Barbara Van Nostrand

UCLA announces formal launch of the UCLA Stavros Niarchos Foundation Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture

The UCLA College has announced the formal establishment of the UCLA Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture following a two-year campaign that raised an additional $4 million in external match funds. The Center was initiated in October 2017 by a $5 million grant from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF). The additional matching funds include major gifts from George and Tina Kolovos, who established the George P. Kolovos Family Centennial Term Chair in Hellenic Studies, and from Demos and Carol Anagnos, who established the Aris Anagnos Family Chair in Hellenic Studies. In addition, endowments have been…

UCLA announces new endowed chair in Hellenic Studies

UCLA has established a new endowed chair in Hellenic Studies. A gift commitment from George and Tina Kolovos has created the George P. Kolovos Family Centennial Term Chair in Hellenic Studies, which supports a distinguished scholar in the UCLA Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture. The Center is a hub for multidisciplinary research, teaching and public programs aimed at the Los Angeles Hellenic community. Dean of Humanities David Schaberg said, “Our deep gratitude goes to the Kolovos family for their generous investment in this new endowed chair. It’s a tremendous boost to the Niarchos Foundation…

New endowed term chair in Hellenic Studies at UCLA

UCLA has received a gift commitment from Demos and Carol Anagnos and the Aris Anagnos Foundation to establish the Aris Anagnos Family Chair in Hellenic Studies in the UCLA Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture. The chair, which will provide funds to support the work of a distinguished scholar and graduate students in Hellenic Studies, honors the memory of Demos’ father, Aris Anagnos, a UCLA alumnus, real estate developer, humanitarian and social justice activist who passed away in 2018. Demos Anagnos serves on the UCLA College Division of Humanities Advisory Board. Dean of Humanities David…

A message from UCLA’s Dean of Humanities

Dear UCLA Humanities Family: As I write this, we have successfully navigated seven weeks of remote teaching, learning, and administration at UCLA. While the transition to remote classrooms came with unprecedented challenges, it also revealed new strengths within our community. I am deeply grateful to the faculty, teaching assistants, staff, students, and supporters who have shown immense resilience, joining together on short notice to make our remote classrooms work. Because you have shown such concern and support for the humanities at UCLA, I want to keep you informed about the latest developments in the division and our plans for navigating this…

Center for Jewish Studies Director Sarah Stein named to new Viterbi Chair in Mediterranean Jewish Studies

Prominent historian Sarah Abrevaya Stein has been named the inaugural holder of the Viterbi Family Endowed Chair in Mediterranean Jewish Studies in the UCLA College divisions of humanities and social sciences. Stein, who directs the UCLA Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies and is a history professor, has received prestigious accolades for her scholarship, writing and teaching, including two National Jewish Book Awards, the Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature, a Guggenheim Fellowship and the UCLA Distinguished Teaching Award. She previously held the Maurice Amado Endowed Chair in Sephardic Studies at UCLA for 12 years. Stein’s 2019 book, “Family Papers: A Sephardic…

Update from Humanities Dean David Schaberg during COVID-19 campus closure

On behalf of the UCLA Division of Humanities, I trust that you and your loved ones are safe and well during these unprecedented times. You may already have learned about the measures UCLA is taking to stem the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on campus. I write today to share our progress, our plans, and our gratitude with you as we move forward together in this rapidly changing new reality.Our first priority is to protect the well-being and safety of our Bruin family while ensuring that students can finish their courses and degrees. Over the past few weeks…

EPIC remote learning and teaching page

The Excellence in Pedagogy and Innovative Classrooms (EPIC) Program has created a remote learning and teaching page to help ensure that faculty and TAs have the resources to teach effectively during these changing times. The remote learning and teaching page features resources aimed to help all instructors transition their courses to remote teaching and provides links to relevant, continuously updating “living documents” about online learning and teaching support at UCLA. It also includes links on how to get direct help, including tutorials, online workshops, and appointments with experts from a range of centers/programs on campus. In addition, instructors may find…

UCLA receives $25 million from Uniqlo founder for Japanese literature and culture studies

UCLA has received a $25 million gift from Tadashi Yanai, the chair, president and CEO of Japan-based Fast Retailing and founder of clothing company Uniqlo. The funds will endow the Tadashi Yanai Initiative for Globalizing Japanese Humanities, which will bolster UCLA’s status as a leading center for the study of Japanese literature, language and culture. The gift is the largest from an individual donor in the history of the UCLA College’s humanities division. A previous donation of $2.5 million from Yanai in 2014 created the Yanai Initiative, a collaboration between UCLA and Waseda University, one of Japan’s most prestigious universities….

UCLA French and Francophone professor named one of 2019’s 100 most influential Africans

Alain Mabanckou, literature professor in the UCLA Department of French and Francophone Studies, has been named one of 2019’s 100 most influential Africans by leading politics and culture magazine, “New African.” A renowned novelist, poet and professor, Mabanckou is recognized for his contributions to the global literary scene. Known for his novels and non-fiction writing depicting the experience of contemporary Africa and the African diaspora in France, he is among the most recognized writers of Franco African contemporary literature. His most recent novel, “Black Moses,” winner of the Hurston-Wright Legacy Award, follows the story of an orphan navigating his way through…

UCLA professor of Spanish and Portuguese, Héctor Calderón, wins award for latest book

Héctor Calderón, a UCLA professor of Spanish American, Mexican, and Chicana/o literature and cultures, was awarded first place for Best Academic Themed Book at the 21st Annual International Latino Book Awards on Sept. 21. “The Aztlán Mexican Studies Reader, 1974-2016,” (UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Press, 2018) which was edited and is introduced by Professor Calderón, is made up of a series of 16 essays that explore the connection and impact Chicana/o studies have on understanding the cultural and political history of Mexico. The essays, three of which were commissioned specifically for the reader, discuss topics ranging from Mexican arts…