Common Reader selection ‘Spare Parts’ presents opportunities to further conversations

Since the University of Houston-Clear Lake (UHCL) became a four-year university in 2014, freshmen students have been introduced to various courses and programs to help them transition to college life and acquire the skillsets necessary to advance as Hawks. The Common Reader Program is one such initiative that has expanded to not only educate first-year students but also promote scholarly dialogue within and beyond the campus community.

Through the Common Reader Program, students, faculty, staff and community members are encouraged to read each year’s book selection and join the campus-wide activities held throughout the year that explore the book’s topics through in-depth discussions and incorporate the development of critical thinking skills.

“We hold events based on the book here on campus that also create opportunities for students to get engaged and that encourage conversations between different viewpoints,” said Anne Gessler, director of the Common Reader Program and lecturer in humanities.

In the First-Year Seminar, otherwise known as the Learning Frameworks course, students examine each year’s book themes through assignments and class discussions, in addition to the events hosted by the Common Reader Program. First-year students also receive mentorship and networking opportunities through the program.

Wanalee Romero, director of the First-Year Seminar Program, said students in the Seminar participate in the Common Reader Program as part of the course material. She values the opportunities offered by the program that allows first-year students to participate in academic discussions outside of the classroom.

“We have community members who come as well, so it’s also open to the wider UHCL community and outside of the campus walls,” Romero said. “I feel like that makes it more enriching for everyone involved to be able to have these conversations across different topics.”

This year’s Common Reader book, “Spare Parts: Four Undocumented Teenagers, One Ugly Robot, and the Battle for the American Dream,” is about a group of Latinx high school students who build a robot that is capable of performing underwater tasks and, with it, enter a robotics competition against skilled college student engineers across the United States.

“Students are eager to share what they know about immigration policies, education, citizenship, and community,” Gessler said. “They’re thinking critically, they’re having discussions, they’re getting engaged and thinking about aspects they hadn’t considered before.”

This year’s first Common Reader event, in partnership with the Film & Speaker Series, was held Sept. 14 at which a film screening of “Spare Parts” was followed by a discussion with faculty from each of the four UHCL colleges. The panel of speakers included: Kathleen Garland, lecturer of Environmental Management in the College of Business; Thomas Harman, professor of Computer Engineering in the College of Science and Engineering; Christine Kovic, professor of Anthropology & Cross-Cultural Studies in the College of Human Sciences and Humanities; and Angelica Tello, assistant professor of Counseling in the College of Education.

Each of the speakers discussed how different themes from “Spare Parts” applied to their own disciplines of study, inviting audience members to think about the film, and the book, from each of the speakers’ unique viewpoints.

As students have begun to read “Spare Parts,” Romero has already started to see how students relate to the book and how it stimulates them to think critically.

“Not just Latino immigrants, but students who have parents or who have immigrated themselves from countries all over the world in our classes have been connecting with this text,” Romero said. “The students do think very much about how they feel comfortable, and how they feel welcomed in certain environments when they read this book whether or not they are immigrants, and whether or not they’re Latino.”

Other upcoming events for this year’s Common Reader Program include UHCL Field Day on Oct. 11, Make Your Own Language Workshop on Nov. 4, and the Deliberative Forum: Self-Driving Cars and Ethics which will also be held in November, date TBA.

Students interested in becoming a member of the Common Reader Committee, which will choose next year’s Common Reader book, are encouraged to contact the committee’s director, Anne Gessler, for more information.

For more Hispanic Heritage Month coverage, check out:

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YOUR VOICE: UHCL community comments on Hispanic-Serving Institution designation

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Latinx and Latin American Studies to host various Hispanic Heritage Month events

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