Posted by Philip Poole on 2012-05-02

Samford University's final "Courageous Conversations" event of the year will feature a panel discussion on the immigration topic "Invasion or Opportunity?" The event is May 8 at 4 p.m. in Brock Forum of Dwight Beeson Hall on the Samford campus.

Panelists include Michael Floyd, professor of law, Fred Shepherd, professor of political science, and Zayne Smith, immigrant policy fellow for the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice. J. Mark Bateman, associate professor of education, will moderate.

The panel discussion is the last in a series of year-long events at Samford that have highlighted immigration issues in the state of Alabama. The May 8 event is cosponsored by the Frances Marlin Mann Center for Ethics and Leadership, the Samford debate program, the Latin American Studies program, University Ministries and the student organizations College Democrats and College Republicans.

The forum, designed to "promote the civil discourse on difficult issues," will discuss three primary questions, according to Azalea Hulbert, Mann Center program manager: Do undocumented immigrants have rights? What has motivated recent state immigration laws? and Should Christians ever break the law.

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.