After its cancelation last year due to the emergence of COVID-19, the College of the Canyons Scholarly Presentation will return this spring in a new virtual format.

Past presenters Kevin Anthony (Hotel Restaurant Management), Michael McCaffrey (Art), and Dr. Miriam Golbert (Biology) will provide updates on their research in two separate Zoom presentations during the months of March and April.

“The Scholarly Presentation has been running for 20 years and is COC’s way to showcase the amazing and unique talents and research of our stellar faculty,” said Sarah Etheridge, chair of the Scholarly Presentation Committee. “This event gives faculty a way to share their passions with colleagues, students, and the broader community, thus fostering community engagement and dialogue while also inspiring young minds. We are so thrilled to be able to continue it in a remote fashion during these unprecedented times.”

On Thursday, March 11 at 6:00 p.m., Anthony and McCaffrey will pick up where they left off in 2018 when they presented “Pompeii: Life and Art,” which shed light on what life was like in the Roman city before the infamous eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried it under ash in 79 A.D.

“Substantial funding from the Italian government has uncovered a neighborhood that is providing new insights into the cataclysmic volcanic eruption, the lives of the people and new exciting frescoes,” said Anthony. “These discoveries have created discussions and questions of some of the long-held beliefs of the life and the people in this ancient city.”

In this follow-up to his original look into Roman art in the public realm, McCaffrey will detail an almost completely intact ancient Roman Thermopolium (or fast-food joint) preserved for nearly 2000 years by the devastating eruption of Vesuvius in the 1st C AD.

Approximately one-third of the ancient Pompeii site still remains buried beneath thick volcanic ash. A recent collapse of part of this shield necessitated an immediate archeological dig of the area known as Rione 5.

“The dig has revealed frescos with unmatched vibrancy and an overall pristine site with many unique discoveries,” said McCaffrey. “I will expand upon the centrality of the image in advanced societies—both then and now—as a force with social, political and economic implications.”

On Thursday, April 15 at 4:00 p.m., Golbert will revisit her 2015 presentation “Galapagos: A Personal Journey on the Footsteps of Darwin,” which touched on the region’s unique geological formations, Charles Darwin’s time spent on the islands, as well as his various discoveries and scientific theories.

“After my scholarly presentation on November 2015, many events have happened on the islands, good and bad,” said Golbert, who has visited the Galapagos Islands four times. “I would like to provide an update on the conservation and restoration efforts, such as the reintroduction of giant tortoises to Santa Fe Island, the tortoise breeding programs, and the marine invasive species that have been detected.”

Golbert will also discuss the reintroduction of land iguanas on Santiago Island and the fact that 42 bird species are currently at risk of extinction.

The 2021 Scholarly Presentations are free and open to the public. There will be a Q&A session following each presentation.

To learn more about the presenters and to RSVP, click [here].

About the Speakers
Kevin Anthony – Kevin Anthony is a hospitality and tourism instructor at COC and Chair of the college’s Hotel/Restaurant program. As a student at the University of Loyola Chicago, Rome Center of Liberal Arts, he spent a year visiting the major museums and tourism venues in Italy. During that year, he visited Pompeii on three occasions.

Anthony has led four study abroad trips to Rome, Italy and has been able to take students on field trips to Pompeii, the most fascinating archeological site in the world. He has witnessed the evolution of Pompeii from the neglect of his student years into a proactive rehabilitation of this UNESCO site.

Michael McCaffrey – Originally from Glasgow, Scotland, Michael McCaffrey has been teaching Art & Art History at COC since 2004. He received his undergraduate degree from the Glasgow School of Art in Scotland and a Masters in Fine Art from the University of Illinois after emigrating to the USA in 1991. His artwork is represented in public and private collections throughout the USA and Europe, such as the June & Francis Spiezer Collection at the Rockford Art Museum in Rockford, Ill., and Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago.

McCaffrey has led three study trips to Italy where students explored the ancient Roman ruins at Pompeii. His own interest in Pompeii is focused on the numerous Roman wall paintings there, reflecting his life-long interest in art and illusion, its origins in the ancient world and how it dominates contemporary culture too.

Dr. Miram Golbert – Dr. Miriam Golbert earned her Bachelor of Science Degree in Biochemistry in Argentina, her native country. After moving to the United States, she obtained a Master of Science in Biology with an emphasis in Cellular and Molecular Biology from California State University Northridge and a Doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from Nova Southeastern University, Florida.

Dr. Golbert first came to COC as an adjunct faculty in 1996. She is currently chair of the college’s Biology department and the faculty coordinator of the COC Honors Program. She developed the first study abroad program for the Biological & Environmental Sciences department and has traveled with students to Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Panama, Argentina, Uruguay, Ecuador, and the Galapagos Islands.