ReggieCon will once again be hosting virtual panels during the 2021-2022 academic year. The first panel, “Under the Cottonwood Tree” will be held on September 23 from 7-8:30 p.m. via Zoom.

There is no cost to attend. Those interested can join the Zoom webinar at the ReggieCon website.

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the panel will focus on the Latinx children’s adventure graphic novel Under the Cottonwood Tree.

Panelists include Dr. Scott Jordan, chair of the Department of Psychology at Illinois State University; Victor Dandridge, founder of Vantage InHouse Productions; Dr. Theresa Rojas, professor of English at Modesto Junior College and director of the Latinx Comic Arts Festival; and Dr. Eric Wesselmann, associate professor of psychology at Illinois State.

Guest panelist for September will be Paul Meyer, co-author of Under the Cottonwood Tree.

Sponsored by the Office of Enrollment Management and Academic Services and the Sage Fund, ReggieCon is entering its second year as a series of virtual panels which will be held throughout the fall 2021 and spring 2022 semesters. Each panel consists of a panel of experts in comic and popular media and focuses on issues of race and diversity. Panel topics align with national recognition months such as Hispanic Heritage, LGBTQ History, Black History, and Asian Pacific Heritage Months.

Upcoming panels include:

  • My Favorite Thing is Monsters, October 28, LGBTQ History Month
  • Ghost River, November 11, Native American Heritage Month
  • Charlie Brown Christmas, December 2, Seasonal Depression Awareness Month
  • Blackjack meets Black Panther, February 24, Black History Month
  • Jessica Jones Alias, March 24, Women’s History Month
  • Marvel’s Amulet, April 14, Arab American Heritage Month
  • My Neighbor Totoro, May 5, Asian Pacific Heritage Month