The Institute Podcast

Associate professor Brandy Brimmer reflects on her fellowship experiences and research in historical legal practices regarding Black attorneys post-Emancipation, and Black women in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Black attorneys and claims agents in the post-emancipation South. Brimmer’s work emphasizes the interdisciplinary nature of her work and the importance of archival research in understanding historical legal practices and community building.

Brian Hsu (FFP ’24) joins us this episode to share how he fell in love with language and linguistics from a young age. Additionally, Hsu describes his recent projects about uncovering Cherokee word order and “Starship Generative Enterprise,” a Star Trek-spin on modern linguistics. We also discuss Hsu’s time as a Faculty Fellow in Spring 2024, where he worked on “Principled Probability in Language.”

Institute for the Arts and Humanities Director Patricia Parker sits down with faculty program director Viji Sathy and Rob Kramer for discussion on academic leadership and their involvement with the Institute's Tyson Academic Leadership Program. Kramer, who recently left the IAH and moved to Oregon, had served as the Institute’s senior leadership advisor since 2011 working as co-facilitator to the Chairs Leadership Program and the ALP. With a bittersweet farewell to Kramer and his leadership, he, Parker, and Sathy discuss their collaborations and the enduring success of the ALP and its alumni.

Political science professor Milada Vachudova (FFP ’05, ’15) discusses her research on political change in Europe. In this episode, Vachudova provides context for recent democratic backsliding in countries like Hungary and Poland, and its impact on civic participation and engagement. Vachudova, who joined the IAH as the Faculty Director for Strategic Initiatives in July 2024, also shares about her work in connecting with other faculty and units across the university and beyond.

Inger Brodey (FFP '11, '24) shares details about her new publication, Jane Austen and the Price of Happiness, and her upcoming Jane Austen research she worked on as a recent faculty fellow. In addition to book projects, she discusses her public humanities service with UNC's School of Civic Life and Leadership, the Jane Austen Summer Program, and more. 

Adam Versényi is a professor of dramaturgy in the UNC Department of Dramatic Art. In this episode, Versényi shares his collaborative work in dramaturgy and translation projects. He also discusses his previous fellowships with the IAH and also what the current Chairs Leadership Program cohort is up to this year. 

History associate professor Michelle King specializes modern Chinese gender history and food history. In this episode, she discusses her experience in the IAH Faculty Fellowship Program and the research behind her new book, Chop Fry Watch Learn: Fu Pei-mei and the Making of Modern Chinese Food (Johns Hopkins University Press).

In advance of the 2024 Weil Lecture on March 25, Director Patricia Parker conducts a phone interview with speaker Judy Woodruff. During her lecture, Woodruff will speak on her reporting project, Judy Woodruff Presents: America at a Crossroads. In this podcast, Director Parker asks Woodruff about her distinguished career in journalism, the inspirations for the project, and the divisions and conversations she witnesses throughout it. 

Assistant professor of religious studies Hugo Mendez (FFP '22) discusses his research in his recent book projects: one exploring the role of St. Stephen in early Christian communities, and the most recent examining the biblical books of John. He also describes his fellowship experiences – at the IAH and at the National Humanities Center – and how they provided the needed time and interdisciplinary connections to work on his current book.

Andrea Bohlman is an associate professor of music who received a 2023 Summer International Collaborative Research Grant from the Institute for the Arts and Humanities. Part of Bohlman’s research examined the consent and politics of sound and sound-recordings, and she collaborated with colleagues at Polish universities. In the podcast, she talks about her research and the impact of the $20,000 grant.

Historian Katherine Turk (FFP ’21) discusses her new book, The Women of NOW: How Feminists Built an Organization that Transformed America (The Macmillan Group). She shares the history of the National Organization for Women, and on three leaders who helped shape the organization.

Actor and playwright Samuel Ray Gates (FFP ’22) talks about his Faculty Fellowship experience, where he continued his work on his one-person show, When the Swelling Goes Down. Gates shares the themes of the show, the writing process, and the ways comedy can be used to explore and heal through difficult issues. Recorded in spring 2023.

Recorded in spring 2023, Courtney Rivard, a 2023 fellow in the Tyson Academic Leadership Program, discusses her work as Director of the digital literacy and communications lab at UNC-Chapel Hill. She also shares recent projects in digital humanities, gaming studies, and a book that she worked on during her spring 2022 Faculty Fellowship.

African, African American and diaspora studies professor Kenneth Janken received the 2022 George H. Johnson Prize for Distinguished Achievement by an IAH Fellow. On March 23, 2023, he received the award and delivered a lecture, "Bringing the Wilmington Ten to the Public's Attention: One Historian's Experience in Public Humanities.” Before his lecture, he sat down to talk about his research, public reaction to the case, and his Fellowship experiences.

Recorded in February 2023, Director Patricia Parker talks with 2023 Reckford Lecture speaker and historian Ana Lucia Araujo about her research. Watch the 2023 Reckford Lecture on the IAH website: https://iah.unc.edu/araujo-2023-reckford-lecture/