Summary: The Great Divide

Employee Success - Dr. Michael Dennehy, associate vice president of planning, research and institutional effectiveness at Brookhaven College, recently attended the 11th annual Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Conference, held in Grapevine, Texas July 17-19. The University of North Texas Mayborn Graduate Institute of Journalism sponsors this annual writer’s conference. The conference is a highly acclaimed gathering of professional writers and students who continue to improve their narrative craft. This year’s conference theme: “The Great Divide” featured speakers such as Barbara Ehrenreich, the author of Nickle and Dimed, a classic exploration about workers who struggle to live on minimum wage. The one central theme for this year’s conference explores the divide between the haves and the have-nots in American society and the social, cultural and economic pressures created by this divide.
The exhibition is a study of southwest Louisiana culture examining the relationship between music and social welfare. Working in the areas of digital photography and multimedia arts, his projects explore themes such as cultural ritual and memory. In addition to teaching and exhibiting, Polite also serves as member, mentor, and adviser to programs such as Making Connections and the Brookhaven College Film