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The Interdisciplinary Faculty Seminars harness the intellectual energies of the Wake Forest humanities and arts faculty to promote and support interdisciplinary collaboration and research that represents the leading edge of humanities scholarship and creates exciting bridges between different disciplines and units within the University. These groups, which meet regularly over the course of a semester or academic year, receive modest project funds and participate in the annual Faculty Seminars Symposium that the Humanities Institute hosts every spring.

Current Interdisciplinary Faculty Seminars

2024-2025

Language, Theory, and Artificial Intelligence

Convener: Ryan Shirey (English)

Participants: Erin Branch (English), Tobias Flattery (Philosophy), Erin Henslee (Engineering), Nisrine Rahal (History), Matthew Shields (Philosophy), Carter Smith (English)

In a moment where large language models and generative artificial intelligence seemed poised to reshape, or perhaps even to trouble our understanding of human creative and critical processes, this seminar will investigate the intersections of philosophy, ethics, writing, language, and creativity with regard to emergent digital technologies that seek to emulate forms of human linguistic expression.

The Promises & Perils of Late Capitalism

Convener: Sara Dahill-Brown (Politics & International Affairs)

Participants: Brittany Battle (Sociology), Ben Coates (History), Tivia Collins (Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies), Tess Wise (Politics & International Affairs)

Capitalism as an idea and a system promises a great deal, yet episodic and ongoing crises make clear that its excesses and shortcomings immiserate and imperil many. Participants in this seminar will study and discuss works that attempt to grapple with capitalism’s striking tenacity in the face of its contradictions.

Genocide and Memory Studies

Convener(s): Barry Trachtenberg (History/Jewish Studies) & Lisa Blee (History/Cultural Heritage & Preservation Studies)

Participants: Rian Bowie (English), Michaelle Browers (Politics & International Affairs), Eranda Jayawickreme (Psychology), Sarah Lischer (Politics & International Affairs), J’Nese Williams (History)

This seminar will provide an opportunity to engage with a series of current academic and public debates within the realm of genocide and memory studies. Among these are recent conversations in the United States over memorials to white supremacy and slavery; the Israel-Hamas War and Palestinian genocide; the Sri Lankan civil war; and debates in formerly colonized societies and settler states over ways to contend with the legacies of imperialism and ongoing structures of colonization. The interdisciplinary nature of the topic also provides fertile ground for productive exchange and discussion of the seminar participants’ own research.

Global Migrations and Refugees

Convener: Nelly van-Doorn-Harder (Study of Religions)

Participants: Michaelle Browers (Politics & International Affairs), Tivia Collins (Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies), Rayed Khedher (Middle East and South Asia Studies), Peter Knapczyk (Middle East and South Asia Studies), Sarah Lischer (Politics & International Affairs), Ryan Schroth (French Studies), Ian Taplin (Sociology)

In response to the pressing global issue of displacement and migration, we propose a faculty seminar focused on the complexities of refugees and forced migration. This seminar aims to provide a platform for faculty to critically discuss the political, religious, psychological, economic, social, legal, and ethical implications of refugee movements, and how we as teacher-scholars at Wake Forest can contribute to addressing these challenges in our courses and research.

Current Faculty Workshop Seminar

2024-2025

Building Campus and Community Solidarity through Art in Research and Teaching

Convener: Andrea Gomez Cervantes (Sociology)

Participants: Lucy Alford (English), Brittany Battle (Sociology), Claire Crawford (Politics & International Affairs), Molly Kederka (Art), Nikki Moore (Art), Samanta Ordóñez-Robles (Spanish Department), Katharine Scott (Psychology), Rudy Shepard (Art), Kimberly Wortmann (Study of Religions)

The goal of this workshop is to create a space for faculty from various disciplines (i.e., social sciences, humanities, and art) to come together to develop the skills and tools to engage in research and teaching praxis and pedagogy grounded in the community and art. Art is an important tool to build relational and constructive academic and community relationships, while also being key to creating nuanced cross-disciplinary collaborations and policy changes. While community-engaged research has become a “hot” area in many disciplines, little research is developed with true reciprocal community partnerships and goals. Through a focus on art and community, this workshop will allow participants to both develop new and re-think old research projects and teaching practices, create connections with community members and organizations, and center art as a means for research and teaching pedagogy and praxis.

Past Seminars

Workshop Seminars