2022-23 Faculty Achievements
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.
Find a sampling of achievements from our faculty from the 2022–23 academic year below.
Christopher Bonner, an associate professor of history, and Robert Levine, a Distinguished University Professor in the Department of English, contributed interviews to the PBS documentary “Becoming Frederick Douglass.”
Caroline Eades, professor of cinema and media studies and French in the School of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures, was awarded a Residency Fellowship at the Camargo Foundation in Cassis, France. Eades is working on a project that examines the contributions of Habib Benglia, the first actor of African origin in French cinema.
Ruth Enid Zambrana, a Distinguished University Professor in The Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, was elected to the National Academy of Medicine. Her scholarship has transformed our understanding of how social determinants of health influence outcomes for minority women and population health.
Philip S. Resnik, professor of linguistics, was named an MPower Professor by the University of Maryland Strategic Partnership: MPowering the State. He receives $150,000, allocated over three years, towards his research.
Antoine Borrut, associate professor of history, was awarded a 2023 fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities to finish his book about the role of astrological histories in early Islam.
Jared Mezzocchi, an associate professor in the School of Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies, won an Obie Award and Helen Hayes Award.
Professor of History Richard Bell was the recipient of UMD’s Kirwan Faculty Research and Scholarship Prize, recognizing a faculty member for a highly significant work of scholarship completed in the last three years. The award recognized his book, “Stolen: Five Free Boys Kidnapped into Slavery and their Astonishing Odyssey Home.”
Sayan Bhattacharya, an assistant professor in The Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, received the Sylvia Rivera Award in Transgender Studies by the Center for LGBTQ Studies.
Professor of English and Digital Studies Matthew Kirschenbaum was named a 2023 Distinguished University Professor, the highest appointment bestowed to tenured faculty by the university.
Assistant Professor of Arabic Anny Gaul received a National Endowment for the Humanities’ Summer Stipend grant to support her upcoming book “Nile Nightshade” about the rise and role of the tomato in modern Egypt.
Associate Professor of History and Jewish Studies Shay Hazkani was awarded a 23-24 National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship for Scholars Conducting Field-Based Humanities Research in Palestine.
Professor of History Julie Greene, Professor of Theatre Performance Scot Reese and Professor of French and Francophone Literatures Valerie Orlando were named 2023 Distinguished Scholar-Teachers.
Associate Professor of Dance Performance and Scholarship Crystal U. Davis received the National Dance Education Organization’s 2023 award for Outstanding Leadership in Justice, Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion.
Distinguished University Professor of Philosophy Peter Carruthers won a National Science Foundation Scholars’ Award, covering the 22–23 academic year, to write a book about affect and motivation.
Notable Faculty Books and Podcasts
Distinguished University Professor Emeritus of History Jeffrey Herf’s book “Israel’s Moment: International Support for and Opposition to Establishing the Jewish State, 1945-1949” won the Bernard Lewis Prize, awarded annually by the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa.
Neel Ahuja, a professor in The Harriet Tubman Department of Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and the Department of American Studies, received an honorable mention in the Association for Asian American Studies 2023 Book Awards for “Planetary Specters: Race, Migration and Climate Change in the Twenty-First Century.”
Associate Professor of Ethnomusicology Siv B. Lie’s “Django Generations: Hearing Ethnorace, Citizenship, and Jazz Manouche in France” was awarded the 2022 William A. Douglass Prize in Europeanist Anthropology from the Society for the Anthropology of Europe.
Associate Professor of Communication Catherine Knight Steele’s “Digital Black Feminism” received the 2022 Nancy Baym Book Award from the Association of Internet Researchers, the 2022 Diamond Anniversary Book Award from the National Communication Association and an honorable mention for the Rhetoric Society of America Book Award.
ARHU Dean and Professor of Ethnomusicology Stephanie Shonekan’s podcast “Cover Story with Stephanie Shonekan” won a first place award from the Public Media Journalists Association.
Professor Emerita of Classics Judith Hallett and her co-editors received the 2023 Bolchazy Pedagogy Award for their book “Ancient Women Writers of Greece and Rome."
Professor of American Studies Psyche Williams-Forson won a 2023 James Beard Media Award for her book, "Eating While Black: Food Shaming and Race in America." The awards celebrate the "nation's top food authors, broadcast producers, hosts, journalists, podcasters, and social media content creators."
Associate Professor of American Studies La Marr Jurelle Bruce was awarded the Modern Language Association’s First Book Prize for “How to Go Mad without Losing Your Mind.” The selection committee noted that “Bruce develops original and provocative readings across media and genres, and the impact of his work will be felt in multiple fields and disciplines."