Our campus hosts a variety of community events including film screenings, author talks, guest lectures, and music performances that are open to the public.
"The Librarians" Film Screening and Discussion
Wednesday, January 28, 7 - 9 p.m.
Suzette Baker looks into her locked office after being terminated for refusing to pull books from the shelves.
Librarians are on the front lines of free speech, fighting censorship and defending access to truth. They are first responders in the fight for democracy and our First Amendment rights.
Oscar-nominated filmmaker Kim A. Snyder’s illuminating documentary offers a rattling look at coordinated efforts to ban books. The documentary introduces viewers to the everyday and increasingly vital heroes pushing back: the librarians who sound the alarm to both legislative and grassroots attempts to pull books from school and public libraries.
This film is presented in partnership with Indie Lens Pop-Up, presented by ITVS, INDEPENDENT LENS. Join us following the film screening for a panel discussion featuring the following panelists:
- Kate Cummings, MLIS, MBA, first Vice President/President-Elect of the Pennsylvania Library Association
- Billie Walker, Head Librarian, Penn State Great Valley
- Dr. Cathi Fuhrman, Retired School Librarian, Co-Chair of Intellectual Freedom Task Group/Read for Liberty PA, Pennsylvania School Librarians Association
Short Films, Big Impact: An Evening with Penn State Laureate Pearl Gluck
Friday, February 20, 7 - 8:30 p.m.
Experience the power of storytelling through film as Pearl Gluck brings her award-winning short films to life!
Join us for a special evening with Penn State Laureate Pearl Gluck, an award-winning filmmaker and professor whose work explores themes of identity, justice, and community. This public event will feature screenings of three of her acclaimed short films — Castles in the Sky, Write Me, and Stars and Bars — followed by an engaging discussion with Gluck about the stories behind the films, her creative process, and the social issues that inspire her work.
Whether you're a film enthusiast, a student of storytelling, or simply curious about the power of cinema to spark dialogue and change, this event offers a unique opportunity to connect with one of Penn State’s most compelling voices in the arts.
Register for Short Films, Big Impact
Fierce Desires: Variation, Conflict, and Pleasure in the History of America
Tuesday, February 24, 7 - 8:30 p.m.
From puritans to polyamory, Professor Rebecca Davis explores the story of America’s sexual past.
In the United States today, we have government decrees that there are only two sexes, debates about “trad wives” and polyamory, and frequent references to the nation’s “puritan” past. But in her latest book—and in this talk—Professor Rebecca L. Davis argues that 17th century Puritans are a weak precedent for how the history of sexuality has unfolded in the United States.
Into the 1800s, the United States was far more welcoming of gender nonconformity and same-sex/queer desires than we might presume. Instead, a significant shift occurred in the late 19th century, when anti-obscenity and anti-immigration legislation vastly expanded the federal government’s investment in shaping sexual morality. The history that unfolds is far less about prudish Puritans than shifting sexual values. Our contemporary conflicts over sex and gender highlight the power of this surprising history.
Rebecca L. Davis is the Miller Family Early Career Professor of History and an associate professor of women and gender studies at the University of Delaware. She is a historian of marriage, religion, sexuality, and politics in the United States. In addition to "Fierce Desires: A New History of Sex and Sexuality in America," she is author of "Public Confessions: The Religious Conversions that Changed American Politics" and "More Perfect Unions: The American Search for Marital Bliss," and the co-editor of "Heterosexual Histories." She is also a podcast host and producer and writes the newsletter "Carnal Knowledge," which explains the history behind today’s headlines about gender, sexuality, and American politics.
Register for "Fierce Desires" event
Women in Horticulture
Thursday, March 19, 2026, 7 - 8:30 p.m.
Join Jenny Rose Carey as she unveils the forgotten contributions of pioneering women in horticulture.
Women have tended and loved their gardens for millennia, but their contributions are largely forgotten. In this lecture, Jenny Rose Carey takes a small slice of time, 1900 to 1940, and explores the key women who founded gardening organizations including the Pennsylvania School of Horticulture for Women, the Women’s National Farm and Garden Association, and the Garden Club of America. Other women discussed include authors, garden designers, conservationists, dig-in-dirt gardeners, and influential women from Chester County who participated in the horticultural movement during that time.
Jenny Rose Carey is a renowned gardener, educator, historian, and author. She is the former senior director at the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society’s Meadowbrook Farm in Jenkintown, and she previously worked at Temple University for over a decade, first as an adjunct professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture and Horticulture and then as director of the Ambler Arboretum. Jenny Rose has been lecturing nationally and internationally for many years.Register for "women in horticulture"
Mountainfilm on Tour
Tuesday, April 7, 2026, 7 - 9 p.m.
Enjoy adventure-filled documentaries that inspire audiences through film, art, and ideas.
Join us for an evening of inspiring and captivating films handpicked from the Mountainfilm festival in Telluride, Colorado. Founded in 1979, Mountainfilm is one of America’s longest-running film festivals. The annual festival is held every Memorial Day weekend in Telluride, CO. Mountainfilm is a dynamic nonprofit organization and festival that celebrate adventure, activism, social justice, environment and indomitable spirit.
Mountainfilm on Tour in Malvern, PA will feature a collection of culturally rich, adventure-packed and engaging documentary short films that align with Mountainfilm’s mission to use the power of film, art and ideas to inspire audiences to create a better world. Doors open for the event at 6:30 and the show will kick off at 7 p.m.
Register for "mountainfilm on tour"
Pennsylvania Piedmont: The Wildlands of Southeastern PA
Wednesday, April 22, 7 - 8 p.m.
Celebrate Earth Day and National Parks Week with ecologist Roger Latham! Presented in partnership with Jenkins Arboretum & Gardens and Valley Forge Park Alliance.
Step into the Pennsylvania Piedmont with ecologist and conservation biologist Roger Latham to uncover the unique geology and ecology that make Southeastern PA’s wildlands truly special. Explore freshwater tidal marshes, mafic glades, forests on diabase soils, and serpentine barrens--all home to many state-endangered species. Learn about the natural history and ongoing stewardship of these ecosystems, found nowhere else in the state.
Roger Latham has worked as a research ecologist, conservation biologist and environmental planner since 1973. He earned his Ph.D. in biology at the University of Pennsylvania and conducts applied research and planning for the National Park Service, The Nature Conservancy, Natural Lands Trust, Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, Audubon, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and other organizations and agencies involved in wildland restoration and management and endangered species recovery.
Register for "Pennsylvania Piedmont"
Josh Lee and the Extended Family: A Swing Era Celebration
Wednesday, May 20, 7 - 8:30 p.m.
Experience the joy of swing with Josh Lee & the Extended Family—Philly’s hottest big band! Step back in time and experience the electrifying energy of the swing era with Josh Lee and the Extended Family, a Philadelphia-based Big Band ensemble that brings vintage jazz to life with authenticity, soul, and style.
Led by Grammy-winning saxophonist, composer, and arranger Josh Lee—a member of the legendary Count Basie Orchestra and faculty at Temple and Villanova universities—this powerhouse group is composed of some of the brightest young musicians in the city. Together, they honor the legacy of swing pioneers like Bennie Moten, Count Basie, Jimmie Lunceford, and Fletcher Henderson, while pushing the tradition forward with fresh arrangements and dynamic performances.
Whether you're a seasoned jazz lover or a newcomer to the genre, this performance promises to be a joyful, toe-tapping journey through the golden age of Big Band music. The Extended Family has graced stages from Dizzy’s Club at Lincoln Center to the Kimmel Center to the International Lindy Hop Championships, and now they’re bringing their magic to Penn State Great Valley.
