• 2019-08-28 - Maria Hadji (Hadjipolycarpou) is a new Lecturer in Modern Greek Studies. She holds a Ph.D. in Comparative Literature from the University of Michigan. Before coming to Illinois she taught at Columbia University (2014-2017) and at The City University of New York, Queens College (2017-2019). Her research interests include Mediterranean Studies, Modern Greek Studies, Island Studies, Autobiography,...
  • 2019-08-23 - Even before Janani Comar was enrolled in an eight-year-long Medical Scientist Training Program in New York City, she said she had her doubts about whether she’d finish the curriculum. Of course, that was in retrospect, as in May of this year she completed her Master’s Degree in Religion at Illinois prior to accepting an offer from the University of Toronto to enroll this fall in its Doctor of...
  • 2019-07-17 - Two University of Illinois undergraduates who are minoring in Arabic, Enddy Almonord and Barghav Sivaguru, are among 244 students nationwide awarded David L. Boren Scholarships, with a third Illinois student named an alternate. Enddy Almonord, of Champaign, a 2018 graduate of Central High School, received $20,000 to continue her study of Arabic for eight months at Qasid Institute in Amman,...
  • 2019-07-16 - Eduardo Ledesma, Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese, is the recipient of a Conrad Humanities Professorial Scholar award beginning in 2019-2020 and continuing through 2023-2024. The award is designed to recognize tenured faculty members in LAS who are established or emerging leaders with exceptionally strong scholarly recognition and significant promise for continued achievement. “...
  • 2019-07-16 - Anna María Escobar, Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese, is the recipient of the Campus Award for Excellence in Graduate Student Mentoring from the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS). Professor Escobar has had a major impact on graduate student scholarship and professional development. Her placement of students attests to how well she prepares her students to obtain prestigious...
  • 2019-06-27 - {Ryan Shosted, Associate Professor of Linguistics, was recently interviewed for an article about immigrants to the US who speak indigenous languages. As part of his commitment to public engagement, Professor Shosted has since 2008 collaborated with the local Q'anjob'al (Maya) community of Champaign-Urbana to publish Maya literacy materials and help educate the non-Maya community about the Q'...
  • 2019-06-27 - Harriet Murav, Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures, and Comparative and World Literature, has been named the Catherine and Bruce Bastian Professor of Global and Transnational Studies. Murav earned her PhD in Comparative Literature from Stanford University in 1985. She joined the U of I faculty in 2002.  She is the editor of The Slavic Review, an international...
  • 2019-06-25 - Three SLCL graduates are among 13 U of I students or young alumni/ae who have accepted student Fulbright grants to pursue international educational, research and teaching experiences across the globe this coming year. Sean Chapman, of Joliet, Ill., received a BA in linguistics in December. Chapman was offered one of 25 English Teaching Assistant positions in India. He said he is eager to further...
  • 2019-06-17 - Professor Eric Calderwood's book, Colonial al-Andalus: Spain and the Making of Modern Moroccan Culture (Harvard University Press, 2018), has been translated into Spanish. Calderwood is an Associate Professor of Comparative and World Literature at Illinois. Colonial al-Andalus traces the origins of a widespread idea about Morocco: namely, the idea that modern Moroccan culture...
  • 2019-06-12 -             Ryan Mills, a 2019 graduate with a BA in East Asian Languages and Cultures, has been awarded a U.S. Department of State Critical Language Scholarship to study critical languages during the summer of 2019.             He is one of two U of I undergraduates to be so honored,...
  • 2019-06-12 - Antony Augoustakis, Professor of Classics, has been named a University Scholar for 2019-22. The University Scholars program aims to recognize outstanding members of the faculty and to provide each with a funding allocation to enhance her or his scholarly activities. University Scholar awards represent recognition of the recipient’s excellence and the University’s commitment to foster...
  • 2019-05-29 - Rini Mehta, Assistant Professor of Comparative and World Literature, and Religion, Mehta has been named a Faculty Fellow for 2019-2020 by The National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) for her project, “The Big Picture: Media, Capital and Networks of Influence.” Mehta, one of seven professors receiving such fellowships this year, will be working with...
  • 2019-05-29 - Carolyn Fornoff of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese is one of five assistant professors from across the U of I campus selected to participate in the 2019-2020 National Center for Faculty Development and Diversity – Faculty Success Program (NCFDD) organized by the Provost Office. The program is intended for tenure-track and tenured faculty members who are looking for the perfect...
  • 2019-05-29 - It was 2017 when Eric P. Whitaker first met Hassana Alidou. They came from opposite sides of the world, but they had common ground: Whitaker, then acting deputy assistant secretary of state for African affairs with 27 years of experience in the U.S. Foreign Service, was about to take on a new role as U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Niger. Alidou, meanwhile, was the Nigerien ambassador to the U...
  • 2019-05-22 - The May 2019 SLCL Convocation ceremony took place in Foellinger Auditorium on Saturday, May 11. The featured speaker was Harriet Murav, from the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures and the Program in Comparative and World Literature. Murav is the Catherine and Bruce Bastian Professor of Global and Transnational Studies. In attendance were 108 graduates, 35 faculty members, and nearly...