April 2025 Public Humanities
A monthly newsletter from the Department of Public & Applied Humanities at the University of Arizona.
In this issue:
Calls for proposals
Upcoming events
Publication and project news
April spotlight: Q&A with Dr. Zoe Bulaitis
Employment and funding opportunities
If you haven’t already, please consider subscribing to our Substack (for free!) so that you receive the newsletter in your email inbox and don’t miss any news in the future. We also encourage you to submit items to share. If you have any questions or would like to connect about the newsletter, please email Giulia Negretto at giulianegretto@arizona.edu.
Calls for Proposals
Public Humanities is a new international open-access, cross-disciplinary, peer-reviewed journal at the intersection of humanities scholarship and public life. The journal invites proposals for themed issues that pose urgent questions on contemporary public issues that require rigorous and relevant humanities knowledge. Public Humanities currently invites submissions for the following themed issues: “The World Beyond the Trowel: Radical Encounters between Archaeology and Community” (submission deadline is August 31, 2025) and “Decolonial Dialogues from Mauritius” (submission deadline is April 30, 2025). Click on the links above to learn more about the variety of formats, themes, and guidelines for publication.
What role might intercultural communicative language education play in promoting a more sustainable world for all? What might an intercultural communicative language education for a more sustainable world look like? What might be the implications for teachers and learners of moving towards intercultural communicative language education for sustainability? The tenth Intercultural Competence Conference (ICC) titled “Intercultural Competence in a Rapidly Changing World: Supporting Sustainable Futures for All” addresses these questions and is now accepting proposals. The event is organized by Center for Educational Resources in Culture, Language, and Literacy at the University of Arizona and will take place from February 27 to March 1, 2026 in a hybrid format in Tucson, AZ and online. Of particular interest to public humanities practitioners involved in language education is the Service/Community-based learning strand. The proposal submission deadline is July 21, 2025. Submit a proposal here.
Upcoming Events
What do a mural project honoring childhood immigration, a walking tour of Denver’s Vietnamese community, a public event engaging with local history through the lens of a cemetery, and a celebration of Georgia’s Indigenous communities all have in common? They are just some of the events in the exciting lineup for the National Humanities Center’s second annual Being Human Festival. Visit the website for a complete list of community-focused events from April 14–28, 2025.
The Community College Humanities Association is pleased to announce a series of upcoming free workshops and Zoom lectures centered around humanities scholarship and pedagogy. The next event—Émigrées and Extended Social Networks: The French Revolution in the Franco-Spanish Borderlands by Dr. Erik B. Lewis—will be held from 3:30pm-5:00pm EST on Wednesday, April 9, 2025.
Projects and Publications
Each month, the National Humanities Center (NHC) highlights the work of several NHC Fellows. The March installment—Unsettling the Colonial Imaginary, which examines imperial ambitions and the roles imagination has played in myriad colonial endeavors—features projects by Mark Cruse (Arizona State University), Mostafa Minawi (Cornell University), and Susanna Lee (North Carolina State University).
The Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) has released a new report that describes the impact of public-facing humanities projects on smaller private colleges and their communities: Humanities Research for the Public Good: A CIC Initiative to Connect Colleges and Communities through Student Research and Public Programs (2019–2024).
In the recent article “Designing the virtual museum with Animal Crossing: New Horizons,” Emily Grace King proposes seven lessons for designing a virtual museum, lessons inspired by the player interaction design of the game’s Animal Crossing Museum.
April Spotlight: Q&A with Dr. Zoe Bulaitis
Dr. Zoe Bulaitis is Editor-in-Chief of Public Humanities (Cambridge University Press) and a scholar of public-facing humanities research. This month, we are excited to highlight her perspectives as a public humanities practitioner via a brief Q&A.
How did you become interested and involved in the public humanities?
My interest in public humanities grew from two main areas. First, a passion for openness and equal access to knowledge; second, a desire to break down systematic and institutional barriers to public understanding of the value of humanities research.
As Editor-in-Chief of the newly launched international and open access journal Public Humanities, I work with a global team to create a scholarly space to challenge traditional boundaries and celebrate the diversity and depth of disciplinary perspectives.
What are some of the challenges involved in public humanities projects?
One of the biggest challenges is navigating institutional structures that often privilege traditional academic outputs over public engagement. We need systems of recognition for collaborative and co-creative work. In particular, I would recognize the challenge of time and trust-building in non-academic partnership work, which is two-way and continually mutually evolving.
Additionally, securing funding for open-access work and ensuring long-term sustainability and access to archival knowledge around public projects is an ongoing significant challenge. Expanding our shared understanding of the processes and practices of public humanities work will alleviate individual demands to problem-solve alone.
What future directions do you envision for your work as a public humanities practitioner?
As an educator, I am currently working on developing a teaching handbook on "Public English" designed to make public-facing humanities work more accessible for educators and students. I am also invested in strengthening the infrastructure for open-access publishing in public humanities through my work with Cambridge University Press.
Employment and Funding Opportunities
The Climate Museum, New York City, seeks applications from humanities scholars for a one-year, full-time Postdoctoral Fellowship in Climate Humanities & Social Justice funded by the Mellon Foundation. The Climate Museum is the first museum in the U.S. dedicated to climate change. The Museum mobilizes the power of arts and cultural programming to accelerate this crucial shift toward climate dialogue and action, empowering visitors with the understanding that they can take meaningful action for climate justice, create community for collective action, and popularize solutions that emphasize justice and equity. The Fellowship will run from August 1, 2025 to July 31, 2026. Apply by April 30.
Mohawk Valley Community College, Utica, New York is currently seeking a full-time Dean of the School of Public and Human Services. The Dean of the School of Public and Human Services is responsible for setting the standard for intellectual engagement, academic integrity, and accomplishment by providing 1) strategic vision for and operational leadership of the academic center, 2) strategic, innovative, and visionary leadership in development of the Schools’ Strategic Plan in support of the College’s Strategic Plan, 3) inclusive and collegial leadership supporting innovation and change in support of the College’s Strategic Plan; and 4) evaluative and responsive leadership serving the needs of faculty, staff, and students. Review start date is April 21, 2025.
New York University Abu Dhabi invites applications for a visiting professor (open rank) position in Public History, with an appointment term of up to three years beginning in the 2025-2026 academic year. The successful candidate will contribute to the ongoing development of a Public History curriculum within the History Program and the Arts and Humanities Division, and collaborate with community and public history stakeholders within and beyond the university. The successful candidate will also teach and develop public history courses in the History Program based on program needs, including the theory and practice of public history. Preference will be given to candidates engaged in aspects of public history at the global level. Ph.D. in History, Public History, or related fields is required by August 1, 2025.
History Colorado invites applications for Summer 2025 internships and fellowships. The El Pueblo History Museum Education Internship in Pueblo, CO, for example, is a 300 hour volunteer internship role that provides selected candidates with the opportunity to share their passion for history with students in a museum setting. During the internship, students will learn how to facilitate school programs, maintain school program materials, and work closely with museum staff to prepare and present programs. Read more about stipend and desired skills here. Apply by April 25, 2025.
The College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, Virginia, seek a full-time Oral Historian. As a member of the Special Collections Research Center (SCRC) staff, and reporting to the Head of Special Collections Public Services & Instruction, the Oral Historian will serve as a steward of the oral history collections: researching, conducting, maintaining, and making them accessible to researchers. Apply by April 24, 2025 for full consideration.
As always, check out the latest postings on the job boards for the National Council on Public History and the American Association for State and Local History, which provide lists of opportunities that might be of interest to those trained in the public humanities.
Interested in careers in scholarly publishing? Check out the Association of University Presses and the Society of Scholarly Publishing job boards.
Interested in careers in museums? Check out the American Alliance of Museums job board.