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 More  Information,  contact:  

Marquita  Eldridge  
News  and  Information  Editor  
(O)  210-­‐431-­‐6527  
(C)  210-­‐872-­‐4346  
mmeldridge@lake.ollusa.edu  

For Immediate Release

OLLU  to  host  symposium  on  migration,  identity  and  social  justice  
 
SAN  ANTONIO  (Oct.  3,  2017)  –  Our  Lady  of  the  Lake  University  is  hosting  the  symposium  “Finding  
Sanctuary  in  the  Borderlands:  Migration,  Identity  and  Social  Justice,”  Friday,  Oct.  6,  2017,  in  
Providence  Hall,  West  Social  Room.  The  symposium  will  include  sessions  on  migration,  the  borders  
and  borderlands,  activism,  social  justice  and  spirituality  and  seeks  to  educate  and  create  an  
environment  for  activism  and  creative  approaches  to  migrant  rights,  identity  politics  and  
spiritually-­‐informed  approaches  to  social  justice.      
 
The  morning  will  kick  off  with  a  session  with  Rev.  Dr.  Helen  Boursier,  Ph.D,  an  interdisciplinary  
practical  theologian  whose  governing  interest  is  the  role  of  social  justice  as  it  relates  to  the  church’s  
public  ministry  in  the  world.  As  a  volunteer  chaplain  inside  an  immigrant  family  detention  center,  
she  facilitated  art  as  a  pastoral  care  ministry  of  presence  with  women  and  children  seeking  asylum  
in  the  U.S.  from  the  violence  in  their  Central  American  homelands.  Her  session  will  cover  art  as  a  
spiritual  care  focusing  on  trauma  theory  and  art  therapy  with  refugees  seeking  asylum.  
 
The  afternoon  sessions  will  explore  topics  such  as  migration  and  identity  in  the  borderlands,  
building  a  social  movement  organizing  for  change,  stories  of  undocumented  immigrants  and  more.  
Panelists  will  include  representatives  from  R.A.I.C.E.S.,  as  well  as  an  OLLU  alumna  who  will  speak  on  
the  issue  of  the  current  status  of  the  Deferred  Action  for  Childhood  Arrivals  (DACA)  and  her  
experiences  in  moving  to  the  United  States  from  Mexico  as  a  child.    
 
A  poetry  reading  by  Dr.  Octavio  Quintanilla  titled,  “Poesia  Sin  Fronteras,”  will  conclude  the  evening.  
Dr.  Quintanilla  is  the  author  of  the  poetry  collection,  “If  I  Go  Missing”  (Slough  Press,  2014).  His  
poetry,  fiction,  translations  and  photography  have  appeared,  or  are  forthcoming,  in  journals  such  as  
“Salamander,”  “RHINO,”  “Alaska  Quarterly  Review,”  “Pilgrimage,”  “Green  Mountains  Review,”  
“Southwestern  American  Literature,”  “The  Texas  Observer,”  “Existere:  A  Journal  of  Art  &  
Literature,”  and  elsewhere.  
 
This  event  is  sponsored  by  the  OLLU  Center  for  Women  in  Church  and  Society,  the  Center  for  
Mexican  American  Studies  and  Research  and  the  Office  of  Global  and  Strategic  Initiatives.  
 
The  event  is  free  an  open  to  the  public.  
 
##  OLLU  ##  
 

About  Our  Lady  of  the  Lake  University  

411 S.W. 24th Street Ÿ San Antonio, Texas 78207-4689 Ÿ Fax 210-431-3964 Ÿ www.ollusa.edu
Our  Lady  of  the  Lake  University  (OLLU),  founded  in  1895  by  the  Congregation  of  Divine  Providence,  is  a  coeducational  liberal  arts  institution  with  an  
enrollment  of  approximately  3,300  students.  A  multi-­‐campus,  regional  university,  OLLU  has  campuses  in  San  Antonio,  Houston  and  the  Rio  Grande  
Valley.  
 
The  University  offers  more  than  60  undergraduate  majors  and  minors,  more  than  14  master’s  degree  programs  and  two  doctoral  degree  programs.  
Academic  degree  programs  are  offered  through  the  College  of  Arts  and  Sciences,  the  School  of  Business  and  Leadership,  the  School  of  Professional  
Studies  and  the  Worden  School  of  Social  Service.  OLLU  incorporates  a  technology-­‐rich  curriculum  in  all  areas  of  study,  and  provides  access  to  a  wide  
variety  of  high-­‐tech  resources.  
 
Our  Lady  of  the  Lake  University  is  accredited  by  the  Commission  on  Colleges  of  the  Southern  Association  of  Colleges  and  Schools  to  award  bachelor’s,  
master’s  and  doctoral  degrees.  Contact  the  Commission  on  Colleges  at  1866  Southern  Lane,  Decatur,  Georgia  30033-­‐4097  or  call  404-­‐679-­‐4500  for  
questions  about  the  accreditation  of  Our  Lady  of  the  Lake  University  that  fall  under  one  of  these  areas:  (1)  to  learn  about  the  accreditation  status  of  
the  institution,  (2)  to  file  a  third-­‐party  comment  at  the  time  of  the  institution’s  decennial  review,  or  (3)  to  file  a  complaint  against  the  institution  for  
alleged  non-­‐compliance  with  a  standard  or  requirement.  

411 S.W. 24th Street Ÿ San Antonio, Texas 78207-4689 Ÿ Fax 210-431-3964 Ÿ www.ollusa.edu