Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere

The Center proudly introduces our very first cohort for the Alexander Grass Scholars Research Program! This summer, students will delve into humanities research methods and collaborate closely with local community partners. We eagerly anticipate their continued progress into the fall as they develop and present their own projects. Explore the program and meet our students

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On March 28th the Center welcomed Dr. Emma Shaw Crane (Fellow, Society of Fellows, Columbia University) who gave a lecture on “Race, Detention, and Indigeneity in South Florida.” In her talk, Dr. Emma Shaw Crane gave a timely lecture on how migrant children detained at Homestead Temporary Shelter, South Miami-Dade, faced harmful conditions due to an adjacent military base. By thinking across space and scale, her ethnographic approach challenged ideas of detention camps as spaces of exception and instead understood them as porous, permeable, and embedded within suburban landscape.

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On February 15th the Center hosted Dr. Leonard N. Moore (George Littlefield Professor of American History, Department of History, University of Texas – Austin) who gave a lecture on “Name, Image, and Blackness: Race and College Football.” In a riveting presentation, Dr. Moore explored intricate racial dynamics in Southern college football, delving into topics like the transfer portal, NIL opportunities, and the Supreme Court decision on affirmative action. There were over 200 people in attendance, both in-person and via Zoom. Watch the lecture here.

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CHPS is excited to develop an interactive lab space, foster multidisciplinary collaborations, and offer trainings, courses, and consultations. We will be producing virtual exhibitions, StoryMaps, data visualization, metadata transformation, and more. The technologies will be supported by a lab that can enrich humanities research, amplify its impact, and raise awareness of the critical value of humanistic inquiry.

Read more "University of Florida provides strategic funding for Digital Humanities Lab"

On September 21st the Center inaugurated this year’s 2023-2024 Speaker Series: Scales of Belonging with Dr. Dipesh Chakrabarty’s (Professor of History, The University of Chicago) lecture, “Why A New Philosophical Anthropology?”In his talk, Dr. Chakrabarty explored why making a distinction between the globe and the planet as humanist categories calls for a new philosophical anthropology. Listen to the lecture here

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The Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere (CHPS) is thrilled to announce the appointment of its new director, Jaime Ahlberg, who has taken the helm following the departure of outgoing director Barbara Mennel. During Mennel’s six-year term, CHPS saw significant growth.

Read more "The Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere Welcomes a New Director"