News - College of Arts & Letters

Two men exchange a staff in a cultural ceremony. One wears a suit and white headscarf, the other dons traditional attire with feathered headdress.

Marohang Limbu Awarded HARP Large-Scale Funding to Advance Global Understanding of Himalayan Indigenous Rhetorics

March 26, 2026

Marohang Yakthung Limbu, Associate Professor in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and Cultures at Michigan State University, has been awarded Humanities and Arts Research Program (HARP) large-scale development funding for his project "Documenting Matrilineal Civilizations and Ancient Himalayan Yakthung Histories: A Study Through Mundhums and Film." HARP is one of MSU’s largest internal grants, providing funding to support faculty conducting important research projects or activities in the arts and humanities.

A film promotional graphic for "When We Get There." The top half features a cinematic sunset over a landscape with the film title in large yellow block letters. It shows the main cast members—Alek Kristopher, Chris Heeder, Alfred Molina, and Jamie Lien—interacting in character. The bottom half is a grid of four character portraits showing Chris Heeder, Jamie Lien, Alek Kristopher, and Ryan Patrick Welsh.

News / Theatre

How an MSU Theatre Professor Turned an Abandoned Film Project into a Feature Film Streamed Worldwide

March 25, 2026

As the world cautiously emerged from pandemic lockdowns in spring 2021, Ryan Welsh, Associate Professor of Theatre at Michigan State University, was ready to direct his first feature film. He had assembled a crew and secured time to shoot when the project unexpectedly fell through. But rather than completely abandoning the opportunity, he made a bold decision to write, cast, and produce an entirely new film in a matter of a few weeks.

2026 Undergrad Exhibition poster with bold purple text on a white background. Colorful abstract art surrounds the text. Juried by Ekaterina Popova. Held at (SCENE) Metrospace from March 26 to April 24, with a reception on April 10, 5-7pm.

AAHD / Art, Art History, and Design / Arts MSU / Exhibition / News / Student / Student

MSU’s 2026 Undergraduate Art Exhibit on Display at (SCENE) Metrospace March 26-April 24

March 24, 2026

The 2026 Department of Art, Art History, and Design Undergraduate Exhibition at Michigan State University features the work on 64 students created in Department of Art, Art History, and Design courses during the past year. This juried exhibition runs March 26 through April 24 at (SCENE) Metrospace, 110 Charles Street, East Lansing, Michigan. Gallery hours are noon-5 p.m. Thursday-Sunday.

Michigan Impact / News / Programs

MSU Fellowship Empowers Michigan Teachers to Reimagine Genocide Curriculum for Today’s Learners

March 23, 2026

At a time when students are encountering discussions of genocide not only in history books but as it unfolds in real time across social media and global news, a program offered through Michigan State University’s College of Arts & Letters is helping secondary education teachers across Michigan respond to the growing challenge of teaching about this fraught topic in a…

A portrait of Dr. Rocío Quispe Agnoli smiling at the camera. She wears a black embroidered top and gold jewelry against a blue background.

Faculty / Faculty / Faculty Stories / News / Spanish

Rocío Quispe Agnoli to Deliver Legacy Lecture April 2

March 20, 2026

After 26 years as a faculty member in the Department of Romance and Classical Studies at Michigan State University, Rocío Quispe Agnoli, Professor of Latin American Literatures and Cultures, will begin a new chapter as an Emeritum Professor at the end of this academic year. Before that, she will deliver the 2026 College of Arts & Letters Legacy Lecture, an…

Eight cast members of RA-Holes posed on and around a brown leather couch against a light blue background. Four students stand in the back row while four others sit in front, displaying a range of exaggerated and comedic expressions.

Theatre

MSU Production Blends Theatre, Digital Storytelling, and TV for Live Studio Audience Experience

March 19, 2026

MSU’s Department of Theatre invites you to step into the excitement of a live sitcom recording where lights blaze, cameras roll, and the laughter is real. This spring, audiences have an opportunity to experience that electric atmosphere firsthand as a WKAR studio becomes the stage for a one-of-a-kind theatrical event. Recorded in Front of a Live Studio Audience: THIS RA…

The entrance to the RCAH LookOut Art Gallery, with a promotional poster for the Dogs Playing Poker exhibition visible in the foreground. The poster features a close-up portrait of Lorelei d'Andriole and lists the exhibition's run dates of March 16 through April 24, 2026.

Faculty / Faculty / News / RCAH

Art, Identity, and Visibility: Lorelei d’Andriole’s Solo Exhibition Anchors MSU’s Transgender Day of Visibility

March 18, 2026

Through both her art and her voice, Michigan State University faculty member Lorelei d’Andriole is taking center stage at MSU’s Transgender Day of Visibility, delivering the event’s keynote and showcasing her work in a new solo exhibition that opened on campus this week. An artist, educator, and writer, d’Andriole is an Assistant Professor of Electronic Art and Intermedia in MSU’s…

Woman wearing all black with brown shoulder-length wavy hair, smiling and looking at the camera. There is a dark gray background.

News / Staff

Shelly Deavy Joins the College of Arts & Letters as Senior Director of Development

March 17, 2026

The College of Arts & Letters at Michigan State University welcomes fundraising leader Shelly Deavy as its new Senior Director of Development. Deavy, an accomplished philanthropic professional with more than 20 years of experience in educational fundraising and strategic leadership, joins the college at the outset of MSU’s $4 billion Uncommon Will, Far Better World campaign. Deavy began her new…

Workshop facilitators and participants pose together on the steps of a building bearing a sign for the Centre for Climate Change Studies at the University of Dar es Salaam, framed by a colorful painted mural and tropical greenery.

Faculty / Faculty / Grant / International Impact / News

MSU Faculty Partner with University of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania to Advance Community-Engaged Learning

March 16, 2026

During Michigan State University’s 2026 spring break, two MSU faculty members traveled more than 7,800 miles to collaborate with colleagues at the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) in Tanzania, leading a workshop focused on strengthening connections between universities and the communities they serve. Jonathan Choti, Associate Professor in the Department of Linguistics, Languages, and Cultures in MSU’s College of…

Cristina Rivera Garza speaks into a microphone at the left end of a faculty panel, flanked by another MSU faculty members seated before a full audience. A small high-top table with water bottles sits at the center of the panel arrangement.

Event / Faculty / Faculty / News / Spanish / Staff / Student

Pulitzer Prize-Winning Mexican Author Engages MSU Community in Conversations on Storytelling, Memory, and Justice

March 13, 2026

The Michigan State University community had the opportunity this week to hear from and engage with Pulitzer Prize-winning Mexican author Cristina Rivera Garza during a campus visit centered on her acclaimed book, Liliana’s Invincible Summer. Organized by Alejandra Márquez Guajardo, Assistant Professor of Spanish in MSU’s Department of Romance and Classical Studies, and Laurie Medina, Director of MSU’s Center for…