Josh Fox keynote speaker at SCAD

Josh Fox, writer and director of “Gasland,” a finalist for an Academy Award in Best Documentary, is keynote speaker Tuesday, April 23, during Elizabethtown College's 6th annual Scholarship and Creative Arts Day (SCAD). His visit culminates a year-long program of learning activities centered on natural gas production and resource extraction. Fox’s documentary served as a companion to this year's Open Book selection, “The End of Country” by Seamus McGraw. At 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 23, in Leffler Chapel and Performance Center, Fox shares his thoughts on the processes of fracking and offers insights about how the process impacts individuals and society at large.

Schedule of events:

• 8 a.m.-3 p.m. – SCAD student presentations (throughout campus)
• 3:00 p.m. – Josh Fox’s keynote address (Leffler Chapel & Performance Center
• 7:30 p.m. – Screening of the film “Gasland”

SCAD, now in its six year, is an annual two-day conference that celebrates the difference Elizabethtown College students make with their ideas and creativity. Each Spring, more than 200 students present academic research in their respective disciplines, while others showcase talents through recitals and a juried art exhibit.

Through SCAD, students are challenged to:

• Present work, including academic presentations, posters, performances and exhibits, with opportunity for peer and faculty review
• Demonstrate skills and knowledge related to a major and/or minor field of academic study
• Engage in and exchange constructive feedback on presented work with faculty mentors, peers and other members of the college community
• Foster professional growth for future scholarly engagement, employment and/or graduate education

The two-day event—April 22 and 23—closes with a screening of “Gasland”. The film is a gripping, timely and necessary film about the largest domestic natural gas drilling boom in history. The film premiered at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival and won six major awards: a Sundance Film Festival Special Jury Prize, a Big Sky Documentary Film Festival Artistic Vision award, a Thin Line Film Festival Audience Award, a Yale Environmental Film Festival Grand Jury Prize, and a Sarasota Film Festival Special Jury Prize. The film premiered on HBO in June 2010 and received Emmy nominations for cinematography, writing, and exceptional merit for nonfiction filmmaking, and won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Direction for Nonfiction Programming.Michael A. Scanlin, professor, Geoscience and chairman, Department of Engineering and Physics, will lead the Q&A session immediately following the screening of Gasland.

Updated 4/2/2013