Faculty and Staff Notes

Associate Professor of Music Theory Andrew Pau published the chapter "The Franckist-Wagnerian Strain (Duparc, Chausson, Chabrier)" in The Cambridge Companion to French Art Song (Cambridge University Press, 2026), edited by Oberlin Conservatory alumnus Stephen Rumph. The chapter examines the mélodies of late-19th-century French composers who were influenced by the music of César Franck and Richard Wagner.

Assistant Professor of History Caroline Wood Newhall received the John H. Jenkins Research Fellowship in Texas History for 2026-27. The fellowship is awarded annually for the best research proposal having to do with Texas history; it will support Newhall's research into enslaved people's acts of war across several communities in the decades prior to the American Civil War.

Associate Professor of Economics and Environmental Studies Paul Brehm, Professor of Psychology and Environmental Studies Cindy Frantz, Paul Sears Distinguished Professor of Environmental Studies and Biology John Petersen, and David Orr Professor of Environmental Studies Md Rumi Shammin published a paper in the Journal of Positive Psychology titled “Perspective Taking Through Model Building: A Path to Open-Mindedness and De-Polarization?” Funded by the National Science Foundation, this interdisciplinary work demonstrates that building mental models from multiple perspectives on a controversial issue can increase open-minded thinking.

Assistant Professor of Violin Francesca dePasquale will present “Understanding and Navigating Hypermobility for String Students and Educators” at the 2026 American String Teachers Association National Conference in San Francisco. To learn more, read recent interviews with dePasquale on the topic via Presto Music and The Strad.

Emeritus Professor of Anthropology Jack Glazier’s acclaimed book, Anthropology and Radical Humanism, recently published in paperback by Michigan State University Press, includes a new foreword by Grant Arndt highlighting the inventive person-centered narratives of the Ho-Chunk (Winnebago) and African Americans born into slavery. Originally collected by anthropologists Paul Radin and Andrew Polk Watson, the narratives disclose a universal creative imagination, further supporting the longstanding anti-racism of American anthropology. 

Associate Professor of Theater Marya Sea Kaminski directed Amy Herzog’s Tony-nominated adaptation of An Enemy of the People, assistant-directed by Oberlin senior Evelyn Walker, in Pittsburgh. Ibsen’s explosive classic feels strikingly contemporary, confronting truth, power, and public responsibility in ways that resonate today. The production was hailed for its urgency and bold performances.

Lecturer of Creative Writing Amanda Hodes' new poem "Climate Glitch" was published in the winter/spring issue of Gulf Coast Literary Journal (38.1).

Assistant Professor of East Asian Religions Andrew Macomber published a Japanese translation of Abe Yasurō’s article "The Five Forms Liturgy and the Five Viscera Mandala: The Genealogy of the Religious Body in Medieval Japan." It appeared in Japanese Religions.

Assistant Professor of Creative Writing Ghassan Abou-Zeineddine was awarded a grant from the Ohio Arts Council to support the writing of his new story collection, There’s Plenty of Sunshine Where You’re Headed (Tin House/Zando, spring 2027). In eight tragicomic stories set across Lebanon and Dearborn, Michigan, the collection explores the complexities of the Arab and Arab American experience. 

Assistant Professor of Creative Writing Ghassan Abou-Zeineddine gave a talk on the art of comedic writing in fiction in the Creative Writing Lecture Series at Columbia University on January 28.