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Welcoming Our New Faculty

Aug. 30, 2022—Vanderbilt College of Arts and Science is honored to welcome our newest faculty members for the 2022-23 academic year, who add to our growing community of distinguished scholars. “We’re thrilled to welcome these scholars as they join the talented and accomplished A&S faculty,” said John Geer, Ginny and Conner Searcy Dean of the College of Arts...

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Didi Jackson: Breeding human connection through poetry

Oct. 14, 2021—“Sometimes our motivations aren’t what we asked for—they are given to us.” That is the experience of Visiting Assistant Professor of English Didi Jackson, who joined Vanderbilt’s College of Arts and Science in Spring 2021. A true lover of the humanities, Jackson brings to A&S a deep passion for telling stories through poetry and visual...

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Department of Medicine, Health, and Society expands collaborative potential with new hires

Apr. 20, 2021—In 2007, Vanderbilt’s College of Arts and Science launched an innovative new major called Medicine, Health, and Society (MHS). From attracting just 40 enrollees in its first year, the interdisciplinary program has grown rapidly into one of A&S’s most popular majors. More than 700 undergraduate students are now studying toward an MHS degree, and MHS...

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Tiffany Ruby Patterson: Raising the voices of the unheard

Feb. 17, 2021—From a young age, Associate Professor of African American and Diaspora Studies Tiffany Ruby Patterson loved to learn. She read voraciously throughout her childhood: a set of World Book encyclopedias purchased by her uncle, an entire library left behind by the former owner of her family’s apartment building. That early love of books continued into...

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Renã Robinson: Helping others through the power of research and representation

Feb. 11, 2021—For Associate Professor of Chemistry Renã Robinson, science has long been about helping people. She was an avid scientist-in-training throughout her childhood and went to college intending to become a cardiac surgeon. But when she got close to the end of her undergraduate career, she said, “I realized I just didn’t have another 12 years...

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Antonis Rokas elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science

Dec. 9, 2020—Antonis Rokas, Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Biological Sciences, has been elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The lifetime honor, first awarded in 1874, recognizes pre-eminent scientists who engage in pioneering research; excel at teaching, mentoring, and collaborating; and advance public understanding of science. The AAAS said in a...

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Friedman lab finds unexpected opportunities in COVID-adjusted research activities

Nov. 30, 2020—When Vanderbilt ramped down research activities early in the COVID-19 pandemic, the Friedman Lab was better-positioned than many. Led by Associate Professor and Vice Chair of Biological Sciences Katherine Friedman, the lab conducts cell-based research on DNA replication and repair. Experiments run for just one week at a time, so Friedman and her staff were...

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College of Arts and Science Faculty Fight COVID-19 in Latin America

Jun. 17, 2020—Vanderbilt’s College of Arts and Science has long had connections to Latin America. Through the Center for Latin American Studies, the work of Latin American specialists in departments such as history and anthropology, and numerous student and faculty research trips, the college has forged strong ties to the region, its universities, and its people. So...

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College of Arts and Science Faculty Elected to American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Jun. 2, 2020—Two members of the College of Arts and Science faculty—Distinguished University Professor Houston A. Baker and University Distinguished Professor George Hornberger—have been elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences (AAAS). Founded in 1780 by John Adams and John Hancock, among others, the AAAS has previously elected luminaries and leaders such as Benjamin Franklin,...

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Communication Studies Professor Organizes Pandemic Help for Healthcare Workers

May. 4, 2020—Claire Sisco King will be the first to say that she isn’t an activist. But, looking at her pursuits over the past six weeks, you might have a hard time envisioning her as anything but. From working with physicians to create a petition for stay-at-home orders in Tennessee to her current campaign to provide resources...

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