News From The College of Arts and Letters

It’s going to be hard for the students who graduated in the fall of 2020 to forget their last semester at NAU. While the unique challenges of wrapping up their bachelor’s degrees in the midst of a pandemic proved to be unique for many, this semester’s award winners proved resilient through difficult times. Hannah Jackson This semester’s Distinguished Senior award went to Hannah Jackson, who was nominated by the Department of Global Languages and Cultures. She…

NAU’s College of Arts and Letters Latin American Studies, along with the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice and humanitarian group No More Deaths will hold an online Zoom event with Todd Miller, an independent journalist and author of books including Empire of Borders: The Expansion of the US Border Around the World. The online event will take place Monday, September 21 at 5:00 p.m.  Zoom Meeting ID: 919 7645 9611 Password: 703296 Empire of Borders is the third book…

NAU Interior Design professor Jessica "J.R." MacKenzie was among 100 artists whose work was honored as part of The Real World Conservation Trust’s Sketch For Survival 100. Prof. MacKenzie’s artwork "Sweet Ruapuke"  will be exhibited at gallery@oxo in London this November before it is auctioned off to support 3 pre-chosen endangered species projects. “Sweet Ruapuke” was among 600 entries to this year’s contest, and it was chosen in a year when RWCT called the standard “incredibly high.” Professor MacKenzie’s piece…

Faculty from NAU's Latin American Studies will commemorate the 47th anniversary of the coup that overthrew Chilean President Salvador Allende with a screening of the documentary Massacre at the Stadium. The event takes place Friday, September 11, 2020 at 8:00 p.m. The film tells the story of the murder of Chilean folk singer and activist Victor Jara and follows recent attempts to hold an ex-military official, now living in Florida, accountable for the crime. The film will be introduced by…

Northern Arizona University’s Department of Theatre announces this season’s slate of productions, with the intention of keeping those events mostly, if not entirely, online. The season, entitled Venture Into the Unknown, includes performances that will introduce patrons to new ideas and also bring them some classic stories. “With the gathering sizes being so small, and really uncertain, it feels best to create an experience that we know we can deliver on with our students and faculty/staff artist educators,” said Department…

The NAU School of Art announced the first two presenters for its Visiting Lecture Series, Xiaoyu Weng and Jon Rubin. Both will be participating virtually. Dates are yet to be announced. Weng is an Associate Curator at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. At the Guggenheim, she has curated the highly acclaimed exhibitions Tales of Our Time (2016-17) and One Hand Clapping (2018).  Xiaoyu Weng Previously, she served as the founding director of the Kadist Art Foundation’s…

Dr. Ryan Holder has been named the Choral Director of the Year by the Arizona Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association. “All of the letters we received in support of Ryan’s nomination were unified in their praise,” Dr. Sharon Hansen, Membership Chair for the AzACDA, said while presenting the award. “Since I moved to Arizona, I’ve been hard-pressed to meet a single educator with as much commitment, sincerity, humility and dedication to his art and teaching.” Dr. Holder said…

NAU’s School of Art announced plans to launch a new visiting lecture series for the 2020-21 school year. The series will bring in prominent names from outside the university to help students and members of the public round out their art education. Jaewook Lee, Assistant Professor of New Media Art, is heading up the effort, which he said will have online and in-person offerings. “Visiting lecturers help prepare NAU art students for the next steps in their careers,” he said.…

College of Arts and Letters professor and Endowed Chair of the Martin-Spring Institute Bjorn Krondorfer will deliver an online lecture as a part of Northern Arizona University’s 2020 Summer Seminar Series. Dr.  Krondorfer's lecture, entitled Taking My German Father to a Former Nazi Labor Camp, will take place Thursday, July 9 at 5:30 p.m. This year’s lecture series got underway last week and continues through August 13. Presenters range from University of Arizona law professor and Pima County Judge Greg…

The director of Northern Arizona University’s Martin-Springer Institute will head up the national group that represents similar Holocaust studies groups at more than 100 colleges and universities across the continent. Björn Krondorfer was elected chair of the National Higher Education Leadership Consortium of Centers in Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights Studies by his fellow directors. Björn Krondorfer, director of the Martin-Springer Institute The organization brings together groups that are committed to securing, integrating, and advancing studies…

NAU’s College of Arts and Letters announced its Teacher of the Year for the 2020-2021 academic year is Angela Hansen.  Dr. Hansen is a professor in the English Department. She has taught at NAU since 2005. "I would like to thank the college for acknowledging my efforts in preparing the next generation of teachers for their important work,” said Dr. Hansen. “I would especially like to extend my gratitude to Dr. Laura Gray-Rosendale for nominating me and to the students…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.   This year’s Outstanding Senior is Daniela Rivera Aguayo. She was born in Nogales, Sonora, Mexico, and moved to Arizona when she was 10. She came to NAU from Sahuarita, where she graduated from Walden Grove High School. She is a double-major in Spanish…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.    Alexander Burdiss is the Standard Bearer for the College of Arts and Letters class of 2020. He was nominated by the School of Music. He is a music performance: trombone major with a computer science minor. According to the faculty that nominated him,…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.   Emma Parish was nominated for Outstanding Senior by the Comparative Cultural Studies Program. She graduated from Basis Flagstaff before coming to NAU. She chose NAU because it allowed her to keep costs down and stay “close to friends and family, which has always…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.   Vanessa Mora was nominated for outstanding senior by the Art Department. She is an art education major with a minor in Spanish. She has a 3.97 GPA going into her final semester, and will be certified to teach Pre-K through 12th grade upon…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.   McKenna Kiesling is the Outstanding Senior nominee from the Department of Philosophy. She is receiving a degree in Philosophy, Politics, and Law. She has maintained a 4.0 GPA during her studies, and has also participated in NAU’s Blue Key Honor Society and the…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.   Kacie Debevc is the nominee for the Department of Theatre. She came to NAU from Las Vegas, Nev., and is a theatre performance major with a minor in arts and cultural management. While here, she was a part of the Native Bridge Program,…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.   Anthony Danza was nominated by the History Department, though he also majored in Criminology and Criminal Justice, along with a minor in Italian. He has earned a 4.0 GPA during his time at NAU, and has been a part of the university's model…

Normally, the College of Arts and Letters honors its nominees for Outstanding Graduating Senior with a banquet. Since that’s not possible this year, we’re letting the public get to know the honorees here on our website.   Tyler Clark is the nominee for the English Department. He is an English major with a German minor. He will also receive certificates in literature and creative writing, and had a 4.0 GPA going into his last semester. Like many Lumberjacks, Tyler came…

Latin American Studies and NAU No More Deaths Events for Spring 2020 Tue February 11, 4:30 pm International Pavilion: The Amazon: Forest and Culture Dr. Pete Fulé, Regent’s Professor of Forestry: “Why and how much is the Amazon burning?” Dr. Melissa Liebert, Assistant Professor of Anthropology: "Culture Change and Health among the Indigenous Shuar of Amazonian Ecuador."   Tue March 3, 5:30 pm in LA 120, Dr. Jeremy Slack, Assistant Professor of Geography, University of Texas, El Paso, will give a…