Suzanne Evans Wagner isn’t telling people how to talk. She’s here to say that people have options and reasons for talking the way they do. An Associate Professor of Linguistics in MSU’s Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African Languages, Wagner researches the social motivations for language variation and language change. It’s a subject she speaks freely about, providing examples,…
As an undergraduate student at Michigan State University, Josh Guilford majored in English and completed a certificate in the Film Studies Program. Now an Assistant Professor of English in Film and Media Studies at Amherst College, Guilford teaches courses that are cross-listed between the English Department and the Film and Media Studies Program. The courses Guilford teaches cover a broad…
Ruth Nicole Brown has been appointed as the Inaugural Chairperson for the Department of African American and African Studies (AAAS) at Michigan State University, effective July 1, 2020. She currently is an Associate Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies and Education Policy, Organization, and Leadership at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. “I’m overjoyed about joining MSU as the Inaugural Chairperson of African…
The College of Arts & Letters is saddened by the passing of Charles J. McCracken, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy, who died on Monday, May 4, 2020, in Santa Barbara, California. Dr. McCracken began his career at Michigan State University in 1965 and taught there for 34 years before retiring in 1999. He was a gifted teacher, popular with both graduate…
Episode seven of the Liberal Arts Endeavor Podcast is out! Our host, Dean Christopher P. Long, met with Kinitra Brooks, Department of English Associate Professor and Leslie Endowed Chair in Literary Studies, to talk about her digital presence and work as a scholar of genre fiction, pop culture, and Black women. Brooks specializes in the study of Black women, genre fiction, and popular…
If you’ve been anywhere near the Graphic Design program over the last 50 years — or even if you haven’t — you probably know of the late Professor Emeritus Joe Kuszai. He was recruited to Michigan State University in 1965 to develop the Graphic Design program from the ground up, and he ran it for more than 25 years, while…
Associate Professor of Spanish Tony Grubbs has been appointed Chair of the Department of Romance and Classical Studies (RCS) in the College of Arts & Letters at Michigan State University. The five-year appointment is effective August 16, 2020 through August 15, 2025. Dr. Grubbs has been the Interim Chair for the Department of Romance and Classical Studies since August 1,…
Sean Pue focuses on strengthening connections between data science and the humanities. Lately, the College of Arts & Letters researcher has been using digital technologies to interpret and annotate the poetics of Indian literature circulated online through texts, manuscripts, sound, and video. “Poetry is a very vibrant mode of expression in South Asia,” said Pue, Associate Professor of Hindi Language and…
After more than a year serving as Acting Interim Chair and then Interim Chair of the Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African Languages, Yen-Hwei Lin has been appointed Chair of the Department. This four-year appointment is effective August 16, 2020, through August 15, 2024. A Professor of Linguistics, Lin served as Acting Interim Chair (November 5, 2018-2019) and…
Episode five of the Liberal Arts Endeavor Podcast is now live! Our host, Christopher P. Long, Dean of the College of Arts & Letters, met with Christina Boyles, Assistant Professor of Digital Humanities, to discuss her work on the Maria Memory Bank Project.Boyles' research explores the relationship between disaster, social justice, and the environment. She is the Director of the Maria Memory Bank,…