2022 Faculty Award Winners Recognized for Outstanding Achievement

The College of Arts & Letters recognizes its 2022 Faculty Award winners for the work they do to enhance curriculum and student experiences. These four impactful leaders have shown outstanding leadership, teaching, innovation, and community engagement and were honored at the 2022 Faculty Welcome Reception on Sept. 29. The 2022 Faculty Award winners include: Paul Varg Award – Robin SilbergleidCommunity…

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Conversations with CAL Features Director and Production Manager of ‘Corktown’

The Department of Theatre’s production of Jeff Augustin’s Corktown, Or Through the Valley of Dry Bones is a story of racial economic disparity, gentrification, and the price of “renaissance." In this Conversations with CAL, hear more about the production with Dr. Chamara Jewel Kwakye, Director of Corktown, and Academic Specialist in the Department of African American and African Studies, and Abigail Tykocki, Production Manager and Academic Specialist in the Department of Theatre.

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‘Corktown’ Production Shines Spotlight on Gentrification

When Michigan State University’s Department of Theatre was looking for someone to guest direct its production of Corktown, Or Through the Valley of Dry Bones, it looked no further than MSU’s Department of African American and African Studies (AAAS) and to Dr. Chamara Jewel Kwakye, Academic Specialist in AAAS, whose vision for the play was fueled by her own background and life experiences. Set in Detroit’s oldest…

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Professor Brings Black Religion and Spirituality Expertise to Religious Studies Department

Associate Professor Tamura Lomax is going back to her roots to the discipline that first inspired her scholarly work. In January 2023, she will begin teaching classes as a faculty member of Michigan State University’s Department of Religious Studies. A scholar, author, and activist, Lomax never left Religious Studies, it’s always been an important part of her life, but now…

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New Faculty and Staff Welcomed to the College

This year, the College of Arts & Letters welcomes 24 new full-time faculty and staff members. These faculty and staff members were recognized during the 2022 Faculty Welcome Reception, which was held Sept. 29. Please join us in welcoming these full-time faculty and staff to the College: Hanan Aly Hanan Aly, Assistant Professor in the Department of Rhetoric, Writing, and…

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Faculty Voice: Understanding Identity in Learning

In this Faculty Voice, Ellen McCallum, a Professor in the Department of English and Faculty Fellow at the Center for Gender in Global Context (GenCen), shares how the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (LGBTQ) and Sexuality Studies program at MSU offers an opportunity to gain a broader historical and social context for understanding personal and collective identities.  As Associate Chair of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of…

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College of Arts & Letters Faculty Honored at 2022 Investiture

The Michigan State University community gathered at the Wharton Center for Performing Arts on Sept. 14 for the investiture of the 2022 class of endowed chairs, endowed professors, and MSU Foundation professors. The ceremony was a celebration of their accomplishments and a celebration of the philanthropic support that makes these esteemed positions possible.  Dr. Kristen Renn, newly named Mildred B.…

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Writing Professor Wins Prestigious Academic Award

Marohang Yakthung Limbu, Associate Professor in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures at Michigan State University, won the prestigious Bishnudatta-Saraswati Academic Award in Nepal for his book Delinking, Relinking, and Linking Writing and Rhetorics: Inventions and Interventions of the Sirijanga Syllabary.  This award, established in 2017, encourages and honors individuals, groups, or organizations who play an important role in publishing works…

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New Space Maximizes Vision of African American and African Studies Department

The newest department in Michigan State University’s College of Arts & Letters will have a new space on campus to call home.  On Thursday, Nov. 17, from 3-5 p.m. on the second floor of North Kedzie Hall, the Department of African American and African Studies (AAAS) will officially open the doors to its renovated, 8,400-square-foot space during a ribbon-cutting event,…

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MSU’s Serling Institute Celebrates 30 Years of the Jewish Studies Program

This year, Michigan State University marks the 30th anniversary of the Jewish Studies Program, part of The Michael and Elaine Serling Institute for Jewish Studies and Modern Israel. The institute prides itself on teaching and mentoring its undergraduate students, as well as providing a rich curriculum and extensive programming — building on strengths in American Jewish history and culture; European Jewish…

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