News

Florence Levy Kay Postdoctoral Fellowship in Immigration and American Society

The American Studies Program and the Department of Sociology at Brandeis University invite applications for a two-year,  non-renewable Florence Levy Kay Postdoctoral Fellowship in immigration and American society, beginning Fall 2013. We seek a scholar who examines the immigrant experience in America, but we are open to expertise in any period, with a specialty in any immigrant group or groups, and we welcome a variety of disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives. Ph.D. should be in hand by the commencement of the fellowship and preferably received within the past six years.

The Fellow, who will be appointed as a faculty member at the rank of lecturer with a joint appointment in American Studies and Sociology, will teach one course per semester and receive a salary for 2013-2014 of $55,903 (plus benefits), with moving expenses (around $1,500), and a research fund of up to $4,000 per year, with a COLA adjustment the second year. The Fellow will contribute to the vibrant intellectual communities of American Studies and Sociology; interdisciplinary connections and mentoring are available and encouraged.

Send a letter of interest outlining a research project and a possible course offering and a CV, including the names and addresses of three references, to Thomas Doherty, Kay Fellow Search Committee, American Studies Program MS005, Brandeis University, Waltham MA 02453. Brandeis University is an equal opportunity employer, committed to building a culturally diverse intellectual community, and strongly encourages applications from women and minority candidates. The deadline for application is November 20, 2012.

Honored alum shares good news and praise for former Department Chairman Larry Fuchs

Julieanna Richardson '76, a major in American Studies (as well as Theatre Arts), is, we believe, the first of the graduates in our program to receive an honorary degree.  Professor Lawrence H. Fuchs, now a resident of Canton, Massachusetts, was long the chair of the Department of American Studies. Her letter is below.

Dear Professor Fuchs:
 
[Greetings to you this Memorial Day weekend.]
 
Professor Whitfield called and told me that he told you of my recent honor. I WANTED TO SHARE THIS GREAT NEWS WITH MY MENTOR, MY FRIEND. [I had called you to tell you the news, but the phone just rang and Professor Whitfield told me that you have an assistant that if I e-mailed you, your assistant would read you my e-mail. I was so pleased to know this.]
 
I just received an Honorary Doctorate of the Humanities from Howard University on Saturday-May 12th in Washington, D.C. I was honored along with MSNBC’s Chris Matthews, singer John Legend and Pulitzer Prize winner author Isabel Wilkerson(author of The Warmth of Other Suns). It was a day that has immense meaning to me as you know. It is an honor that I will cherish for a lifetime. I could not help think of you the day of my acceptance. You and Brandeis played a seminal role in my development.  You not only agreed to supervise my honors thesis, but you nurtured me and my desire to explore my own history. You and Betty also welcomed me into your lives and every decision from that point on, I would consult with you on. There is nothing like a mentee/mentor relationship and in you, I found one of the world’s best. I wanted to write and let you know that The HistoryMakers digital archive now has users in 51 countries around the world.  While our work is far from over, people are now starting to appreciate my work and vision. Thank you, Professor Fuchs—thanks for believing in me and my dreams.
 
 
Forever in gratitude in respect.
 
 
Julieanna L. Richardson
Founder & Executive Director
The HistoryMakers


Three faculty members attend British Assoc. of American Studies in London

American Studies Professors Tom Doherty, Maura Farrelly and Steve Whitfield all attended the British Association for American Studies Annual Conference in April 2012.

Doherty, currently teaching in Singapore at the Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, gave the keynote address, “The Only Studio with Any Guts”: Warner Bros. and Nazism, 1933-1941. Farrelly’s presentation was “There is Nothing in Sacred Writ against Indulgence in the Weed”: Tobacco’s Challenge to Methodist Asceticism; while Whitfield gave a presentation titled “The Theme of Indivisibility in the Postwar Struggle Against Prejudice.”

Program alum '76 awarded Howard University doctorate

Stephen Whitfield on "The Jewish Retail Giant and the Black Community"

Brian Donahue buys local farm

Joyce Antler Named Head of Social Sciences Division

American Repertory Theater's "Porgy & Bess" an experiential learning experience for students from American Studies, Theater, AAAS, WGS, Education and more.

Richard Gaskins and Eileen McNamara, both of American Studies, win two top faculty awards

Brian Donahue on Weston forest project (Boston Globe)

Brian Donahue on sugar maples and a bit of needed rain (Boston Globe)

Jerry Cohen explains why baseball has become America's pastime, but soccer strikes out with U.S. audiences

Maura Farrelly wins Michael Walzer '56 Award for Teaching

William Goldsmith, retired American studies professor, dies at 90

Shilpa Davé looks at Indian arranged marriage and matchmaking on American television

Stephen Whitfield details impact of Joseph Heller's Catch-22 (LTS Special Collections Spotlight)

Joyce Antler and Richard Gaskins talk with The Hoot about sabbatical

Shilpa Davé selected for Visiting Professors Program 

Brian Donahue on local food and farming (Boston Globe)

Stephen Whitfield wins teaching award

Antler receives Sachar Medallion

The presentation of the Abram L. Sachar Medallion was awarded to Joyce Antler in early June at the Sixtieth Anniversary Celebration of the Brandeis National Committee.  The event included a gala dinner, featuring an address by Brandeis president Jehuda Reinharz.

Farrelly wins Young Scholars in Religion Scholarship

Maura Farrelly has been selected to participate in the 2009-11 Young Scholars in American Religion Program at the Center for Study of Religion and American Culture in Indianapolis, IN.  Funded by a grant from Lilly Endowment, the program assists early career scholars in the field of American Religion with their teaching, research, and professional development.  Ms. Farrelly will participate in a series of six seminars over the course of the next year and half, during which time she will produce a scholarly paper and design a new course which she hopes to offer at Brandeis during the 2010-11 academic year.

Joyce Antler wins Best Book award

Joyce Antler has received the 2008 Emily Toth Award from the Popular Culture/American Culture Association for Best Book on Women's Issues in Popular and American Culture. The book, "You Never Call! You never Write!  A History of the Jewish Mother," was also awarded the Sophie Brody Medal Honorable Mention Citation from the Jewish American Library Association for Outstanding Achievement in Jewish Literature.