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College of Arts and Humanities

Prospective Student Event: Arts, Humanities & You

Join us October 19 to learn about our academic programs.

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The Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies

ARHU Professor and Dean Emerita Bonnie Thornton Dill Awarded 2025 UMD President’s Medal

The pioneering feminist scholar receives the highest honor bestowed upon a member of the UMD community at Convocation on September 17.

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Communication, Linguistics

UMD Researchers Will Use AI to Help Boost HPV Vaccine Confidence

New $2.8M NIH grant funds interdisciplinary chatbot project with UMB.

Read More about UMD Researchers Will Use AI to Help Boost HPV Vaccine Confidence

What interests you?

learning about...

a career in...

Whatever your interests and aspirations, ARHU is committed to providing the knowledge, skills and opportunities all our students need to write their own stories and chart their own paths.

"In ARHU, you’re learning about how people interact with the world and each other. My goal is to build things that people are going to use. Just technology knowledge can only go so far. You have to understand how people are going to use them to be truly successful."

Ozzie Fallick '14, Software Engineer, Google
Linguistics

"Cross-cultural communication is one of the most important skills that I learned at ARHU, and I use it to engage and inform the community in Barbados and the Eastern Caribbean about our events, exchanges and any other information that supports our key policy priorities in the region. ARHU gave me the tools to understand why in diplomacy, it’s as much about what you say as how you say it."

Krystle Norman '08, Foreign Service Officer, U.S. Department of State
Spanish and Portuguese

"I had always loved art, but I never knew you could make a career out of it until I studied abroad in Rome. There, I took a full course load of art courses and learned all about the factors of being an art professional. It was life-changing. Now I feel lucky that I’m doing something that I’m so passionate about."

Laura Sheridan Raiffe '09, Regional Account Manager, Christie's Fine Arts
Art History and Archaeology

"One of the most important things I got out of my ARHU experience is my ability to parse arguments, think critically and see multiple sides of an issue. Being in law school, it’s important to do that—it’s a skill I use every day. Not a class goes by, not a case gets read that this skill doesn’t come into play."

AJ Clayborne '13, Student, Harvard Law School
English

GRAND CHALLENGES

DEMAND FEARLESS IDEAS

The research and creative works of our faculty, students and alumni are setting the agenda for transformative dialogue about the value of the arts and the humanities in the world today.

Research Highlights

New Scholarship from The College of Arts and Humanities

Explore Our Research

Happening at ARHU

Today marks a pivotal moment for the College of Arts and Humanities. We are launching our new ARHU Strategic Plan, “Timely Actions, Timeless Impact: The Arts and Humanities at UMD.” This plan affirms the essential role of the arts and humanities in addressing the urgent challenges of our time while charting a path toward a more just, creative and connected future. And what better way to mark this milestone than a conversation with ARHU Dean Stephanie Shonekan and NPR host Peter Sagal? We hope you can join us this evening at 6 p.m. at The Clarice as they discuss a range of topics including the four strategic commitments that will propel ARHU forward over the next five years: transformative thinking, boundless creativity, expansive empathy and meaningful futures. Learn more by exploring our strategic plan online and watching our new video that brings these commitments to life. Links in bio.
Great to see Dean Stephanie Shonekan at the @postlive Global AI Summit with some of @univofmaryland’s leaders in human-centered AI- from ARHU: Neda Atanasoski (@harriettubmanwgss), Fabrizio Cariani (Philosophy) and Eric Pacuit (Philosophy) and from the INFO college: Sheena Erete (@infocollegeumd). Important conversations around the role of higher education in shaping the future of AI. Left to right: Pacuit, Cariani, Shonekan, Erete, Atanasoski. #AIMaryland #beinghuman #humancenteredAI
“Growing up, I rarely saw artists who looked like me or shared my cultural background represented in mainstream galleries or museums,” said art history grad Karen Vidangos ’13. That absence became her drive: to make museums feel inclusive, accessible and alive with diverse voices. Her path wasn’t linear: She left college during the financial crisis, then returned to finish her art history degree at UMD while working full time. She went on to roles at the Smithsonian, Glenstone and the Guggenheim, while sharing her experiences as @latinainmuseums. She later founded @latinxartcollective, a platform that amplifies underrepresented voices and connects hundreds of Latinx artists nationwide. Now, as senior manager of social media at The Met, Vidangos continues to use her voice and vision to open doors for others—showing that the museum can be their museum too. Read more about her story at the link in our bio. #hispanicheritagemonth

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