A note from our director

As we turn the corner to 2021, many of us have been taking stock of 2020. This has certainly been a year of conflict and loss. Yet our 2019–20 annual report also documents the ways faculty, staff, and graduate students with whom we work met a pandemic, political turmoil, attacks…Continue reading

STRENGTHEN: Supporting Scholars, Growing Connections

4 Dec 2020February 3, 2021

At the heart of Obermann's philosophy is our support for scholars of all ages, at all stages of their careers, and across institutions. One way we fulfill our primary mission—to…

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BELONG: Obermann as Connective Space

2 Dec 2020February 4, 2021

While the Obermann Center provides many tangible, material benefits to the UI campus, some of our work is more ineffable. While the Center itself is relatively small—we are a team…

COLLABORATE: One Table, Multiple Perspectives

1 Dec 2020February 4, 2021

Obermann Working Groups provide space, structure, and discretionary funding for groups led by faculty that may include advanced graduate students, staff members, and community members who share an intellectual interest.…

LATINIDADES: Mellon Sawyer Seminar

2 Nov 2020February 8, 2021

Ariana Ruiz, Darrel Wanzer-Serrano, and Rene Rocha co-directed the Mellon Sawyer Seminar in 2019-2020. The 2019–20 Andrew W. Mellon Sawyer Seminar, Imagining Latinidades: Articulations of National Belonging, was drastically affected…

COMMUNITY: Accessible & Shared

2 Nov 2020February 8, 2021

Community is central to the Obermann Center's core values. We are invested in sharing the work of University of Iowa researchers and artists by making their work accessible to larger…

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LEADERSHIP: Advocating for the Role of an Emerging University

2 Nov 2020February 16, 2021

The Obermann Center represents the University of Iowa in multiple conversations around the country regarding the work of the humanities, the future of the modern university, the evolution of graduate…

REIMAGINE: A New PhD

2 Nov 2020February 8, 2021

The aim of Humanities for the Public Good, the three-year project funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, is to reimagine the future of the humanities PhD as a community-facing,…

RIPPLE EFFECTS: Publications & Grants

2 Nov 2020February 8, 2021

Work seeded at the Obermann Center often grows into larger and more complex projects years later. We are always pleased to see the ways that our funding creates ripple effects,…

TRANSFORM: Creating Vibrant, Equitable Spaces

2 Nov 2020July 7, 2021

The Spring 2020 Obermann Humanities Symposium, What Can Museums Become? was organized by Joyce Tsai (Art & Art History, CLAS; UI Stanley Museum of Art) and Jennifer Buckley (English, CLAS)…

ACTUATE: Pragmatic & Hands-On Opportunities

2 Nov 2020February 8, 2021

The Book Ends: Obermann Center and Office for the Vice President for Research’s Book Completion Workshop program provides funding and administrative support for faculty who have a mature manuscript that…