Culture of Care in COVID-19

In uncertain times, what we value most helps to guide us. Our top priority remains the health and safety of all members of the College of Arts & Letters. For two years, faculty and staff also have been working hard to establish a Culture of Care in the College. Multiple initiatives focus on implementing inclusive practices across all aspects of…

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Putting Tests to the Test: Assessing High-Stakes Exams for Second Language Learners

While earning undergraduate degrees in French and Philosophy, Paula Winke was inspired to blend her interests in language learning, research, and social justice. Today, she’s an applied linguist, researching the ethics and effectiveness of foreign language testing as Professor in the Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African Languages and Director of the Second Language Studies Program Winke works in foreign language…

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Young Joon Kwak Chosen as 2020-2021 Critical Race Studies Artist-in-Residence

This year's College of Arts & Letters' Artist-in-Residence of Critical Race Studies is Young Joon Kwak, a multidisciplinary artist who works primarily through sculpture, performance, video, and collaboration. The Critical Race Studies Artist-in-Residence program, offered by the Department of Art, Art History, and Design (AAHD), will give Kwak the opportunity to produce a substantial public project that engages in critical approaches to diversity and inclusion…

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Welcome AAAS Minors

Dear AAAS Minors,Welcome to the new Department of African American and African Studies (AAAS) at Michigan State University! We are Dr. Ruth Nicole Brown, the Inaugural Chair, and Dr. Tamura Lomax, Founding Associate Professor. Together we make up the two 100% appointed faculty in the new AAAS Department. On the first day of classes, it is our pleasure to officially welcome you to an exciting upcoming academic year!  We bring with us densely rich…

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College Welcomes New Faculty and Staff

This semester, the College of Arts & Letters is pleased to welcome 22 new faculty and staff members. Please join us in welcoming the following people to Michigan State University and the College of Arts & Letters: Ruth Nicole Brown Ruth Nicole Brown is the Inaugural Chairperson for the Department of African American and African Studies (AAAS). Previously, she worked as…

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To the Class of 2024: Embarking on an Education for Action

Dear MSU Class of 2024, Welcome to Michigan State University and to the College of Arts & Letters! You are embarking on an education that will forever shape the course of your life. At the very moment you begin this journey of personal transformation in your life, we are living through an intense period of transformation in our society. The pandemic has caused us to move this semester online to protect the health and safety of our community.

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Thanks to Our Long-Serving Faculty Members Retiring This Year

The College of Arts & Letters wishes to recognize our long-serving faculty members who have retired this year and offer our thanks and appreciation for their many years of service. Those faculty members include Susan Gass, Mutsuko Endo Hudson, William Penn, John R. Rauk, and Edward Watts. Together they have served the College and University a combined total of more than 155…

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Alumna Designs Activewear for Under Armour

Alumna Jess Burkhardt is using the skills she learned at Michigan State University in her current position as an Associate Designer at Under Armour, a global manufacturer of sports and casual apparel and footwear. A 2016 graduate with a B.A. in Apparel and Textile Design (ATD) from the Department of Art, Art History, and Design, Burkhardt tailored her undergraduate courseworkto fit…

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Ph.D. Student Awarded King-Chávez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowship

Ja’La Wourman, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures, was awarded the King-Chávez-Parks Future Faculty Fellowship award, which aims to increase the pool of academically underrepresented candidates pursuing faculty teaching careers in postsecondary education. The $35,000 award, funded by the State of Michigan’s Michigan Talent Investment Agency and the Michigan State University Graduate School, is designed to…

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Changes to the Fall Semester

From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the safety of our community and the success of our students have been our top priorities. Yesterday’s communication from MSU President Stanley asking undergraduate students to continue their MSU education remotely has re-emphasized our commitment to these priorities. The recent spread of the virus over the last few days at other universities, coupled with our own outbreak in East Lansing this past June, make it clear we need to minimize the number of people on campus to protect the health of our community.

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