IVGrad @ Stanford is proud to present the fourth annual Passion Talks conference, to be held on August 22, 2015 at Stanford University.
Passion Talks are short talks which integrate the scholarly work and Christian faith of the speaker. The conference welcomes speakers in all disciplines (both academic and professional) and at all stages of their respective personal faith journeys. Talks vary in the degree to which they focus on and combine elements from the speakers’ work and faith. Integration of work and faith is strongly encouraged in all talks. Speakers are encouraged to review the vision statement for 2015 and recorded talks from previous conferences for inspiration and guidance in preparing their talks.
To promote humble dialogue and deeper relationships, this year’s conference will provide speakers the additional opportunity to participate in panel discussions of the various issues in their fields. All speakers are encouraged to participate.
We are now accepting submissions for Passion Talks 2015. Submissions close June 22, 2015 at 11:59pm PDT. All submissions must include an abstract, professional bio, and statement of faith. Accepted talks will be included in the conference proceedings online and in print. You may select to keep your personal information (name, etc.) private. See the Submissions page for details and to submit your talk.
Talks will be reviewed as they are submitted, and all speakers will receive a decision by Tuesday, July 7. If you need to have a decision by a certain date in order to arrange travel plans, please let us know in the Additional Comments section of the submission form.
We ask that all speakers join us for an informal practice talk session before the conference. These sessions help improve your talk by providing you an opportunity to give and receive feedback in an informal setting. Practice talks will be held at Stanford (August 1, 10 and 14), UC Berkeley (August 8), and UC Davis (dates TBA), so speakers may attend whichever is most convenient. Sessions will be at most 2 hours, not including travel time to and from the session, with timeslots arranged according to speaker availability and preference. The committee will do its best to offer alternative accommodations if either location or schedule is a problem. Practice talks will be arranged after all decisions have been announced.
Part of the conference will include panel discussions to promote humble dialogue between speakers and attendees. Speakers will sit on a panel with a couple other speakers, grouped by similar topics. Participation in a panel is not required, but is encouraged. Panels will be arranged after all decisions have been announced.
Talks may be up to 15 minutes.
Each talk will be followed by up to 5 minutes of Q&A.
You may optionally use PowerPoint or other presentation software. Please bring your own laptop (with adapters).
In your talk, try to stay within your area of expertise and your own personal experiences.
However, citations of other people’s work and experiences are also welcome (where appropriate).
We ask that all speakers be open and honest about their personal faith journey. While we do not require speakers to make a formal statement of faith during their talks, we believe talks are more effective when they integrate these elements explicitly.
In particular, we strongly encourage speakers to bring out how their faith and work directly or indirectly influence each other.
At the beginning of your talk, be sure to introduce who you are and where you are from.
Feel free to email the Passion Talks General Committee at pt15-committee@googlegroups.com with any questions or concerns you may have. You can see who is on the committee on the About page.
Passion Talks are short talks by Christian grad students, academics and professionals considering how their faith intersects with and impacts their work. Read more…