Every year, St. Edward’s chooses a Common Theme - a theme that guides programming and discussions across campus.  Building from this theme, we also chose a common book that elaborates upon this theme.  The author of the common book comes to campus for a lecture and all incoming freshmen read the book before arrival providing shared experiences and discussions.

At St. Edward’s we also have a common theme play that all freshmen attend, expanding further their shared knowledge and experience. 

Our 2013-2014 is Expanding Human Rights. Our incoming students will read Half the Sky by Nicolas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn.

More information to come...

 

Our 2012-2013 common theme was How to Survive a Zombie Apocalypse: Dystopias and Sustainability.

In October 2012, our Common Theme Speaker, Max Brooks, came to St. Edward's and talked about surviving a zombie apocalyse and how a zombie story gives people a ficitonal lens to discuss the real problems of the world. Below are some pictures from his visit and book signing. 

Common Theme Speaker: Author Max Brooks: Oct. 10 7-9 p.m., Recreation and Convocation Center Gym Floor Max Brooks, New York Times best-selling author of The Zombie Survival Guide and World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, has been called "the Studs Terkel of zombie journalism." World War Z was chosen as this year's common text that all incoming St. Edward's students read. Come hear Brooks talk about surviving a zombie apocalypse and how a zombie story gives people a fictional lens to discuss the real problems of the world.   A book signing will follow.   Cost: Free Info: Jennifer A Phlieger, 512-637-5648

The common theme for AY 11-12 is Looking In, Looking Out: Personal Transformation.  This coincides with the common text A.D.: New Orleans after the Deluge, by Josh Neufeld who came to the St. Edward's campus to visit classes and addressed the campus community and all freshmen Oct. 12, 2011.  This year the common plays are The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler by Jeff Whitty and A Lie of the Mind by Sam Shepard.

AY 10-11 common theme Our Global Community was fully implemented in terms of a common freshman text Three Cups of Tea, the common text author David Relin who visited classes and spoke to the campus community and all freshmen October 12, 2010.  The common plays were The Imaginary Invalid  by Moliere and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf by Edward Albee.

AY 09-10 common theme The Humanity of Science. Remarkable Creatures: Epic Adventures in the Search for the Origins of Species was the common text and the author Sean B. Carroll spoke to the SEU freshmen and the entire community October 13, 2009.   The common play was Brecht's Life of Gallileo

AY 08-09’s common theme Poverty: Who is Responsible? Who Pays the Price? Who Reaps the Reward? was fully implemented in terms of a common freshman text The Glass Castle, the common text author Jeanette Walls who visited classes and spoke to the campus community and all freshmen October 25th, and the common play which was Anton Chekov's The Three Sisters.

In AY 07-08 had the common theme Discovering Leadership: Courage, Conscience and Character was fully implemented in terms of common freshman text (God Grew Tired of Us), the common text author as SEU speaker (John Bul Dau visited classes and spoke to the campus community and all freshmen October 25th), and the common play (Full Circle).

For AY 06-07 the common theme was: The Many Faces of Islam Common Theme. This theme was fully implemented in terms of text (What's Right with Islam is What's Right with America),  multiple speakers (including Latif Bolat and Fidelma O'leary), common text author as speaker (Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf), and the common play (Kneeling Down at Noon).

AY 05-06 was our first year to integrate a common theme (Farm Workers Rights) with a common book, Fight in the Fields, a common play, Cesar and Ruben, and with a major speaker, Delores Huerta (Cesar Chavez’s Vice President in the United Farm Workers).