Where Land Meets Art: Maya Miller ’26 Awarded a 2026 Thomas J. Watson Fellowship</h1> <article> <h1>Where Land Meets Art: Maya Miller ’26 Awarded a 2026 Thomas J. Watson Fellowship</h1> <p>kviancou — Mon, 06 Apr 2026 20:35:12 +0000</p> <span>Where Land Meets Art: Maya Miller ’26 Awarded a 2026 Thomas J. Watson Fellowship</span> <span><span>kviancou</span></span> <span><time datetime="2026-04-06T16:35:12-04:00" title="Monday, April 6, 2026 - 16:35">Mon, 04/06/2026 - 16:35</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><strong>Maya Miller ’26 has been awarded a 2026 Thomas J. Watson Fellowship, a one-year grant that supports purposeful, independent exploration outside the United States. </strong></p><p>A double major in <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/gsfs">gender, sexuality, and feminist studies</a> and <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing">creative writing</a>, with minors in studio art and comparative American studies, Miller will travel to New Zealand, Australia, Costa Rica, Iceland, Japan, China, and the United Kingdom. </p><p>Along the way, Miller will work with farmers, ceramicists, and artists whose practices engage both land and material, as part of a project that explores “the intersection of agriculture and art, and how clay, soil, and ceramics preserve cultural traditions.” </p><p>Miller answered these questions about the Watson project:</p><p><strong>Can you describe what your Watson work will entail?</strong></p><div class="image_resized align-left media-embed-resized" style="width:314px;"> </div> <p>My Watson starts with an admittedly broad question: How can art-making reflect, repair, and reimagine our relationship with the natural world? Clay, soil, and earth are inextricably linked. For millennia, humans have harvested, cured, and shaped earth into vessels essential to daily life. While ceramic and agricultural technologies share origins, they have grown into more disparate practices in the United States.</p><p>During my Watson year, I want to explore how the intersections of ceramic and land-based work might offer frameworks, rituals, and methodologies for regenerating our ecological and social soils. I’ll spend time with farmers, ceramicists, and artists working at these intersections, learning from their practices, ecologies, and communities.</p><p><strong>In what ways does what you’ll be doing build on your existing work—and in what ways does it open new pathways for you?</strong><br><br>I’ve been working on farms on and off since graduating from high school. It’s actually what first brought me to the Midwest—to a farm in rural Illinois. Farming opened up a new sensorial language for me, one rooted in relationships with the nonhuman and the material, and one that challenged my preexisting ideas of personhood and agency.</p><p>I love the care work of tending to plants and animals. It can be meditative and is similar to clay work—both invite collaboration with materials that are agentive and demanding of care.</p><p>This past summer, I worked as a farmer at an artist residency in the Adirondacks. I spent much of my day digging in the soil, running after sheep, carrying water to the chickens, or repairing pig fencing. In the evenings, I was in the clay studio, writing, or just talking, laughing, and cooking with the artists in residence. </p><p>I started to ruminate on the parallels that typically get drawn: Pottery makes dishes, farming makes food; potters and farmers alike work with their hands. And true, there is also something deeper.</p><p>My honors thesis in GSFS explores clay as a material with epistemological agency. In its way of being, clay can act as a kind of ontological mirror and a creative methodological tool for queer and disability theory. It shows how slowness, decomposition, and bodily negotiation can be generative conditions, foregrounding interdependence and undoing myths of autonomy and control. </p><p>This work is rooted in my own experience and thus somewhat autoethnographic. The Watson year will allow me to expand my thinking outward—to learn from other people, practices, and cultural relationships to land and material.</p><p>There is a pathway at the intersection of land and ceramics that I’ve only just begun to glimpse. We are all of this earth, whether our connections feel deep or tenuous. I’m interested in living into that idea and seeing where it leads.</p><p><strong>How did �鶹��Ƶ shape or influence you to pursue this fellowship? </strong><br><br>The Watson was suggested to me while I was trying to narrow the focus of my honors research. Rather than dismissing my too-big set of questions, I was encouraged to consider the fellowship as a way to explore them. </p><p>More broadly, I’ve been lucky to study with professors who encouraged me to think creatively and across disciplines. In a GSFS class with Thao Nguyen, I was encouraged to pursue a project on disability studies and ceramics practice, even when I couldn’t find existing scholarship at that intersection. That work became the seed of my honors thesis. </p><p>My thesis advisor, <a href="/kj-cerankowski">KJ Cerankowski</a>, has encouraged me to push against [conventional] academic writing and explore connections that might not seem obvious at first. I love the GSFS department and how it encourages and teaches us to think in expansive and experimental ways.</p><p>I’ve also taken <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/art">studio art</a> and <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing">creative writing</a> classes with amazing professors such as Amanda Hodes, Sam Cohen, Katherine Berta, and Abby Sherrill. They have encouraged me to see art as a space of inquiry—of searching, becoming, and imagining. </p><p>I also spent three winter terms working with �鶹��Ƶ alumnus Theo Helmstadter in his pottery studio in Santa Fe. A lifelong potter who harvests his own clays, Theo has been an incredible mentor. I’m grateful for the broader �鶹��Ƶ community and these kinds of connections.</p><div class="image_resized media-embed-resized" style="width:533px;"> </div> <p><strong>How does pursuing the Watson align with your career goals and trajectory?</strong><br><br>I am interested in many things—perhaps too many. I want to work in the arts, work with my hands, write, and create. A year spent exploring both art and land with artists and makers is a great gift. I also imagine some version of my future self tending to a flock of sheep, so I do intend to spend time in the hills with sheep along the way.</p><p>More abstractly, this fellowship comes at a liminal moment between student life and whatever comes next. The Watson gives me the chance to stay in that in-between a little longer—to live inside the question of trajectory, rather than trying to resolve it too quickly. </p><p>It’s a privilege, and I hope it helps me find ways of living with the kind of curiosity, care, and attention that the world, like clay, continually asks of us. </p><hr><p><a href="/fellowships" target="_blank"><em>Connect with Fellowships & Awards</em></a><em> to learn more about opportunities for �鶹��Ƶ students.</em></p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Miller will travel to five countries to explore how ceramics and agriculture can repair our connection to the land.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2026-04-06T12:00:00Z">Mon, 04/06/2026 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Office of Communications</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=4080">Fellowships</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=4148">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=4269">Studio Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25361">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/gsfs" hreflang="und">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">courtesy of Maya Miller</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-article-header field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">0</div> </article> <article> <h1>Paris Mercurio ’23 Earns Fulbright to Romania</h1> <p>mreed — Wed, 10 Sep 2025 15:29:33 +0000</p> <span>Paris Mercurio ’23 Earns Fulbright to Romania</span> <span><span>mreed</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-09-10T11:29:33-04:00" title="Wednesday, September 10, 2025 - 11:29">Wed, 09/10/2025 - 11:29</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p id="docs-internal-guid-68b22c78-7fff-aa85-2436-7875aa646287">The Scotch Plains, New Jersey, native previously received a Fulbright to the Czech Republic, but spent the last two years as a <a href="https://www.shansi.org/paris-mercurio-bio">Shansi Fellow</a> to Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. </p><p>As part of the fellowship, she leads English speaking and academic writing lectures and tutorials for undergraduate first-year English Literature majors, as well as an elective creative writing class, she says. </p><p>“About halfway through my first year of Shansi, I knew that I really enjoyed what I was doing at the university, and I wanted to find a way to keep building upon my experience in a new context,” Mercurio explains. “The role of a Fulbright ETA in Romania is very similar to my current role, and I’m excited to continue teaching college students.”</p><p><strong>How does pursuing the Fulbright align with your post-college life and career goals? </strong></p><p>One of my biggest goals upon graduating from �鶹��Ƶ was to live abroad and learn about cultures and parts of the world that I had yet to experience. After two years of getting to know Indonesia, I’m excited to move to a region that I’ve never visited before and take on the challenges that come with that.</p><p><strong>Where specifically will you be doing—and what are you looking forward to the most?</strong></p><p>I will be assisting the faculty and helping to provide English language education to students at Ovidius University in Constanta. I am really excited to be doing my Fulbright in a country with such a deep, multilayered, multicultural history. </p><p>Constanta in particular is such an exciting city. It’s one of the oldest cities in Europe, with a wide range of cultural influences, historically having been ruled by several empires and part of various other countries over the centuries. I have also been exploring the very interesting literature and music emerging from Romania, and I am very eager to explore those scenes in person. </p><p><strong>How did �鶹��Ƶ influence you to pursue the Fulbright?</strong><br>I owe so much of my current path to the faculty, staff, and students I met during my time at �鶹��Ƶ. Beyond the obvious, that the Shansi Fellowship is an option open only to �鶹��Ƶ alumni, I had so many experiences at �鶹��Ƶ that set me on this journey and subsequently reaffirmed my aspirations. </p><p>Getting to participate in the Writers in the Schools program my senior year was one of my most valuable and fulfilling learning experiences, and I still find myself constantly coming back to the teaching skills I developed through my residency at Langston Middle School, where I taught poetry to seventh grade students. I feel like I unlocked so many powerful ideas and tools through the experience that continue to inspire and motivate my teaching. </p><p><strong>What’s the best advice you’ve received from your �鶹��Ƶ faculty mentors?</strong> </p><p>It was an informational interview with Assistant Professor of Creative Writing <a href="/elizabeth-rogers">Elizabeth Lindsey Rogers ’07</a> during my third year that initially sparked my interest in pursuing a Shansi Fellowship, as professor Rogers is a Shansi alum herself. As her TA, I got to observe her classroom presence and watch how she guides lessons and discussions, which was hugely helpful to me in developing my own teaching style and flow. </p><p>While I was working on my Fulbright application, I had a conversation with the creative writing department’s chair, Emily Barton, that has really stuck in my head. She spoke about how a necessary part of the writing process is just living life and taking lots of notes. I definitely feel like I’ve been doing a lot of living these past couple years, and perhaps I’ve been a little less laser-focused on serious writing than I had initially intended. </p><p>Post-graduation, it sometimes feels like there’s this rush to just get wherever you’re supposed to go. Professor Barton’s words served as a needed reminder that creative work often operates on its own timeline, and sometimes being too tightly wound or single-minded can be counterintuitive to the process. The process is the whole point.</p><hr><p><em>If you’re a rising or graduating senior interested in Fulbright, connect with </em><a href="/node/4526"><em>Fellowships & Awards</em></a><em> to learn more about pursuing research or an arts project, obtaining a graduate degree, or teaching English in a foreign country of your choice following graduation.</em></p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">The Shansi Fellow and creative writing major will be teaching English.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2025-09-16T12:00:00Z">Tue, 09/16/2025 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Communications Staff</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p id="docs-internal-guid-815486ce-7fff-6546-a092-787c298e4402">Paris Mercurio ’23, who majored in <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing">creative writing</a> and minored in <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/gsfs">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies (GFAS)</a>, has earned a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship (ETA) to Romania for the 2025-2026 academic year.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2360">After �鶹��Ƶ</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3831">Fulbright</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2368">Alumni</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/gsfs" hreflang="und">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Courtesy of Paris Mercurio</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-article-header field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">0</div> </article> <article> <h1>�鶹��Ƶ Joins Park Arts, Bringing World-Class Programs to Historic Synagogue</h1> <p>eburnett — Thu, 10 Apr 2025 16:34:19 +0000</p> <span>�鶹��Ƶ Joins Park Arts, Bringing World-Class Programs to Historic Synagogue</span> <span><span>eburnett</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-04-10T12:34:19-04:00" title="Thursday, April 10, 2025 - 12:34">Thu, 04/10/2025 - 12:34</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Since the Park Synagogue congregation departed its historic Cleveland Heights campus several years ago, there has been a remarkable effort underway to restore and repurpose this important site into a center for creative arts and humanities. </p><p>�鶹��Ƶ is proud to bring its unique combination of outstanding academics and world-class music and arts education to the dynamic community that is planned for the Park Synagogue. Called “Park Arts,” this collaboration is a milestone in one of the most ambitious and historically significant reclamation projects within the nation’s Jewish community.</p><p>Developed by Sustainable Community Associates (SCA), a Cleveland-based team of �鶹��Ƶ alumni, and the nonprofit Friends of Mendelsohn, Park Arts honors architect Erich Mendelsohn’s legacy while designing an intergenerational center for artistic creation and humanities education. �鶹��Ƶ will add its newly established Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Fine Arts in Integrated Arts (BA+BFA) to this creative hub. Launching in fall 2025, the combined degree program can be completed in five years: the first four on �鶹��Ƶ’s bucolic campus, followed by a fifth year set amid the rich professional arts community at Park Arts. With the first BA+BFA students scheduled to arrive at Park Arts in June 2027, this program will provide hands-on opportunities for students in Northeast Ohio’s vibrant arts scene.</p><p>“We are thrilled to forge this connection between �鶹��Ƶ and the greater Cleveland community,” says �鶹��Ƶ President Carmen Twillie Ambar. “This partnership allows us to honor one of Cleveland’s historic Jewish synagogues while our students interact with the region’s cultural institutions. Our students will gain real-world experience and contribute their talents to a city known for artistic excellence. It bridges �鶹��Ƶ’s close-knit campus with the creative energy of Cleveland and Cleveland Heights.” </p><p>�鶹��Ƶ’s BA+BFA in Integrated Arts dual degree program eventually will bring up to 50 fifth-year students to Park Arts for an immersive arts year. Students will have 24-hour access to private studios, rehearsal spaces, theaters, and production facilities, culminating in a substantial, public-facing project—a performance, exhibition, or installation—determined in collaboration with their �鶹��Ƶ faculty mentors. The program is designed with collaboration in mind: Students will work with renowned visiting artists and with Cleveland’s arts organizations through internships, commissioned works, and public programming.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Partnership will yield host site for new BA+BFA combined degree program.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2025-04-09T12:00:00Z">Wed, 04/09/2025 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Office of Communications</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2583">College of Arts and Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=4290">BA/BFA</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25436">Studio Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25331">Dance</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25441">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25281">Musical Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25256">Cinema and Media</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/julia-christensen" hreflang="und">Julia Christensen</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/art" hreflang="und">Studio Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/dance" hreflang="und">Dance</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater" hreflang="und">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/cinema-studies" hreflang="und">Cinema and Media</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/musical-studies" hreflang="und">Musical Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Built in 1950, Park Synagogue in Cleveland Heights will be redeveloped as Park Arts. Fifth-year �鶹��Ƶ students in the new BA/BFA program will pursue their studies at the transformed space beginning in 2027.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">courtesy of SCA</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-flex-content field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden vertical-spacing--basic field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-40692" class="paragraph paragraph--type--pb-el-bq paragraph--view-mode--default"> <blockquote class="blockquote--quotemark" data-text-color-red data-text-size-giant> <p>For artists, community connections are invaluable. Collaborating with Cleveland’s arts organizations, securing internships, and being immersed in a thriving cultural district will be transformative.” <em>—Julia Christensen, BA+BFA Program Director</em></p> </blockquote> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-40399" class="paragraph paragraph--type--para-el-copy paragraph--view-mode--default o-flex--basic-copy basic-copy"> <p>The partnership with Park Arts also presents a pathway for �鶹��Ƶ to expand Jewish Studies—drawing on the congregation’s archives as well as pursuing course-based research opportunities focused on the history of Park Synagogue—and the potential for community concerts and other musical outreach. </p><p>In addition to �鶹��Ƶ, Park Arts will house a diverse collection of nonprofit and educational programs, expanding access to creative programming for the broader Cleveland community. Overall, the 28-acre Park Arts campus will contain intergenerational housing, an expanded neighborhood preschool, public walking trails and green space, and the preservation of the Mendelsohn-designed building—an applicant for National Landmark status—while simultaneously integrating sustainability initiatives such as geothermal heating and cooling.</p><p>According to Susan Ratner, former President of Park Synagogue, the donation of Park to SCA was a continuation of the congregation’s legacy. “Our goal has always been to honor Park’s history while ensuring it remains an inspiring part of Greater Cleveland’s cultural landscape. The larger vision for the restoration and �鶹��Ƶ’s presence will bring new energy, creativity, and scholarship, making Park Arts a truly unique center for artistic innovation and education. We are thrilled to be a part of it and to return each year for high holidays.”</p><p>Park Arts places �鶹��Ƶ students near some of the region’s most distinguished cultural institutions, including the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) Cleveland, and Dobama Theatre, as well as Cleveland’s renowned performance venues and galleries.</p><p>“This move provides an essential bridge from student life to professional careers in the arts,” says Julia Christensen, Program Director and �鶹��Ƶ’s Eva & John Young-Hunter Professor of Integrated Media. “Park Arts offers students the opportunity to engage with the Cleveland arts community while honing their creative practice in an academic setting.”</p><p>“For artists, community connections are invaluable,” Christensen adds. “Collaborating with Cleveland’s arts organizations, securing internships, and being immersed in a thriving cultural district will be transformative. At the same time, these emerging artists will bring fresh perspectives and energy to the broader Cleveland arts scene. It’s an exciting exchange.”</p><hr><p><a href="/arts-and-sciences/ba-bfa-dual-degree-integrated-arts"><em><strong>Learn more about �鶹��Ƶ’s BA+BFA program at �鶹��Ƶ.edu.</strong></em></a></p> </div> </div> </div> </article> <article> <h1>�鶹��Ƶ Launches Combined BA+BFA in Integrated Arts</h1> <p>eburnett — Fri, 21 Feb 2025 21:02:25 +0000</p> <span>�鶹��Ƶ Launches Combined BA+BFA in Integrated Arts</span> <span><span>eburnett</span></span> <span><time datetime="2025-02-21T16:02:25-05:00" title="Friday, February 21, 2025 - 16:02">Fri, 02/21/2025 - 16:02</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>For generations, �鶹��Ƶ graduates have gone on to become groundbreaking creative forces in artistic settings all over the world. </p><p>Now a new pairing of �鶹��Ƶ degree programs enables undergraduate students to establish their own paths toward interdisciplinary careers across the arts.</p><p>Beginning in fall 2025, students may pursue a combined dual degree that culminates in a <a href="/arts-and-sciences/ba-bfa-dual-degree-integrated-arts">Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Integrated Arts</a>. The two degrees can be completed in five years: the first four on �鶹��Ƶ’s bucolic campus, followed by a fifth year set amid the vibrant professional arts community of nearby Cleveland.</p><p>“What is most inspiring about this new BA+BFA pathway is that it emerged organically,” says <a href="/node/4921">David Kamitsuka</a>, Dean of �鶹��Ƶ’s College of Arts and Sciences. “It developed through an extraordinary, collaborative commitment among our arts faculty to design a program that is attuned to the future of the art world and attentive to the aspirations of our endlessly creative and thoughtful students.” </p><p>Students in the program complete courses in their chosen BA major, <a href="/arts-and-sciences/areas-of-study">selecting from more than 50 areas of study</a> offered by the College of Arts and Sciences. They also take 10 additional courses in the <a href="/arts-and-sciences/practicing-arts">practicing arts</a>, which may include cinema and media, creative writing, dance, musical studies, studio art, and theater.</p><p>In year five, students live and work in Cleveland, with 24-hour access to private studios, rehearsal spaces, theaters, and production facilities. This immersive arts year is dedicated to completing a substantial, public-facing project—a performance, exhibition, or installation, for example—determined in collaboration with their �鶹��Ƶ faculty mentors.</p><p>Unlike traditional BFA programs, which require selection of a single area of study, �鶹��Ƶ’s BFA in Integrated Arts invites students to shape their own path by incorporating other disciplines into their individual artistic practice. In this way, painting could be paired with politics, theater with environmental studies, creative writing with neuroscience—or any number of other combinations.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Five-year path toward two degrees includes focused work in the thriving arts world of nearby Cleveland.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2025-02-21T12:00:00Z">Fri, 02/21/2025 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Communications Staff</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2583">College of Arts and Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2556">Admissions</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=4290">BA/BFA</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25436">Studio Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25331">Dance</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25256">Cinema and Media</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25441">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25281">Musical Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/julia-christensen" hreflang="und">Julia Christensen</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/david-kamitsuka" hreflang="und">David Kamitsuka</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/art" hreflang="und">Studio Art</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater" hreflang="und">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/dance" hreflang="und">Dance</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/musical-studies" hreflang="und">Musical Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/cinema-studies" hreflang="und">Cinema and Media</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Students in �鶹��Ƶ’s BA+BFA dual-degree program devote their first four years to studies on campus, followed by a fifth year of immersive arts study in Cleveland.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-flex-content field--type-entity-reference-revisions field--label-hidden vertical-spacing--basic field__items"> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-37735" class="paragraph paragraph--type--pb-el-bq paragraph--view-mode--default"> <blockquote class="blockquote--quotemark" data-text-color-red data-text-size-giant> <p>Our students don’t just learn to be artists; they learn to be thinkers who engage deeply with the world around them.”</p> </blockquote> </div> </div> <div class="field__item"> <div id="obj-37109" class="paragraph paragraph--type--para-el-copy paragraph--view-mode--default o-flex--basic-copy basic-copy"> <p>The program creates an ideal bridge between students’ academic journey and their chosen professional path—and a launching pad for a new generation of increasingly vital “thinking artists.”</p><p>“This program is built on the idea that artists thrive when they have a broad intellectual foundation,” says Program Director <a href="/node/5041">Julia Christensen</a>, �鶹��Ƶ’s Eva & John Young-Hunter Professor of Integrated Media. “It’s about bridging the gap between creativity and academic exploration.</p><p>“Artists don’t usually see themselves as just a painter or just a sculptor,” Christensen says. “They draw from all kinds of disciplines and backgrounds. That’s the kind of artistry we want to foster here: Our students don’t just learn to be artists; they learn to be thinkers who engage deeply with the world around them, using their creative problem-solving skills to address complex, real-world challenges.”</p><p>Current students in their first or second year of studies in the College of Arts and Sciences are eligible to participate in the BA+BFA in Integrated Arts program, with the first year of immersive art studies in Cleveland slated for 2027-28. Current �鶹��Ƶ students interested in the program must apply by their junior year and be on track to finish the required credits and submit a portfolio for review. </p><p>New students applying for enrollment in fall 2026 will have the option to apply to the BA+BFA program as part of the first-year application process.</p><hr><p><a href="/arts-and-sciences/ba-bfa-dual-degree-integrated-arts"><strong>Learn more about the BA+BFA in Integrated Arts at oberlin.edu. </strong></a></p><p><strong>Thinking about �鶹��Ƶ? </strong><a href="mailto:college.admissions@oberlin.edu?subject=�鶹��Ƶ's%20BA%2FBFA%20program"><strong>Connect with us at college.admissions@oberlin.edu.</strong></a></p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-article-header field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">0</div> </article> <article> <h1>Five Faculty Earn Excellence in Teaching Honors</h1> <p>eburnett — Thu, 14 Mar 2024 14:48:43 +0000</p> <span>Five Faculty Earn Excellence in Teaching Honors</span> <span><span>eburnett</span></span> <span><time datetime="2024-03-14T10:48:43-04:00" title="Thursday, March 14, 2024 - 10:48">Thu, 03/14/2024 - 10:48</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Five �鶹��Ƶ faculty members have been recognized with Excellence in Teaching Awards for the 2022-23 academic year.</p> <p>Presented annually, the awards recognize faculty in the college and conservatory who have demonstrated sustained and distinctive excellence in the classroom and beyond.</p> <p>Though they approach their teaching across widely varied disciplines, the honorees are united by several key characteristics, says <a href="/node/4921">David Kamitsuka</a>, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences:</p> <p style="margin-left: 40px;">“All of them are beloved and visionary teachers, they are deeply admired by their colleagues, they do a superb job connecting their area of expertise to its importance in real life, and they find great joy and meaning in the growth of their students.”</p> <p>A dinner reception was held March 11 at the home of President Carmen Twillie Ambar. The honorees (pictured above at the reception) are as follows:</p> <p><strong><a href="/node/6671">Jay Ashby</a><br> Associate Professor of Jazz Studies<br> Teacher of Jazz Composition and Trombone<br> Director of the Division of Jazz Studies</strong></p> <p>Dean of the Conservatory <a href="/node/49511">Bill Quillen</a> praises Jay Ashby’s commitment to students, his stewardship of the <a href="/node/3231">Division of Jazz Studies</a>, and his development of the Performance and Improvisation program, as well as his ongoing ties to �鶹��Ƶ athletics as co-chair of the General Faculty Athletics Committee.</p> <p>“Jay Ashby has played a leading role in continuing the legacy of jazz studies at �鶹��Ƶ, and he works tirelessly in support of our students,” Quillen says. “He has expanded the realm of jazz studies and created opportunities not just for our jazz students, but for students across our campus.”</p> <hr> <p><strong><a href="/node/6761">Jonathan Moyer</a><br> David S. Boe Associate Professor of Organ<br> Chair of the Organ Department</strong></p> <p>“Jonathan Moyer is one of the most outstanding organ performers and pedagogues in America,” Quillen says. “He stands out not only for his artistic excellence, but also for his deep-seated care for his students. He has continued �鶹��Ƶ’s rich tradition of organ study and placed the students and their needs at the heart of everything he does.”</p> <p>Quillen praises Moyer for his commitment to creating immersive learning experiences in organ centers across Europe and fostering career connections for his students throughout Northeast Ohio and around the world.</p> <hr> <p><strong><span id="cke_bm_37257S" style="display: none;"> </span>Lynn Powell<br> Emerita Assistant Professor of Creative Writing<br> Director of �鶹��Ƶ Writers in the Schools</strong></p> <p>Kamitsuka cites Lynn Powell’s extraordinary and longstanding commitment to the <a href="/node/3221">Creative Writing Department</a> and the community. For more than two decades, she provided visionary leadership to �鶹��Ƶ’s <a href="/node/178921">Writers in the Schools</a> program, a collaboration between the college and �鶹��Ƶ public schools. “It’s truly unimaginable how much work Lynn has put into this labor of love,” Kamitsuka says of Powell, who retired in summer 2023.</p> <p> </p> <hr> <p><strong><a href="/node/5706"><span id="cke_bm_37257E" style="display: none;"> </span></a></strong></p> <p><strong><a href="/node/5261">Lisa Ryno</a><br> Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry</strong></p> <p>“What is so impressive about Lisa Ryno is her incredible efforts and success in involving students in every facet of her research,” says Kamitsuka. “No one has done more than Lisa to ensure that all students thrive.” Kamitsuka notes that Ryno spearheaded—while on sabbatical—implementation of the Chemistry Climate Survey, which was intended to assess students’ sense of belonging and engagement with the department.</p> <p>Ryno’s many student collaborations are evidenced in the great number of student researchers who participate with <a href="/undergraduate-research">�鶹��Ƶ Undergraduate Research</a> and present at departmental symposiums—and also in the contingent of five students who will present alongside Ryno at the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology conference this month in San Antonio.</p> <p>“Nothing is better than watching someone gain confidence in the lab and take ownership of their project,” Ryno says.</p> <hr> <p><strong><a href="/node/5706">Md Rumi Shammin</a><br> Professor of Environmental Studies<br> Director of the Environmental Studies Program</strong></p> <p>“Rumi Shammin models genuine modesty and humility as the foundation of all learning,” says Kamitsuka.</p> <p>Shammin is regarded among students and fellow faculty as a master of group projects and collaborative work, including his National Science Foundation-funded project “Perspective-Taking and Systems-Thinking for Complex Problem Solving.” Shammin founded <a href="/node/3196">Environmental Studies</a>’ Career Day, which offers a highly successful model for forging professional connections.</p> <hr> <p><strong>About the Excellence in Teaching Awards:</strong> Each year, College of Arts and Sciences faculty are selected for consideration through nominations presented to the College Faculty Council, which are then reviewed by a faculty committee. An award is presented in each division of the college: arts and humanities, social and behavioral sciences, and natural sciences and mathematics. The conservatory dean recommends a number of conservatory faculty to the Conservatory Faculty Council for consideration, and together they review and narrow the recommendations to two recipients.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Annual awards celebrate distinguished and sustained leadership across the college and conservatory.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2024-03-14T12:00:00Z">Thu, 03/14/2024 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Communications Staff</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2583">College of Arts and Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2356">Conservatory</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=34896">Jazz Composition</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=34691">Jazz Performance</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25351">Environmental Studies and Sciences</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25246">Biochemistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25306">Chemistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=28886">Historical Performance</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=40211">Historical Keyboard Instruments</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=32966">Organ</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/jay-ashby" hreflang="und">Jay Ashby</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/jonathan-william-moyer" hreflang="und">Jonathan William Moyer</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/lisa-ryno" hreflang="und">Lisa Ryno</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/md-rumi-shammin" hreflang="und">Md Rumi Shammin</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/jazz-studies" hreflang="und">Jazz Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/historical-performance" hreflang="und">Historical Performance</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/keyboard-studies" hreflang="und">Keyboard Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/environmental-studies" hreflang="und">Environmental Studies and Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/chemistry-biochemistry" hreflang="und">Chemistry and Biochemistry</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">�鶹��Ƶ’s 2022-23 Excellence in Teaching honorees (from left): Jonathan Moyer, Lisa Ryno, Rumi Shammin, Lynn Powell, and Jay Ashby.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Scott Shaw</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Bearing Witness</h1> <p>azaleski — Tue, 26 Sep 2023 16:54:18 +0000</p> <span>Bearing Witness</span> <span><span>azaleski</span></span> <span><time datetime="2023-09-26T12:54:18-04:00" title="Tuesday, September 26, 2023 - 12:54">Tue, 09/26/2023 - 12:54</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>In the mid-2000s, she curated and produced content for the memorial exhibition at the 9/11 Memorial Museum. For the last eight years, she’s been the curator of Kennesaw State University’s Museum of History and Holocaust Education. Founded in 2006, the Georgia museum has produced more than 18 traveling exhibitions that visit schools, libraries, community centers, and houses of worship. </p> <p>Langer says her time at �鶹��Ƶ nurtured her intellectual curiosity. It also connected her with Sheena Ramirez ’06, a soprano who studied <a href="/voice" target="_blank">voice performance</a>. In fact, the pair met when both were first-years living in Dascomb Hall. </p> <p>“Some of what we did at �鶹��Ƶ collaboratively involved engaging deeply with poetry that Sheena would be performing as art songs,” Langer explains. “As a <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" target="_blank">creative writing</a> major, that was a love of mine, and it related to my concentration in poetry. We always enjoyed doing that and have kept it up over the years.” </p> <p>In 2020, Langer and Ramirez started working on a large-scale project that resulted in a museum exhibition, <em>Words, Music, Memory: (Re)presenting Voices of the Holocaust</em>, that will be on display at �鶹��Ƶ starting September 29. The 10-panel traveling exhibition memorializes the poetry and diary excerpts of people who experienced the Holocaust—some who survived and others who perished—through music, composition, and performance. </p> <p>"It highlights the idea of witness and then of translating that experience into art," Langer says. "It connects the past and the present, and it connects the people who are trying to interpret and understand the past to really bring it to life."</p> <p><em>Words, Music, Memory</em> features eight witnesses to the Holocaust whose written works are interpreted in varying ways. <em>[see below, "The Exhibition's Voices"]</em> Each panel showcases a different witness and explains how their words were preserved, archived, or translated and then ultimately adapted into some form of performance art, including music, film, and plays. A digital gallery guide that accompanies the exhibition delves deeper into the biography of each writer, plus interviews with the modern-day composers, lyricists, performers, and commissioners who interpreted their words. </p> <p>“The goal is to highlight the entire commemorative process,” says Langer. “We wanted to show how you first engage with poetry, then select a piece of work to focus on, and then turn it into something that can then be accessed by an artist who wants to adapt it and perform it.” </p> <p><em>Words, Music, Memory</em> reflects the combined expertise of Langer and Ramirez. After �鶹��Ƶ, Ramirez earned a master’s in music at the New England Conservatory of Music and a DMA in vocal performance, pedagogy, and literature from James Madison University. For the latter, she wrote her dissertation on four soprano song cycles based on Holocaust poetry, pairing this research with a lecture recital that accompanies <em>Words, Music, Memory</em>.</p> <p>Langer says she “caught the research bug” during her sophomore year at �鶹��Ƶ, when she and two friends took a road trip to Georgia. They stopped in Cades Cove, an abandoned town in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, where Langer became immediately fascinated by the history of the area. A year later, she returned to pore through scrapbooks, oral history transcripts, and other documents that both provided answers and served as the basis of her honors thesis on National Parks. </p> <p>After earning a bachelor’s degree in history and creative writing, Langer earned a master’s in archives and public history at New York University. She is currently pursuing a PhD in public history from Georgia State University.</p> <p>In spring 2023, Langer had the opportunity to work closely with students in professor Renee Romano’s Intro to Public Humanities course, a cornerstone of the <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/public-humanities" target="_blank">Public Humanities integrative concentration</a>. The students identified potential promotional avenues for the <em>Words, Music, Memory</em> exhibition at �鶹��Ƶ, even creating a supplemental zine on the topic of memory.</p> <figure class="captioned-image obj-right"> <figcaption>Sheena Ramirez '06 (left) and Adina Langer '06</figcaption> </figure> <p>“The students learned that so much of public humanities work is about making connections, building relationships, and trying to forge collaborations,” Romano says. “They saw what needs to be done to actually execute a project to go from A to Z.”</p> <p>For Langer, though, this time wasn’t just about practicalities and marketing. Working with students gave her an opportunity to pass on knowledge and experience in the same ways alumni once did for her. </p> <p>"As a student, I remember how powerful it was to have conversations with people who had been in my shoes only a few years before. I could see these students making connections about what it means to be out in the world, carrying forward your intellectual passions and interests."</p> <p>After its time at �鶹��Ƶ, <em>Words, Music, Memory</em> will be on display at Wake Forest University’s Lam Museum of Anthropology starting in December, followed by Elon University in March 2024. However, Langer and Ramirez say they feel particularly honored to bring their shared project to their alma mater, where both their friendship and their career paths began. </p> <p>“This is something we’ve been doing for more than 20 years, where I’ve been coming to Adina and saying, ‘Let’s talk about poetry and how music enhances it,” Ramirez says. “This project looks at how music and other forms of commemoration can honor the words of people who have experienced the darkest chapters of our history.”</p> <p><a href="/events/words_music_memory_representing_voices_of_the_holocaust_exhibit" target="_blank">Words, Music, Memory: (Re)presenting Voices of the Holocaust</a> <em>opens September 29 in the first floor gallery of the Mary Church Terrell Main Library, and is open daily through Saturday, November 18. The exhibition culminates with a <a href="https://calendar.oberlin.edu/event/words_music_memory_representing_voices_from_the_holocaust" target="_blank">lecture performance on November 16</a>, featuring soprano Sheena Ramirez, oboist Courtney Miller, and pianist Daniel Michalak. Curator Adina Langer will provide commentary during the performance and discuss Holocaust commemoration and curating traumatic histories. Langer will also be <a href="https://calendar.oberlin.edu/event/curating_histories_of_violence_and_resilience_a_conversation_with_adina_langer06" target="_blank">in conversation with Professor Renee Romano</a> on November 16. </em></p> <p><strong>The Exhibition's Voices </strong><br> The individuals whose words are featured in <em>Words, Music, Memory</em> were carefully selected to represent a diversity of Jewish witnesses to the Holocaust, including (but not limited to) recognizable voices like Anne Frank and Elie Wiesel.</p> <p>“We really wanted to bring both lesser-known and very well-known people into this space,” says Langer. “The exhibit is presented from younger to older and from those who perished to those who survived.” </p> <ul> <li><strong>Franta Bass </strong>wrote poems in the Theresienstadt Ghetto before dying at Auschwitz at age 14. His poems were included in the Czech children’s anthology<em> I Never Saw Another Butterfly</em>, which inspired commemorative works by composers and playwrights alike.</li> <li><strong>Selma Meerbaum-Eisinger</strong> was a teenager who died at Michailowka labor camp, though her boyfriend managed to keep her poetry notebook throughout his own incarceration. Her poetry inspired a soprano song cycle titled “In Sleep, the World Is Yours" by composer Lori Laitman.</li> <li><strong>Anne Frank</strong>, a German-Jewish teenager who died at Bergen-Belsen, became posthumously famous after the publication of her diary. Her story has been adapted many times, as in the play <em>The Diary of Anne Frank</em> and the 1995 Japanese animated film <em>Anne No Nikki</em>, both featured in the exhibition.</li> <li><strong>Éva Heyman</strong> died in Auschwitz at age 13, but her mother published her<em> Diary of Éva Heyman</em> in 1947. In 2018, the Instagram account @Eva.Stories won a prestigious Webby Award for its poignant presentation of the late teen’s words. </li> <li><strong>Krystyna Żywulska</strong> was a Polish-Jewish political prisoner who penned the memoir <em>I Survived Auschwitz</em>, which, along with openly gay German-Jewish survivor Gad Beck’s memoir, inspired two short operas. </li> <li><strong>Shmerke Kaczerginski</strong> was a radical activist and Yiddish poet whose “Yid Du Partizaner” was turned into a sonata for cello and piano, composed by Laurence Sherr.</li> <li><strong>Nelly Sachs</strong>, a poet who escaped Berlin for Sweden, was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. Many of her poems have been turned into choral and instrumental arrangements.</li> <li><strong>Elie Wiese</strong>l, who spent time in both Auschwitz and the labor camp Buna, became a renowned speaker and writer on the topic of memory. His memoir <em>Night </em>is the basis of performances featuring the music of composer Leib Glantz. </li> </ul> <ul></ul></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Two alums collaborate on a powerful museum exhibition.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2023-09-28T12:00:00Z">Thu, 09/28/2023 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Kate Kaput</div> <div class="text-content field field--name-field-intro-text field--type-text-long field--label-hidden field__item"><p>As a public historian, Adina Langer ’06 knows a thing or two about commemoration.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2390">Events</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3449">�鶹��Ƶ College Libraries</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2356">Conservatory</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2377">Arts & Humanities</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25381">History</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=35596">Voice</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/public-humanities" hreflang="und">Public Humanities</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/conservatory/divisions/vocal-studies" hreflang="und">Vocal Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">The Words, Music, Memory: (Re)presenting Voices of the Holocaust exhibition is on display from September 29-November 18.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pull-images field--type-list-string field--label-hidden field__item">Yes</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Courtesy of Adina Langer</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Richard Powers to Deliver Commencement Address to Class of 2023</h1> <p>eburnett — Mon, 17 Apr 2023 16:49:25 +0000</p> <span>Richard Powers to Deliver Commencement Address to Class of 2023</span> <span><span>eburnett</span></span> <span><time datetime="2023-04-17T12:49:25-04:00" title="Monday, April 17, 2023 - 12:49">Mon, 04/17/2023 - 12:49</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Richard Powers, author of 13 novels, polymath, and celebrated tree whisperer, will deliver the keynote address for �鶹��Ƶ’s Commencement ceremony honoring the Class of 2023 on Monday, May 22.</p> <p>Powers’ compelling, genre-busting writings on environmentalism, music, diversity, and the implications of technological innovation have received praise and recognition from readers and reviewers alike.</p> <p>His novel <em>The Echo Maker</em> won the National Book Award in 2006. Powers is the recipient of a MacArthur “Genius Grant” and the 2019 Pulitzer Prize in Fiction for <em>The Overstory</em>—“the best novel ever written about trees, and really, just one of the best novels, period,” in the words of author Ann Patchett.</p> <p>“Trees used to talk to people all the time,” Powers wrote in <em>The Overstory</em>. “Sane people used to hear them.”</p> <p>Fans of the cerebral bestseller, an epic spanning generations that challenges the primacy of humans in life and literature, include Barack Obama. “It changed how I thought about the earth and our place in it,” the former President told the <em>New York Times</em>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.richardpowers.net/category/novel/">Powers’ work</a> makes him an especially apt choice to address �鶹��Ƶ’s 2023 graduating class, says <a href="/node/365211">Valerie Hotchkiss</a>, the Azariah S. Root Director of Libraries and professor of English and book studies at �鶹��Ƶ. “The themes he deals with are so central to values that �鶹��Ƶ holds—namely, the conundrum of living responsibly in the modern world and the importance of the humanities and humanity in our struggle to do so.”</p> <p>Like so many �鶹��Ƶ alumni, Powers has many talents. An accomplished student of vocal music, he trained in the cello and also plays guitar, clarinet, and saxophone.</p> <p>Powers was born in Evanston, Illinois. A voracious reader—he devoured Darwin’s <em>The Voyage of the Beagle</em> in fourth grade—he believed he was “destined to become a scientist.”</p> <p>He enrolled at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to study physics, but a charismatic teacher convinced him that literature was “the perfect place for someone who wanted the aerial view,” Powers has said. He switched his major to English and earned two degrees in the subject.</p> <p>He quit his day job as a computer programmer to write his first novel, <em>Three Farmers on Their Way to a Dance</em>. “I thought, <em>I’m going to put everything that I know in this book, because I’m never going to get another shot at this,</em>” Powers has said. “Afterwards, I figured I’d have to go back and do jobs that people are willing to pay for.” The critical reception persuaded him he could make a living as a writer.</p> <p>Powers joins a list of notable authors to visit campus as �鶹��Ƶ Commencement speakers, among them Robert Frost (1937), Alex Haley (1976), Maya Angelou (1983), and David Sedaris (2018). He will also be awarded an honorary doctor of humanities degree.</p> <p>The address will be <a href="/commencement">livestreamed</a> as part of Commencement weekend festivities.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Prolific, Pulitzer Prize-winning author celebrated for his thoughtful explorations of humanity’s place in the world.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2023-04-17T12:00:00Z">Mon, 04/17/2023 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Office of Communications</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=3152">Commencement</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2366">Guest Artists & Speakers</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25316">Comparative Literature</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25346">English</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-faculty field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/valerie-hotchkiss" hreflang="und">Valerie Hotchkiss</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/comparative-literature" hreflang="und">Comparative Literature</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/english" hreflang="und">English</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">courtesy of Richard Powers</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Getting Organized</h1> <p>anagy — Thu, 23 Mar 2023 15:32:20 +0000</p> <span>Getting Organized</span> <span><span>anagy</span></span> <span><time datetime="2023-03-23T11:32:20-04:00" title="Thursday, March 23, 2023 - 11:32">Thu, 03/23/2023 - 11:32</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Henry Hicks IV graduated from �鶹��Ƶ in 2021 with a double major in comparative American studies and creative writing. His passions for grassroots organizing and advocacy have paid dividends: During his fourth year, Hicks was awarded the prestigious Truman Scholarship, which recognizes extraordinary dedication to public service. After graduating, he moved to Washington, D.C., where he works at <em>Nonprofit Quarterly</em>—a new position that follows an administrative stint at AmeriCorps.</p> <p><strong>You are a former chair of the �鶹��Ƶ Student Senate. How did that experience cultivate your interest in leadership?</strong></p> <p>I had a really unique experience on the student senate. I stepped into the role of chair at the onset of the pandemic, when there was a huge surge in racial justice protests. Issues on campus were directly tied to problems in communities across the country. There was definitely a heightened sense of urgency. I had a great experience developing as a leader. Since student senators are voting members of general faculty, there’s a lot of opportunity for growth. During this time, our work became less about programming and more focused on policy on educational accessibility. How can we think more intentionally about those who identify as BIPOC? Issues became more nuanced, a lot deeper, and prompted thinking about national identity. These discussions gave me a unique perspective entering rooms after �鶹��Ƶ. I could say that I had done work building bridges in �鶹��Ƶ and was able to say that I organized students remotely. </p> <p><strong>You took a personal leave in fall 2019 to work as a field organizer for Kamala Harris in Iowa. How did this experience give you an understanding of grassroots organizing and campaigning?</strong></p> <p>If anyone is considering taking personal leave to work on a campaign, I absolutely recommend it. It was my first time in this type of environment, and it was like doing a study away program. I was organizing between Black Hawk County and Bremer County. I got to see different ways of organizing. I volunteered, phone-banked, and always asked, “How can I get people involved?” It was important to tailor messages to different community members. That primary cycle was unique because there were 20 different campaigns happening. I got to see how other campaigns were working. It was very interesting.</p> <p><strong>You cite many mentors at �鶹��Ƶ, including entire departments—comparative American studies, Africana studies, creative writing—as well as President Carmen Twillie Ambar and professor Wendy Kozol. How did they influence your career?</strong></p> <p>The really big lesson I took away was that they encouraged me to move in different directions at one time. I had professors encourage me to work on Kamala Harris’ campaign. Creative writing professors encouraged me to write about my experiences. I received guidance from the Africana Studies Department on how to unpack my time in Iowa. </p> <p><strong>As a Truman Scholar, you had the opportunity to participate in the Truman-Albright Program after graduation. What was that like? </strong></p> <p>The Truman-Albright Program is for Truman Scholars who are living in Washington, D.C., but haven’t gone to grad school yet. I had a really great time meeting other Truman Scholars. I was able to connect with them and ask for advice. Similar to PAL [�鶹��Ƶ’s Peer Advising Leaders], I was part of a cohort, and it was really nice to have that network. </p> <p><strong>What did your position as assistant to the board of directors at AmeriCorps entail?</strong></p> <p>This was an appointed role in the Biden-Harris administration, working with the board of directors to advance the mission of the administration. A board member at �鶹��Ƶ referred me to this position. I was responsible for staffing people, putting together briefing materials, and communications. It’s really a mix of different tasks. I worked with people on the CEO’s team in order to integrate the board into the agency's board.</p> <p><strong>What are you on to now?</strong></p> <p>I found a new job at <em>Nonprofit Quarterly</em>. I work on content that will be in print and online. Nonprofit Quarterly has undergone a transition and is emphasizing community organizing more, and my role will focus on projects related to this transition.</p> <p><strong>What are your longer-term career goals?</strong></p> <p>I definitely see myself still organizing and writing. My honors thesis at �鶹��Ƶ was about the Deep South and a political organizing tactic called “relational organizing.” It centered around building social movements and stronger change. In the future, I see myself having an impact at home in the South.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">From presidential campaigns to grassroots initiatives, Henry Hicks IV thrives on community building.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2023-03-23T12:00:00Z">Thu, 03/23/2023 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Ava Miller '25</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2360">After �鶹��Ƶ</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25311">Comparative American Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=4821">Africana Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/comparative-american-studies" hreflang="und">Comparative American Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/africana-studies" hreflang="und">Africana Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Henry Hicks '21</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Courtesy of Henry Hicks</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Peter Stern '22 Receives Fulbright to Greece</h1> <p>anagy — Thu, 12 May 2022 13:03:31 +0000</p> <span>Peter Stern '22 Receives Fulbright to Greece</span> <span><span>anagy</span></span> <span><time datetime="2022-05-12T09:03:31-04:00" title="Thursday, May 12, 2022 - 09:03">Thu, 05/12/2022 - 09:03</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>For spring graduate Peter Stern, a Fulbright fellowship to Greece was the perfect fit for his academic background and interests—it was just hiding in plain sight. </p> <p>“I was drawn to Fulbright, and the Greece part came later,” explains Stern, a creative writing and cinema studies double major. A year ago, as he was looking ahead to post-grad life, Stern felt increasingly drawn to opportunities abroad. Like many in his class year, he didn’t get the chance to study away because of COVID, and he was growing eager to explore the world. </p> <p>Stern says he applied to the Fulbright program in <a href="https://www.fulbright.gr/en/scholarships-for-us-citizens/programs/fulbright-student-program-english-teaching-assistant-program">Athens College</a> based on the suggestion from Fellowships and Awards Director Nick Petzak.</p> <p>“I don't speak a second language, which ruled out many countries. Greece's program stood out to me because of its emphasis on teaching English literature, rather than just grammar, and for the large theater component as well. I've been involved in theater (acting, playwriting, and directing) my entire life, and felt that I could bring a unique advantage as an educator in both fields. I've also been drawn to the Greco-Roman world since childhood—I actually studied ancient Latin for all of middle and high school—and have taken a few Classics courses here at �鶹��Ƶ as well. For all these reasons, Greece felt like the perfect fit.”</p> <p>Stern will teach classes at a K-12 school from September 2022 through early July 2023. “Outside of the classroom, I'm looking forward to living in a way that is unfamiliar to me. I think I'll be spending a lot of free time outdoors exploring the islands and the historic landmarks that I've been studying since elementary school.”</p> <p>Through the Creative Writing Program, Stern has been a teaching assistant for the 200-level course. He is also finishing his sixth semester as a PRSM (<a href="/equity-diversity-inclusion/training-education-and-outreach/prsm">Preventing and Responding to Sexual Misconduct</a>) trainer, in which he has been responsible for leading two-hour workshops on consent and bystander intervention for first-year students. He says his combination of training and evaluating in creative writing classes combined with his role in PRSM have prepared him for the Fulbright. </p> <p>A resident of Los Angeles, Stern plans to return to L.A. with the intent of breaking into the film industry.</p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-subhead field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Stern will teach English literature to K-12 students while reconnecting with his interests in the ancient Greco-Roman world.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2022-05-12T12:00:00Z">Thu, 05/12/2022 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Amanda Nagy</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2377">Arts & Humanities</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2391">Languages & Literatures</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2363">Academics & Research</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25256">Cinema and Media</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/cinema-studies" hreflang="und">Cinema and Media</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Peter Stern '22 has been selected for the Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Athens, Greece, through the Hellenic American Educational Foundation.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Tanya Rosen-Jones '97</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> <article> <h1>Cassandra Gutterman-Johns Awarded Fulbright ETA to Czech Republic</h1> <p>anagy — Mon, 02 May 2022 16:44:41 +0000</p> <span>Cassandra Gutterman-Johns Awarded Fulbright ETA to Czech Republic</span> <span><span>anagy</span></span> <span><time datetime="2022-05-02T12:44:41-04:00" title="Monday, May 2, 2022 - 12:44">Mon, 05/02/2022 - 12:44</time> </span> <div class="text-content field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Fourth-year Cassandra Gutterman-Johns is excited to teach, travel, and reach outside her comfort zone with a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in the Czech Republic beginning in August 2022. </p> <p>A theater and creative writing major with minors in gender, sexuality, and feminist studies and comparative American studies, Gutterman-Johns will apply the teaching experiences she learned from serving as a course writing associate in the <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/rhetoric-and-composition">Rhetoric and Composition Department</a> and a creative writing associate in the <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing">Creative Writing Program</a>, as well as the skills in creative problem solving, collaboration, and implementing systems for communication and organization through her work in the <a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater">Theater Department</a>.</p> <p>This year, she served as the LabSeries Production Manager in the theater department. She has also stage managed a number of mainstage productions and worked in the electrics and paint shops in the theater.</p> <p>“I’m looking forward to having an immersive experience and stepping outside of my comfort zone, as well as getting to see more of the world after not traveling for a few years and missing out on my study abroad program because of the pandemic,” says Gutterman-Johns, a resident of Salem, Oregon. “I’m hoping to learn more about pedagogy and education, and gain a clearer sense of what career path will be right for me.” </p></div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-type field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item">News Story</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-date field--type-datetime field--label-hidden field__item"><time datetime="2022-05-02T12:00:00Z">Mon, 05/02/2022 - 12:00</time> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-author field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Amanda Nagy</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2373">Awards and Honors</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2363">Academics & Research</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2377">Arts & Humanities</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?tag=2372">Performing Arts</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-programs field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25326">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25441">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25311">Comparative American Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news?program=25361">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-departments field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/creative-writing" hreflang="und">Creative Writing</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/theater" hreflang="und">Theater</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/gsfs" hreflang="und">Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/arts-and-sciences/departments/comparative-american-studies" hreflang="und">Comparative American Studies</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-caption field--type-string-long field--label-hidden field__item">Fourth-year Cassandra Gutterman-Johns will teach and immerse herself in the culture of the Czech Republic.</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-pin-school-page field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">Off</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-photo-gallery-top field--type-boolean field--label-hidden field__item">false</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-image-credit field--type-string field--label-hidden field__item">Tanya Rosen-Jones '97</div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-media field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__item"> </div> </article> </main></body></html>