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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois

@hriatillinois.bsky.social
27 followers 52 following 29 posts

Fostering interdisciplinary study in the humanities, arts, and social sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. We incubate bold ideas, build bridges between communities, and shape conversations nationally and internationally.

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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
🌟Professor Ángel García will be reading from his latest collection, Indifferent Cities, which uses multiple forms and source materials in exploration of family and identity across multiple generations. 📅 October 15, 4:00 p.m. 📍 Levis Faculty Center, Room 422
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
📚 Join us for a panel discussion on Percival Everett’s novel “Erasure”! 🌟 The conversation will explore “Erasure” from multiple perspectives, with artists and scholars offering different insights into the novel and the ideas it inspires. 📅 October 9, 3:00 P.M. 📍 Levis Faculty Center, Room 300
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
HRI Summer Faculty Fellow Mania Taher spent her summer conducting fieldwork in New York’s Bangladeshi neighborhoods. The resulting interviews, archival research, and photographs and drawings will help shape her current book manuscript. 📖 Read more about Taher’s research➡️ go.illinois.edu/taher
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
🔶🔷Join us on October 8 for the next “Up Against Erasure” series event! Professor Nanna Bonde Thylstrup of Art and Cultural Studies at the University of Copenhagen. 📅 October 8 📍 Levis Faculty Center, Room 300 The event is free and open to the public! We hope to see you there. ✨
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Doctoral student Johnson Adegbola shares the deeply meaningful experience of working with DREAAM at Prosperity Gardens in the HWW Summer Bridge Program this year. 🔗Discover the story: go.illinois.edu/news-gazette-Johnson
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
🌟 HRI and Wecuillinois are now accepting applications for the spring 2027 Humanities in Action (HIA) program! 📆 Info Session: Oct. 1 ➡️ go.illinois.edu/HIAinfosession 📫 Applications due: Oct. 16 ➡️ go.illinois.edu/HIA
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
📚 PYGMALION Readings HRI is proud to sponsor PYGMALION! Join us for readings that resonate with this year’s HRI fellowship theme, “Up Against Erasure,” on September 25 and 26. Check out the full festival schedule ➡️ go.illinois.edu/pygmalion
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
✨ HRI’s Opening Reception: September 9, 4–6 PM✨ Join us as we kick off the new academic year and gather with the humanities community on the Levis Faculty Center back patio. We hope to see you there! 🎉
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 02/09/2026
🩰As a choreographer, educator, and performer, Paige Cunningham Caldarella's research is situated at the intersection of ballet, contemporary ballet, and modern dance as both artistic practice and a site of deep movement investigation. ➡️ go.illinois.edu/caldarella
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 31/08/2026
“The fellowship helped me continue building a book that asks how Breonna Taylor’s story is being carried forward and what her remembrance can teach us about how the history of 2020 will be told.” –– HRI Summer Faculty Fellow, Alisa Hardy Read more ➡️ go.illinois.edu/hardy
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
HRI Summer Faculty Fellow Amanda Daniela Cortez spent five weeks in Cusco, Peru, researching and workshopping her book manuscript, “The Politics of Multispecies Relating: Indigeneity, Gender, and Photography Tourism in the Peruvian Andes.” Learn more about her research ➡️ go.illinois.edu/cortez
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
With the support of an HRI Summer Faculty Fellowship, Professor Yazmín M. Crespo-Claudio further developed the seminar course ARCH 403, “Spatial Theories from/with the Caribbean.” 📖Read more about Yazmín’s work ➡️ go.illinois.edu/Claudio
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
📅 Mark your calendar for our fall events! This fall, HRI is hosting a variety of humanities events that are free and open to the public. We’ll be featuring international, national, and local guests with topics that reflect this year’s theme, “Up Against Erasure.” ➡️go.illinois.edu/HRICalendar
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
📖 HRI’s annual print newsletter is out! Take a look back at last year’s highlights and discover what’s new for the year ahead. ✨This year’s cover design was inspired by erasure poetry, echoing our 2026–27 fellowship theme, Up Against Erasure. Read more ➡️ go.illinois.edu/HRInewsletter
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
New book out: “Radical Mothering,” co-authored by Humanities Without Walls grand research challenge PI Nadine Naber, with Erica Bentley and Mothers of the Kidnapped. www.haymarketbooks.org/books/2845-r...
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
“The Summer Bridge program has setting an example to students and administrators on the need to see our impact as scholars and as a university beyond academic journals and institutional recognitions.” - Nathalie Martinez ☞Read more Go.illinois.edu/SummerBridgeNathalie
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
“It has strengthened the same empathy, flexibility and commitment to reciprocity that has already shaped my community-engaged work in Ghana, and now, through Root Causes.” -Janet Husunukpe, College of FAA Ph.D. student. ☞Read more about her experience: go.illinois.edu/SummerBridgeJanet
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 16/07/2026
“The fellowship highlighted the value of building those relationships and demonstrated how humanities research can have an impact well beyond the university.” - Erica Kolson ☞Read more about her experience: go.illinois.edu/SummerBridgeErica
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
“I have gained a deeper appreciation for the power of the humanities to create positive social change and to ensure that academic knowledge serves the broader public in meaningful and lasting ways.” ☞Read more about his experience: go.illinois.edu/SummerBridgeFredrick
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
“I have found that not only was I able to learn and grow, but that our community partners are so appreciative to have people that they trust to work hard, believe in their mission, and contribute to their organization.” - Madeline Belland ☞Read more: go.illinois.edu/SummerBridgeBelland
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 07/07/2026
“This experience is far more than an academic fellowship; it has been a masterclass on how the public humanities can actively dismantle systemic barriers and foster deep regional and global solidarity.” - Johnson Adegbola ☞Read more about his experience: go.illinois.edu/SummerBridgeAdegbola
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 25/06/2026
Rita Dove joined us in April to share her award-winning poetry and the stories behind her work. ✨ If you missed the reading, now’s your chance to experience it! The recording is now available on Media Space and ready to watch. ➡️ go.illinois.edu/DoveReading
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 24/06/2026
🎉 We’re proud to introduce the six participants in the 2026 Summer Bridge Program! This program connects humanities graduate students with local community partners to address community needs while developing professional skills and experience.

 
Read More➡️go.illinois.edu/Bridge26
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
The meaning of Juneteenth: read Bobby J. Smith II's piece on the holiday and his family's deep personal connection to its traditions. Smith is a professor in African American Studies and a member of HRI's advisory committee. theconversation.com/juneteenths-...
theconversation.com
Juneteenth’s real meaning is written on the plates of smoked meats, potato salad and watermelon
One Black Texas family’s Juneteenth memories show how food became a powerful expression of emancipation, self-determination and remembrance.
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Leadership news: Historian Jerry Dávila has been named the next director of the Humanities Research Institute. He currently serves as Executive Director of the Illinois Global Institute and holds the Jorge Paulo Lemann Chair in Brazilian History. Full story➡️ go.illinois.edu/davila
Portrait of Jerry Dávila taken outside near a tree
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
“This position has allowed me to strengthen my writing skills, drafting and revising several articles, a skill that I am confident will help me succeed not only academically, but professionally.” – Lucy Roller, Prindable intern for 2025–26 at HRI. Read more🔗 go.illinois.edu/lucyinternspotlight
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
“Redefining Womanhood, Reclaiming Belonging in Student Development” Asmaa Elsayed’s research focuses on spirituality among college students in higher education, particularly women from underrepresented and minoritized backgrounds. Read more ➡️ go.illinois.edu/AsmaaElsayed
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 11/05/2026
📚 Interested in starting a reading group with colleagues? HRI will help promote your group to broaden participation and connect you with new members. Submit a short description through the link below before May 31 and be ready for fall 2026! 🔗 go.illinois.edu/Readinggroup2026
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Humanities Research Institute at Illinois @hriatillinois.bsky.social · 08/05/2026
Earlier this month, the Humanities Research Lab Showcase was held at Levis, where students shared their research and reflected on what they gained from the courses. It was exciting to learn about Bethel AME Church and to see the zines created in the Spanish class.
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