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Gift of the Humanities
PhD students in American & New England Studies can dream a little bigger thanks to an anonymous $1 million gift, part of which will create a new Public Humanities Fund to support research projects, award grants, and fund research activities beyond campus. “This donor supports…the idea that we need highly educated, credentialed specialists to guide the general public through a story of American history that is accurate, rich, and engages the humanities, art, history, and politics,” says Joseph Rezek, an associate professor of English and director of the program.
Art Biennale
The Venice Art Biennale is one of the largest and most important visual and conceptual art exhibitions in the world. Representing BU in 2024 was Louis Chude-Sokei, a professor of English and director of BU’s African American & Black Diaspora Studies Program. His spoken-word-and-electronics piece Thresholds welcomed guests to the island of La Certosa throughout the seven-month event. The theme of this year’s event was “Foreigners Everywhere.” The idea was to examine outsider status from a variety of angles. “My work…appeals to people I never expected, folks who just don’t fit in and find themselves always foreigners, even in their own homes,” says Chude-Sokei, who is also BU’s George and Joyce Wein Chair in African American & Black Diaspora Studies.