Museums – The Humanities PhD Project

“More than a sound, it’s a feel”

By Nicole Navarro, Doctoral Student, Department of History When I was accepted as a Mellon Fellow at the Charles H. Wright Museum in Detroit, I was excited for an opportunity to work in a museum setting. I have a background in museums as I worked for two and a half years at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture prior to beginning my history PhD journey. I was motivated to apply for the Mellon Fellowship, and specifically to the Wright, to get back to museum work and […]

Mellon/ACLS Public Fellows Competition for Recent PhDs

This year’s Mellon/ACLS Public Fellows program will place up to 25 recent PhDs from the humanities and humanistic social sciences in two-year term staff positions at partnering organizations in government and the nonprofit sector. Now in its eighth year the program aims to expand the role of doctoral education in the United States by demonstrating that capacities developed in the advanced study of the humanities have wide application, both within and beyond the academy. APPLICATIONS DUE: MARCH 14 2018

Rackham Public Engagement Fellowships

Rackham Public Engagement Fellowships are paid opportunities for graduate students to intern at cultural, nonprofit, and educational organizations on campus, in Ann Arbor, and in nearby communities. Fellowships are part time (15 – 20 hours per week) for 8 to 15 weeks during the summer and include a stipend of $3,360 to $5,000 based on time commitment. APPLICATIONS DUE: FEBRUARY 26 2018

Epiphany at the Altar

By Matthew Woodbury Dr. Lehti Keelmann received her PhD in the History of Art in 2016. She is the Assistant Curator of Western Art at the University of Michigan Museum of Art. Walking past formal 18th-century portraits, intricate Tiffany lamps, and an exhibit of stunning fashion photographs, it’s easy to see why Dr. Lehti Keelmann finds the University of Michigan Museum of Art a great place to work. As the Museum’s Assistant Curator of Western Art, Dr. Keelmann works with the American and European holdings of art ranging from medieval enamels […]

What I Did This Summer: My Mellon Fellowship Experience at the Wright Museum

Originally written by Marie Stango for the Public Humanities section of the Discover Rackham blog in November 2015 How can scholars located in the academy make their skills and work relevant to the broader community? This question is a big one for many scholars in the humanities, particularly in my field, history. It is also a particularly relevant question for historians in my major fields of interest, African American history and women’s/gender history. Historians and other scholars have been at the forefront of contemporary political issues this summer, in particular – consider […]

“May the shadow of the moon fall on a world at peace”: Working at the Arab American National Museum

By Mika Kennedy, Doctoral Candidate in English Language and Literature At time of writing [August 2017], I’m in rural Nebraska. I left the Interstate many miles ago, and the towns here follow the rail line. They are punctuated clusters of buildings and gas marts, and billboards celebrating Sinclair Oil. There’s going to be a total solar eclipse in a few days, and there are signs announcing that, too. The Orientals already know that, though. Or at least, that’s what this Nebraskan shopkeep said. The Orientals all know, because birthing babies during […]

Filibustering History

Filibustering History is a collection of podcasts created by Southern New Hampshire University featuring interviews with historians pursuing a variety of careers. A series of 20-30 minute interviews with a range of professionals including an archivist, a preservation compliance officer, a military staff historian, a grade school teacher, and a consultant – among others – provides a perspective on careers outside of traditional academia. Interviewees also get to talk about their research interests and current projects.

How I (Unknowingly) Prepared for My Museum Career

By Matthew Jaber Stiffler, Researcher at the Arab American National Museum and Lecturer at the University of Michigan. Dr. Stiffler received his PhD in American Culture from U of M in 2010. My transition from academia to the world of cultural museums was, initially, supposed to be a temporary exile. My graduate career, eight years in all, was intended to be the prelude to a long and fruitful career as a tenure-track professor. I was attracted to every aspect of the TT lifestyle: flexible work schedule, summers “off”, spending every day […]