PRESS RELEASE I FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
INTERFORM announces Dr. Lisa Corrigan as its inaugural 21st Century
Democracy Fellow

(Springdale, Ark.) [8.26.2022] — In the wake of the Supreme Court decision to
overturn Roe vs. Wade and the following radical rollback of human rights for
people who can experience pregnancy, INTERFORM has recognized a need to
recommit to democratic participation. To better engage with the social topics
of our times, to remove barriers to belonging across many intersectional
groups, and to provide educational and material resources to the community,
INTERFORM is launching its first ever fellowship position with an emphasis on
democratic engagement.

In an effort to embrace democratic engagement and civic education,
INTERFORM has named Dr. Lisa Corrigan as our inaugural 21st Century
Democracy Fellow. In partnership with Dr. Corrigan, INTERFORM will be
holding monthly open forum discussions and educational programming
focusing on social justice, human rights, and the political processes and policies
that affect the freedoms of American citizens.

As the inaugural 21st Century Democracy Fellow, Dr. Corrigan will offer a series of
lectures, workshops, and community interventions in a project she calls, “The
New Civics.” Corrigan explains, “I’m so excited to announce my fellowship project

for the year, ‘The New Civics,’ which is designed to offer inspiration and
instruction in four arenas: Inclusive Democracy-Building; Politics and Political
Engagement; Community Organizing; and Media Literacy. The goal is to help fill
in gaps with and for organizations and communities in Northwest Arkansas that
feel like their political literacy needs to be sharpened to include assessments of:
democratic decision-making and institution-building; equitable resource
distribution; mutual aid; and traditional political advocacy.”

Upcoming Events:
– September 18th, 2pm – 6pm | Shiloh Square in Springdale
– Model Citizen: Rally and Register, panel discussion
– October 2nd, 5:00pm – 6:30pm | Location to be determined
– Durable Democracy – A panel discussion
– October 20th, 12pm – 1pm | Online
– What’s on the Ballot – Lunch and Learn

About the partnership: In the summer of 2020, in the wake of George Floyd’s
murder and the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement, Dr. Corrigan
partnered with INTERFORM to host an on-going series of discussions addressing
the social issues of the time. This partnership has grown over the last two years
and expands now through this fellowship position. Previous conversations have
been on topics such as:
– In Conversation |6.16.2020| – Dr. Lisa Corrigan: An Introduction to Allyship
During the Black Lives Matter Movement
– In Conversation |6.30.2020| – Dr. Lisa Corrigan: De-Centering Whiteness,
Processing White Feelings, Building Political Action

– The Path Forward Part 2 |11.30.2020| – Post Election Talkback with Dr.
Andre Johnson and Dr. Lisa Corrigan

About Dr. Lisa Corrigan: Dr. Lisa M. Corrigan is a Professor of Communication and Director
of the Gender Studies Program at the University of Arkansas. She is the author of Prison
Power: How Prison Politics Influenced the Movement for Black Liberation (University Press
of Mississippi, 2016), Black Feelings: Race and Affect in the Long Sixties (University Press of
Mississippi, 2020) and #MeToo: A Rhetorical Zeitgeist (Routledge, 2022). She co-hosts a
podcast with Laura Weiderhaft called Lean Back: Critical Feminist Conversations, which, in
2017, was named the top podcast in Arkansas and one of the top thirty-five podcasts in the
country by Paste magazine. Finally, she has worked on political campaigns and as a political
strategist for twenty-five years.
About INTERFORM: INTERFORM is a 501c3 Non-profit organization at the forefront of
creative growth and change in our community. We envision a self-sustaining design-led
fashion and art industry in Northwest Arkansas and we build robust programs to directly
support that vision. We foster greater levels of creativity and provide the right education
and resources needed to grow our designers and artists. We uplift and center the creative
works of those who are underrepresented and use our platform to encourage others to do
the same. We are here to propel creatives forward and aid in their professional journey.