Humanities

Tiffiny Tung, Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of Social and Natural Sciences, professor of anthropology and vice provost for undergraduate education, has been named a senior fellow in the Pre-Columbian Studies program at Harvard’s Dumbarton Oaks.... Read More

Vanderbilt University secured four National Endowment for the Humanities grants totaling $330,696 to support projects ranging from Yiddish literature to the preservation of Special Collections. The grants highlight Vanderbilt’s leadership in humanitie... Read More

“Sometimes our motivations aren’t what we asked for—they are given to us.” That is the experience of Visiting Assistant Professor of English Didi Jackson, who joined Vanderbilt’s College of Arts and Science in Spring 2021. A true lover of the humanities, Jackson brings to A&S a deep passion for telling… Read More

Raheleh Filsoofi, Lynn Ramey, Angela Sutton (Vanderbilt University) Three faculty members from the College of Arts and Science have been selected to receive important grants to support their research in the humanities. The announcement of the awards comes in the wake of a strategic effort by A&S… Read More

The U.S. Department of State has selected six students studying foreign languages at Vanderbilt’s College of Arts and Science to receive the 2021 Critical Language Scholarship (CLS). Through the competitive program, CLS scholars will receive intensive language instruction and structured cultural enrichment experiences through partnership with local institutions in countries… Read More

Women’s History Month is both an opportunity and an invitation: an opportunity to learn more about an often-hidden side of history and culture, and an invitation to develop a new awareness, concerns, and habits of learning that can carry through the rest of the year. As part of the College… Read More

Allison Schachter, Chair of Jewish Studies and Associate Professor of Jewish Studies, English, and Russian and East European Studies (Vanderbilt University) Allison Schachter, an associate professor of Jewish studies, English, and Russian and East European studies,… Read More

Tiffany R. Patterson, Associate Professor of African American and Diaspora Studies From a young age, Associate Professor of African American and Diaspora Studies Tiffany Ruby Patterson loved to learn. She read voraciously throughout her childhood: a set of World Book encyclopedias purchased by her uncle, an entire… Read More

Department of Philosophy visiting scholar Emanuele Costa According to Department of Philosophy visiting scholar Emanuele Costa, people often see modern philosophy as ancient history. But the discipline, which covers the 1500s-1800s, is highly relevant to both today’s scholars and the public at large. “Modern European and… Read More

Though the COVID-19 pandemic scuttled many students’ original summer plans, College of Arts and Science students adapted quickly. Through technology, creativity, and determination, they found ways to expand their horizons and continue preparing for life after Vanderbilt. Juniors Navya Thakkar, Skylar Cuevas, and Natalie Elliott all used their summers to… Read More

Americans love coffee: according to Statista, two-thirds of us drink at least two cups per day. Many people, however, are unaware that the popular drink has a complicated past—and present. Together with The Wond’ry, the College of Arts and Science’s… Read More

Gilman Whiting, associate professor of African American and Diaspora Studies (Daniel Dubois/Vanderbilt University) On a hot, muggy August evening, a group of masked students followed Gilman Whiting, associate professor of African American and Diaspora Studies, onto the lawn in front of Wilson Hall. There, they took up socially… Read More

Matthew Worsnick, Assistant Professor of the Practice in History of Art and Architecture For a number of years, the College of Arts and Science has offered courses in architecture, along with a pre-architecture advising program for students planning to pursue graduate study in the field. But the college didn’t… Read More

THE WORK “What are the burdens we carry?” For three years, Associate Professor of the Practice of Art Jana Harper has been exploring and answering that question through her project This Holding. “That question multiplied into other questions,” Harper said. “What might those… Read More

Founder’s Medalist Sumanth Chennareddy BA’20 Sumanth Chennareddy BA’20, a neuroscience major and Spanish minor, is this year’s Founder’s Medalist for the College of Arts and Science. The Founder’s Medal is a 143-year-old tradition that recognizes the top graduating student from each of Vanderbilt’s 10 schools… Read More

Psychology and communications studies double-major Tommy Oswalt came to Vanderbilt as a first-generation college student with a dream of finding a creative and supportive community like the large Cuban family he left in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. As head resident adviser of West… Read More

Associate Professor of Art Vesna Pavlović has been awarded a Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship to conduct research at the Archives of American Art (AAA) in summer 2021. The program provides support for outstanding visual artists from around the world, with the aim of inspiring… Read More

Claire Sisco King will be the first to say that she isn’t an activist. But, looking at her pursuits over the past six weeks, you might have a hard time envisioning her as anything but. From working with physicians to create a petition for stay-at-home orders in… Read More

On February 3, an unusual sight greeted visitors to Buttrick Hall. Tall, brightly colored banners lined the Buttrick lobby. Each banner bore a large graphic and a poem. As students, faculty, and staff made their way past the banners, they noticed something unusual: every poem in the collection was about… Read More

What is the future of the humanities at Vanderbilt? That question was top of mind for Holly Tucker, Mellon Foundation Chair in the Humanities and Professor of French, as she planned this year’s Humanities 20/20 mini-conference. Hosted by the Robert Penn Warren Center for the Humanities, which Tucker directs,… Read More