News

“Children know how to tell their stories,” Annette Joseph-Gabriel said. It’s imperative that we listen. Joseph-Gabriel, John Spencer Bassett Associate Professor of Romance Studies and associate professor of Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Studies at Duke, is letting the voices of long-dead children be her guide in her newest book, Enslaved Childhoods: Survival and Storytelling in the Atlantic World, under contract with Harvard University Press. She received a Fellowship from the National… read more about NEH Fellowship Supports Research on Enslaved Childhoods  »

Edith London, In Flight, 1995. Mixed media, 13 x 16 inches (33 x 40.6 cm). Collection of the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. Museum purchase and partial gift of Lee Hansley Gallery; 1997.25.1. Courtesy Nasher Museum of Art “It’s fulfilling to have a collaborative public outcome born from a course,” Saskia Ziolkowski, associate professor in Romance Studies, admits. She’s referencing Mapping Jewish Modernism, an exhibit currently on view through August at the Rubenstein… read more about Charting the Landscape of Jewish Modernism »

Sarah Quesada, Andrew W. Mellon Assistant Professor of Romance Studies and Assistant Professor of Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Studies is the recipient of a 2023 Honorable Mention for a First Book from The Modern Language Association of America (MLA) for The African Heritage of Latinx and Caribbean Literature, published by Cambridge University Press.     The award committee stated: "Sarah M. Quesada’s The African Heritage of Latinx and Caribbean Literature is a… read more about Sarah Quesada Receives MLA 2023 Honorable Mention for First Book »

This celebration marks the 11th annual International Creole Celebration at Duke University. Since 2012 eighteen students Duke (10), UNC at Chapel Hill (3), Vanderbilt University (2), University of Virginia (2), Stanford University (1) have already presented papers in Kreyòl, and eleven scholars around the world (Ayiti (4), Jamaica (1), Saint-Lucia (2), South Africa (1), Mauritius (1), Trinidad & Tobago (1), Martinique (1) have been invited to Duke University to share their work on an aspect of Kreyòl with scholars,… read more about International Creole Day Celebration, Duke 2023 »

SPRING 2024 – ROMANCE STUDIES Undergrad Lit & Culture Courses   FRENCH – Spring 2024 FRENCH 204S Terre, Savoir, Etre (WF 11:45-1:00, Languages 114B) From the French concept of terroir to Tahitian fenua, this course will use Global French voices to explore how cultures conceive of land, knowledge, and being as integral to each other. We will explore how those concepts inform our identities and communities through a strong emphasis on experiential learning, including community engagement, and… read more about See the Spring 2024 Course Offerings »

The department of Romance Studies is delighted to announce that Annette Joseph-Gabriel has been appointed the John Spencer Bassett Associate Professor of Romance Studies. In a statement to colleagues, department Chair Martin Eisner said: “This distinction recognizes Annette’s powerful and field-defining scholarship, which she crafts into works of remarkable narrative and theoretical sophistication.” With a dual appointment as Associate Professor of Gender, Sexuality and Feminist Studies, Joseph-Gabriel conducts… read more about Annette Joseph-Gabriel Appointed John Spencer Bassett Associate Professor »

Four faculty in the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences were recently recognized by the Arts & Sciences Council for outstanding achievements in undergraduate teaching. Members of the council — in collaboration with the dean's office — choose the award recipients each year by considering student evaluations, teaching statements and recommendations from colleagues as part of the selection process. Four awards are given each year, spanning the breadth of undergraduate disciplines offered in the college. “The… read more about Four Trinity Faculty Receive Undergraduate Teaching Awards  »

On March 2nd, faculty from Duke University, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Virginia convened on the latter’s campus to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Partnership for Less Commonly Taught Languages (LCTLs), a consortium of three universities that has aimed to expand access to key languages from priority regions. Through online synchronous courses taught by instructors from the three schools, students can study languages not typically offered at other U.S. colleges, including Haitian Creole, Swahili, K’… read more about Celebrating a Decade of Less Commonly Taught Languages at Duke and Beyond »

As neoliberal regimes took power across the Americas during the 20th century, a new form of fiction emerged, says Esther Gabara. But it wasn’t of the familiar literary nature. Rather, it took shape in new mediums and practices that revolutionized contemporary art in response to the brutality of the time. A professor of Romance Studies and Art, Art History & Visual Studies who studies art, literature and visual culture from modern and contemporary Latin America, Gabara examines the development in her recently released… read more about A New Book from Esther Gabara Explores Art of the Americas Under Neoliberalism »

Summer is a great time to catch up on reading. Books from more than a dozen Duke authors offer insight on a range of topics – from gratitude for everyday life to the antislavery writings of Henry David Thoreau. Below is a roundup of some of the most recently published and soon-to-be-out titles. Many of the books, including new editions of previous titles, can be found on the “Duke Authors” display shelves near the circulation desk in Perkins Library. Some are available as e-books for quick download. Most can also be… read more about Hot Off the Press: Summer Reading From Duke Authors »

The first day of the inaugural Duke Climate and Sustainability Teaching Fellows’ weeklong workshop series is wrapping up when Alex Glass assigns homework to the assembled faculty participants: “Before tomorrow, I challenge you to come up with a topic from your course that you think doesn’t relate to climate change at all. Tomorrow we’ll discuss ways it does.” The Climate and Sustainability Teaching Fellows Program may be new, but for its three faculty co-leads — Charlotte Clark, Associate Professor of the Practice of… read more about For the Climate and Sustainability Teaching Fellows, the Connections are Myriad »

Five members of the Class of 2024 have been named to the third class of Nakayama Scholars.  The Nakayama Public Service Scholarship bolsters the university’s efforts to encourage students to use their Duke experience to engage with significant challenges facing communities around the world. The students represent multiple disciplines across Duke’s academic departments as well as a variety of future careers pursuits. Juniors Nhu Bui, Grace Endrud, Jacob Hervey, Chloe Nguyen and Ronit Sethi were chosen for their… read more about Duke Names Third Class of Nakayama Scholars »

Each year, Duke Service-Learning recognizes students, faculty and community partners with the Betsy Alden Outstanding Service-Learning Awards. Betsy Alden was a pioneer in service-learning, beginning her work at Duke during the 1980s. Read more about the legacy of Betsy Alden HERE. Recipients are chosen because they represent an exceptional commitment to the ideals of service‐learning. Each winner receives $150 to further develop his/her community-building and leadership skills. They are also recognized at the… read more about 2023 Alden Award Winners Represent Exceptional Commitment to Service-Learning »

Translanguaging, the practice of leveraging all of one's linguistic knowledge to create meaning, is a pedagogical practice that meets students where they are in the process of learning a new language by validating students' individual experiences and allowing for mistakes. “Translanguaging Fridays” is the brainchild of two faculty from the Department of Romance Studies who created a classroom community that celebrates the use of multiple languages instead of limiting the… read more about Innovative Learning: Translanguaging Fridays at Duke »