This symposium uncovers the impact of World War II on the home front. Each of its three sessions investigate critical social changes produced by war: in Ann Arbor, the far-reaching effects of the G.I. Bill in expanding higher education to an entire generation of men; in Willow Run the profound influence of female and African American employment in defense industries alongside a personal testament evoked by the mammoth, now empty buildings; in Detroit the ripples of musical exchange that ran alongside racial, religious, and ethnic conflict. The three sessions draw upon a lively mix of scholars, artists, and musicians, who, in turn, explore the unprecedented mixing that characterized wartime America.
Symposium schedule:

2 –4 p.m. Ann Arbor: "The GI Bill and Its Impact on Higher Education," featuring lectures by Glenn Altschuler and Philo Hutcheson.

4 –4:15 p.m. Visit UMMA exhibition Ernestine Ruben at Willow Run: Mobilizing Memory

4:15–6:30 p.m. "Willow Run: Gender, Race, and Factory Work During and After World War II," featuring Ernestine Ruben, her collaborator composer Stephen Hartke,
UMMA Assistant Curator of Photography Jennifer Friess, Ruth Milkman, and Katie Rosenblatt.

6:30–7:30 p.m. Break. UMMA exhibition Ernestine Ruben at Willow Run: Mobilizing Memory open for browsing.

7:30–9 p.m. "Detroit: Remembering the Music with Vincent York's Jazzistry"

For more information about the symposium and the U-M Bicentennial Theme Semester, please visit lsa.umich.edu/bicentennial or call 734-615-7400.

This LSA Bicentennial Theme Semester event is presented with support from the U-M College of Literature, Science, and the Arts and the University of Michigan Bicentennial Office. Additional support provided by the Department of History, the Eisenberg Institute for Historical Studies, and the University of Michigan Museum of Art.