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School of Liberal Arts News Center

This is your central location for IU School of Liberal Arts news. Check back regularly for the latest stories highlighting the research and academic accomplishments in and around our liberal arts community.

 

IU School of Liberal Arts geography professor, Jeffrey Wilson joined a group of Indiana University researchers in the College of Arts and Sciences at Indiana University Bloomington and the School of Liberal Arts at Indiana University Indianapolis to study the potential benefits of a European-style certification for local foods, known as a “Geographical Indication” (GI), to boost the Hoosier state’s rural economies.

The study asserts that GI designation could help Indiana’s small agricultural communities thrive by linking the quality of local foods to their place of origin-akin to protected names like Champagne in France, or Parmigiano-Reggiano in Italy.

IU School of Liberal Arts professor of history and the director of the IU Indianapolis Arts and Humanities Institute Dr. Jason Kelly has joined a group of Indiana University Indianapolis researchers to tackle one of Earth’s biggest challenges — food security and climate responsiveness — with one of its smallest assets: insects. Supported by a three-year, $2 million grant from the National Science Foundation’s Global Centers program, they will develop sustainable and scalable solutions aimed at shifting traditional agriculture toward a bio-based model using insects.

IU School of Liberal Arts alumna Alice Wong (English and Sociology, BA ’97) is among the 2024 MacArthur Fellows announced this week. Wong is a writer, editor, and disability justice activist who enriches the political and cultural visibility of people with disabilities, celebrating the positive power of humanity.

The prestigious MacArthur Fellowship “Genius Grants” recognizes individuals across disciplines who “demonstrate the ability to impact society in significant and beneficial ways through their pioneering work or the rigor of their contributions.” Each of the approximately two-dozen fellows receive no-strings-attached grants of $800,000, which the MacArthur Foundation describes as an “investment in a person's originality, insight, and potential."

Deeply rooted in disability justice, Wong uses her capacity for compelling storytelling across multiple media platforms. She publishes personal stories that expose ableist attitudes, policies, and practices across a society that pushes disabled people to the margins. She also shares her own experiences navigating the world as a disabled person with a progressive neuromuscular disease.

Wong is the founder and director of the Disability Visibility Project (2014) and a columnist for Teen Vogue. Wong served on the National Council on Disability (2013–2015), and her essays have appeared in The New York Times, KQED, and YES! Magazine, among other publications.

In late August, Frank Palumbo drove from upstate New York to IU Indianapolis to read letters, look at paintings and enjoy the little pieces of history that belonged to a man he considered a good friend.

Cavanaugh Hall is home to the Ray Bradbury Center Museum, one of the largest single-author archives in the country dedicated to the writer of books such as “Fahrenheit 451” and “The Martian Chronicles.” Bradbury was from Illinois and lived in Los Angeles, but his life’s work wound up in Indianapolis due to his connections with Hoosiers.

The IU School of Liberal Arts is proud to share that literary achievements of three celebrated faculty authors are recognized on the coveted shortlist as part of the 2024 Eugene and Marilyn Glick Indiana Authors Awards. Dr. Edward Curtis, William M. and Gail M. Plater Chair of the Liberal Arts, Director, Arabic Studies Program, and Professor of World Languages and Cultures, Dr. Chris Lamb, Professor of Journalism and Public Relations, and Sarah Layden, Assistant Professor of English, were all honored with being named to the 52 shortlist.

The high-profile competition selects works by writers with deep Indiana connections whose work has been published in the last two years. Nine titles are chosen from a diverse set of stories in categories that include nonfiction, fiction, genre, middle grade, drama and young adult.

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