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ARHU Year in Review 2022-23

"Now more than ever, the world needs the arts and humanities for their role in helping us to recognize our interdependence,  act with empathy and  create a more just  and joyful world."

Message From The Dean

As we turn the page on the 2022-23 school year, I am reflecting on all that I learned in my first year as dean of the College of Arts and Humanities. I am proud to lead this college of artists, intellectuals, creators and critical thinkers who study the human experience with a focus on how we have evolved as diverse peoples and how we can advance the public good.

Now more than ever, the world needs the arts and humanities for their role in helping us to recognize our interdependence, act with empathy and create a more just and joyful world. People all across the United States, and indeed the world, are looking for models and best practices for how to respond to and solve the grand challenges of our time—threats to democracy, global inequality, climate change, health disparities, censorship, racism, sexism, antisemitism, homophobia and xenophobia, to name a few. ARHU is up to the challenge.

Read the full message

Click through to view the Year In Review on Issuu, or scroll down to view the digital version.

Boren Scholarship Winners

Four Boren Scholars

Arabic Flagship students Amaya Moody ’23, Luke Hanno ’23, Robert Hedberg ’23 and Gillian Boline ’23 (left to right) were accepted into the Arabic Flagship Program Capstone Year with an advanced rating in Arabic to study in Meknes, Morocco, during the 2023-24 academic year. All four students are also recipients of the prestigious Boren Scholarship.

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Student Excellence

Students in the College of Arts and Humanities bring a range of backgrounds, interests and experiences to the classroom and larger campus community. Last year, 10 ARHU students won national scholarships and awards. Over 200 ARHU students studied abroad. Our graduates find success in jobs and graduate education (96% placement rate), and our alumni are making waves as artists, entrepreneurs, diplomats, archivists, journalists, entertainers, scholars, educators, lawyers, doctors and more.

Scroll down for more stories of student and alumni excellence.

The M at UMD.

Undergraduate Highlights

Jeanette Bolden ’22

Studio art major Jeanette Bolden ’22 co-led the design process for the official 2022 Hispanic Heritage Month poster for Prince George’s County, teaching middle and high school students from across the county the principles and techniques of screen-printing to create the piece.

‘Unidos’ in Prince George’s County

Paulina Leder ’23

Paulina Leder ’23, who graduated with a dual degree in history and German with a triple major in French, was named one of the University of Maryland’s Undergraduate Researchers of the Year for 2023.

Paulina Leder ’23 Named Undergrad Researcher of the Year

Graduate Highlights

Art History and Archaeology Graduate Students

Nine graduate students in the Department of Art History and Archaeology (Maura Callahan, Ashley Cope, Montia Daniels, Joohee Kim, Caroline Kipp, Cléa Massiani, Maggie Mastrandrea, Dominic Pearson & Gabrielle Robinson-Tillenburg) developed and curated the Driskell Center’s exhibition “RINGGOLD | SAAR: Meeting on the Matrix,” with support from Professor of American Art Jordana Moore Saggese and Driskell Center staff. 

Printmaking As A Radical Act

Caroline Angle Maguire

Ph.D. candidate in the Department of History Caroline Angle Maguire received the 2023–24 American Dissertation Fellowship from the American Association of University Women. It covers one year of living expenses while writing the dissertation.

Lawrence Barasa M.M. ’23

Maryland Opera Studio (MOS) student Lawrence Barasa Kiharangwa M.M. ’23, voice performance, won first place in the 2023 Jensen Foundation Vocal Competition, which supports “the most promising young professionals in the field of opera.” MOS alumni Öznur Tülüoğlu M.M. ’21 and School of Music Admissions Specialist Véronique Filloux M.M. ’18 were finalists in the competition.

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More Stories of Student and Alumni Excellence

Undergraduate

Graduate

Alumni

Alumni Spotlight

Asma Naeem Ph.D. ’11

Asma Naeem Ph.D. ’11, art history, was named the director of the Baltimore Museum of Art. She is the first person of color to lead the museum and oversees its collection of more than 97,000 objects and an annual operating budget of $23 million.

Shara McCallum MFA ’96

Poet Shara McCallum MFA ’96 was named a 2023 Guggenheim Fellow. The fellowship will support McCallum as she travels to Jamaica to work with contemporary visual artists to inspire her next poetry collection, which centers on the technique of “ekphrasis,” a vivid form of descriptive writing in response to visual art.

Poet Shara McCallum MFA ’96 Named 2023 Guggenheim Fellow

Tomeka Reid ’00

Tomeka Reid ’00, music, a jazz cellist and composer, was awarded a 2022 MacArthur Foundation fellowship, known as the “genius grant.” Reid is known for her unorthodox approach, incorporating musical elements from the African diaspora as well as unexpected items like pencils or clips to transform the sound of her instrument.

School of Music Alum Wins Coveted MacArthur "Genius Grant"

Rehan Staton ’18

Rehan Staton ’18, history, raised $70,000 for janitors and other workers while attending Harvard Law School. The former sanitation worker’s story was covered by hundreds of publications including The Washington Post, Good Morning America, People Magazine and CBS News. 

World-Class Faculty

New faculty pose for a picture.

Our world-class faculty are breaking boundaries in research, teaching, mentorship and addressing issues around race, equity and social justice. They are dedicated leaders who excel in their fields of expertise and beyond. In 2023, nine of the 15 projects funded through UMD’s Independent Scholarship, Research and Creativity Awards were from ARHU faculty.

Faculty Achievements, Books and Podcasts

Frederick Douglass Center for Leadership Through the Humanities

The Frederick Douglass statue at the University of Maryland.

The inaugural Maryland Humanities Summer Institute, an initiative of the new Frederick Douglass Center for Leadership Through the Humanities, enrolled 20 middle and high school teachers from the region for seminars led by ARHU faculty members. Organized by Associate Dean for Academic Affairs GerShun Avilez, topics included how to handle cheating and academic misconduct, teaching about hip-hop culture and Frederick Douglass’ legacy.

Public Humanities And Partnerships

Cy Keener sets up a probe in the Arctic.

ARHU faculty are partnering with colleagues locally and internationally to focus on groundbreaking and impactful research on topics including racial and social justice, education, pandemic preparedness and ethical technologies. Their work will shape the future of our community, state, nation and world.

 

Read more stories of public humanities and partnerships.

Grand Challenges

In support of programs, initiatives and projects designed to impact enduring and emerging societal issues, the University of Maryland’s Grand Challenges Grants Program awarded $30 million in funding to 50 projects and 185 faculty members across every school and college on campus. Among them, ARHU faculty were the recipients of one Institutional Grant, three Impact Awards, four Team Project Grants and one Individual Project Grant.

Grand Challenges Grants Program

The Arts and Arts for All

Rest Stop painting by Phoebe Beasley.

Arts

The David C. Driskell Center presented “Telling Our Story: Community Conversations with Our Artists” featuring the selections of 30 guest curators—all art appreciators but not experts—who each chose a few favorite pieces from the center’s vault for display, and wrote letters to the artists explaining what spoke to them about the work.

More arts stories
ARHU Dean Stephanie Shonekan chats with pop legend Dionne Warwick.

Arts For All

UMD’s Arts for All initiative partners the arts with the sciences, technology and other disciplines to develop new and reimagined curricular and experiential offerings that nurture different ways of thinking to spark dialogue, understanding, problem-solving and action. 

 

More stories from the initiative

Bequests Make an Impact in History and Art

Jean Farrell’s in memoriam tribute to her late husband Richard Farrell will fund education and research for graduate students in the Department of History, continuing his legacy of inspiring and supporting students. Richard, a beloved associate professor of history, taught at UMD for almost 30 years.

Giving

Projection screen at Clarvit Courtyard

The Clarvit Studio and Courtyard for Research in Art and Design is a new indoor-outdoor space in the Parren J. Mitchell ArtSociology Building that expands opportunities for the College of Arts and Humanities to showcase work. Thanks to the generous support of  Nancy ’78 and Chuck Clarvit, the space features cutting-edge technology, updated facilities and a 25-by-30-foot screen. 

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Dancers perform on a dark stage.

For FY23, the Maryland State Arts Council (MSAC) provided more than $680,000 in support of The Clarice’s performing arts programs that reach across campus and our local community. In addition to a grant awarded through their Grants for Organizations program, this year, MSAC’s support included a special round of Arts Relief funding, approved by the State of Maryland, with the aim of providing increased economic stability as the arts sector continued to navigate the effects of the COVID pandemic. 

Paula Santen ’58

Paula Santen ’58 discovered her love of art and design while pursuing a degree in home economics at the University of Maryland. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science, she went on to enjoy a varied and adventurous career—first as an interior designer and eventually in numerous retail management roles across the country. Santen has been a dedicated supporter of art students at the University of Maryland for many years, providing valuable resources for need-based scholarships. Recently, she committed to bequeath an additional $1,250,000 to establish three endowed funds for undergraduate and graduate art students,  ensuring that “generations of future students will be able to pursue their educational passions with a reduced financial burden.” Santen said she loves to learn about the amazing work of UMD art students and enjoys receiving notes and letters from those she’s supported. “I’m sure they’ll all go on to do absolutely wonderful things,” she said, “and that is very rewarding.”

 “Year in Review” is published by the Office of Marketing  and Communications in the College of Arts and Humanities.  To receive additional copies of this publication, please contact the Dean’s Office at 301.405.2090.

Learn more about college leadership and academic programs.