take on the topic this year: “The 1960s in America: A Decade of Hope and Horror.” I’m the only one at my table who didn’t live through the 1960s, so it’s been interesting listening to everyone’s stories,” said political science senior Markley Rogers.
“They’re talking about what they were doing when Kennedy was shot, where they were when man walked on the moon for the first time. It’s just a great opportunity to hear these first-hand accounts and to show the donors my appreciation,” Rogers said.
As all proceeds from the banquet go toward scholarships and funding for the University, it is a wonderful opportunity for students to meet and thank their benefactors.
“Last year, I received a scholarship called The Great Conversation Scholarship,” said psychology freshman Katelyn Travers. “I joined the committee to help with the event this year because this scholarship was really important to me. As an out-of-state student, I was able to get in-state tuition.”
Because of its importance to The Honors College and its students, many alumni and donors help tremendously with the event, and this year’s banquet was of record success.
More than 20 years ago, donors exceeded expectations by contributing $25,000 at the first fundraising event. Yet, The Great Conversation raised an outstanding $314,000 for student scholarships this year, said Beth Borck, director of Development in The Honors College.
Although the banquet is a delight for professors and students alike, many alumni enjoy the opportunity to reconnect with their alma mater each year.
“This is my third year to attend, and I have thoroughly enjoyed every year of it,” said alumnus Chuck Gremillion. “This year, especially, the thrill for me is that the conversationalist is Dr. Lawrence Curry, who taught me American History my only year at the University of Houston 40 years ago, and I made an A in his class both times.”
Of course, the heart of The Great Conversation rests in its alumni and benefactors, like Gremillion, who sponsored an entire table.
“I’m so impressed with the students,” Gremillion said. “For me, meeting the students really energizes me. I walk away thinking, ‘Man, these kids are so sharp,’ and it makes me wonder if we were this sharp when we were in college.”