2022 GRETCHEN HUPFEL SYMPOSIUM:

PLAYDATE

Friday June 10, 2022
9:30 AM - 4:15 PM
FREE | Registration Required

PLAYDATE is a one-day conference looking at the topic of “play” from multiple perspectives (parent, educator, participant, social worker). Experts across the spectrum of science on this field in collaboration with educators and artists will moderate panel discussions and workshops for conference participants. The goal of the conference is to unravel the complexities and significance of play in the mitigation of trauma.

Event Schedule:

9:30 AM | Registration

10:00 AM
Keynote Address by Dr. Jennifer M. Zosh, Ph.D.

Professor of Human Development and Family Studies at Penn State University’s Brandywine campus.

11:00 AM
Social Infrastructures that Support Play Panel

Director of Parks and Recreation, Ian Smith
President Emeritus, Please Touch Museum, Nancy Kolb
Metcalfe Architecture and Design, Aaron Goldblatt

12:00 PM | Catered Lunch

1:00 PM | Types of Play

Principal, Director, and Co-Founder of the Tarbiyah Islamic School of Delaware, Dr. Amna Latif
School Counselor, First State Montessori, Dr. Laura Schwait

2:00 PM | Trauma and Play

Education Associate for Trauma-Informed Practices and Social and Emotional Learning at the Delaware Department of Education, Teri Lawler
Trauma Academy Coordinator of Delaware State University, Kim Graham

3:00 PM | Break

3:15 PM | Barriers to Play

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and the Chief Program Officer for School-Based Initiatives with Children & Families First, Kiera McGillivray

4:15 PM | Free Play Exploration

Interactive installation artwork and networking

THE GRETCHEN HUPFEL ENDOWMENT FUND

A close friend of the Hupfel family initiated an endowment in the name of Gretchen Hupfel to underwrite a bi-annual symposium and a Gretchen Hupfel Curator of Contemporary Art position at The Delaware Contemporary. For those who remember Gretchen, this named endowment not only commemorates her death, but celebrates her life and legacy as a passionate and remarkably talented artist.

Funding has been provided from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and Delaware Humanities as part of the 2021 American Rescue Plan (ARP)Act. This project is also supported in part by the Robin Foundation.

Stay for our Summer Exhibition Opening event!
5 - 9 PM
FREE | Cash bar | Food trucks

SUMMER SEASON SPECIAL OPENING: PLAY
Explore the intersection of play and the creative process across a variety of mediums with live music, interactive installations, and community partners. This summer, The Delaware Contemporary is collaborating with the Delaware Children’s Museum to examine the complexities of play. Through exhibitions, programs, and events, we are deeply considering the overarching effects of play, specifically how it pertains to the local Wilmington area. What are the barriers to play? How can we creatively foster the fundamentals of play? In what ways can play be extended beyond the museum walls?