News and Events
The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Humanities Forum presents:
“Movements, Moss, and Movies: Connecting Cleveland through the Underground Railroad”
Nov. 13 - 14, 2025
Cuyahoga Community College, Eastern Campus
4250 Richmond Rd.
Highland Hills, OH 44122
Public Forum and Reception
Nov. 13, 2025
6 - 8:30 p.m.
Eastern Campus Auditorium (ESS 2410)
The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Humanities Center is pleased to host a gathering of four Ohio-based educators to explore what happens when unlikely partners are brought together in conversation. Join filmmaker Simone Barros, civil rights educator Joan Southgate, archaeologist and anthropologist Elizabeth Hoag, and bryologist Robert Klips for a screening of a work-in-progress film and a discussion about the Underground Railroad, its connections to Cleveland, and moss.
About the film:
The experimental documentary film, The Dead Will Show You the Way: A Fugue for Moss and Memory explores the connection between moss and the Underground Railroad. The elegiac documentary portraits rhizomatic moss and 96 year-old Joan who walked the Underground Railroad distance and rescued a site from demolition. Rumored to have harbored freedom seekers, Joan and archeologist, Elizbeth Hoag discuss the archeological excavation of the Cozad-Bates house, the only pre-Civil War home in Cleveland.
As a sensorial embodiment of Joan’s walk, the film departs from narrative structure, crafting an engrossing fever dream, a fugue, visualizing transcendent landscapes of Underground Railroad stops and captivating trances of intricate, delicate cinematography of moss. The film shifts point of view to moss as bryologist, Dr. Bob Klips details moss anatomy and the various moss species growing throughout Ohio.
About the event:
As a work-in-progress the short screening serves as a prelude to an in-depth panel discussion featuring bryologist Dr. Bob Klips (OSU Associate Professor Emeritus), archeologist and anthropologist, Elizabeth Hoag (Cleveland Institute of Art, Senior Professor of Practice Liberal Arts), Joan Southgate and filmmaker Simone Barros. Reception to follow.
This event is free and open to the public.
Exploratory Workshops for Students
Nov. 14, 2025
10 - 11:30 a.m.
12:30-2 p.m.
Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Humanities Center (EMHC 240)
Two opportunities for workshops will be held on Friday, November 14 at the Eastern Campus, and lunch will be provided for all registrants. In the spirit of exploring unlikely partnerships and connections between different fields of study, we encourage students to stay for the full day, and to sign up for two different workshops in the morning and afternoon sessions. No prior knowledge or experience is required.
Each workshop is limited to 15-20 students, so be sure to register today!
Workshop Descriptions
Documentary Forms, Styles and Production Techniques – Simone Barros
Take your documentary film idea from a dream to a strategic production plan and art schematic in this documentary film workshop led by filmmaker, Simone Barros. Learn about the various documentary forms and styles: narrative, experimental, cinéma vértié, docu-fiction, autobiographical and archival. Gain a firm grasp on the production process including research, aesthetic conceptualization, interview methods, film scheduling and editing.
Hands-On Archaeology: Investigating the Cozad-Bates House – Elizabeth Hoag
Have you ever wondered how archaeologists do what they do to learn about the past? In this workshop you will learn about historical and archaeological research conducted at the Cozad-Bates house and other historic places in and around Cleveland to see how we learn about the past, and why that is important today. You will also have the opportunity to experience some hands-on activities to learn how archaeologists piece together the past.
Mosses of Ohio: Species, Structures and Where to Find Them – Dr. Robert Klips
Mosses are small and intriguing plants that occur in nearly all ecosystems, sometimes abundantly so. They have an inspiring ability to thrive in places where little else can gain a foothold, such as rock-tops, bark, and otherwise barren ground. They are a species-rich group (400 species in Ohio alone!) that is often overlooked, even by skilled botanists, because of a need to use magnification to see their identification features. In this workshop geared to anyone with an interest in botany, we will use hand lenses to recognize the 12 most common mosses in Ohio and learn where to find them in the natural world.
Beloved Community Dialogues – Restore Cleveland Hope
This workshop explores the courage and moral choices of freedom seekers and abolitionists in Northeast Ohio, guided by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s vision of the Beloved Community. Through powerful stories—like Lucy Bagby’s sacrifice and John Malvin’s activism—participants will reflect on justice, resistance, and personal responsibility. Engaging questions challenge attendees to consider their own role in today’s struggles for equity. This workshop fosters empathy, historical awareness, and a deeper commitment to social justice.
Workshops are free and open to all Tri-C students.