Interdisciplinary work can take many forms, from the individual scholar who integrates a diverse range of materials and methodologies into his or her research, to ongoing collaborative ventures that span across multiple departments. The College of Arts and Humanities actively promotes interdisciplinary engagement in graduate education. Our faculty provide graduate students with opportunities to pursue interdisciplinary projects that help students develop the skills necessary to study across disciplines.
WORLDWISE: Arts & Humanities Insights
An answer to the persistent question: What does research look like in the arts and humanities? Prominent scholars speak directly into the camera and share insights on a wide range of research influences and experiences in this intimate series of first-person, documentary style video portraits. Visit www.arhuinsights.umd.edu to hear directly from our faculty on what research is to them.
Faculty in the College of Arts and Humanities regularly develop internationally-recognized interdisciplinary research projects. Recent examples include:
- Vincent Caretta of the Department of English produced an award-winning study of the life of African American Olaudah Equiano, entitled Equiano the African: Biography of a Self-Made Man synthesizes literary studies, African American history, and critical biography. Professor Caretta recently received a Guggenheim fellowship.
- Seung-kyung Kim of the Department of Women’s Studies and founding Director of the Asian American Studies Program, is currently at work on two new projects that explore intersections between gender, politics, and national identity. The first, Women’s Movements in Democratic South Korea: The Trajectory of Institutionalization and the Loss of Autonomy was funded by the Korea Foundation. The second, Global Citizens in the Making?: Transnational Migration and Education in Kirogi Families, was funded by the Social Science Research Council.
- Sheri Parks of the Department of American Studies has written extensively about popular culture, and has been interviewed by the media on everything from Google's email program to TV viewing, and men and their leadership habits. Her research encompasses a range of topics from media criticism to Harry Potter and American culture.
- Hayim Lapin, the Director of the Joseph and Rebecca Meyerhoff Center for Jewish Studies, is currently writing a book on the history of the rabbinic movement in ancient Palestine and an article on Jewish religion in antiquity. His work maps connections between Jewish history, religious studies, and classical history.
- Ira Berlin, Distinguished University Professor, and winner of numerous awards for his ground-breaking research on African American history and culture, recently created a year-long project centered on the University of Maryland, entitled “Knowing Our History: African American Slavery and the University of Maryland.”
