Blog

• Week One June 8, 2009 Lindsay Davignon

  It’s been a very busy first week here at SILCS. Last Sunday, May 31, all of the students arrived on campus for a welcome dinner with President Ronald Crutcher and his wife, Dr. Betty Neal Crutcher. The food was delicious and the conversation engrossing, as the President regaled us with stories of how he first became a cellist and everyone shared details about themselves. Several of the students discovered a mutual interest in playing the guitar (badly). Read more!

  It's been a very busy first week here at SILCS. Last Sunday, May 31, all of the students arrived on campus for a welcome dinner with President Ronald Crutcher and his wife, Dr. Betty Neal Crutcher. The food was delicious and the conversation engrossing, as the President regaled us with stories of how he first became a cellist and everyone shared details about themselves. Several of the students discovered a mutual interest in playing the guitar (badly).

  Monday was the start of classes. Dr. Robyn Warhol-Down joined SILCS once again as an instructor. The students read Barthes, Foucault, Benjamin, and Fish, and began to do research for their final project. Dr. Herman Beavers from the University of Pennsylvania spoke to the students Monday night about the idea of risk and how it relates to African American Studies. On Wednesday, the students heard Dr. Lisa Lebduska from Wheaton College speak about rhetoric and composition, and on Thursday Dr. Dagmawi Woubshet from Cornell University spoke about his work in comparative literature.

  The Brown University English Department and John Carter Brown Library welcomed the students for a visit on Friday. The day was unfortunately rainy, but the rain cleared on Saturday in time for a relaxing trip out on Narragansett Bay with Save the Bay.

  There are many more events scheduled for this month so keep watching this space for more updates!

• Welcome SILCS class of 2009 April 20, 2009 Lindsay Davignon

  Congratulations to our 12 students in the SILCS class of 2009. We are looking forward to seeing all of you in June. By now, everyone should have been contacted as to the status of their applications. If you have not received notice, please let us know. Watch this space in June for news of Institute events!

  Congratulations to our 12 students in the SILCS class of 2009. We are looking forward to seeing all of you in June. By now, everyone should have been contacted as to the status of their applications. If you have not received notice, please let us know. Watch this space in June for news of Institute events!

• Applications update March 20, 2009 Lindsay Davignon

  The decision for the students accepted into the 2009 institute has been delayed until the beginning of April. All applicants will be notified of the status of their applications at that time.

  The decision for the students accepted into the 2009 institute has been delayed until the beginning of April. All applicants will be notified of the status of their applications at that time.

• Congratulations February 23, 2009 Lindsay Davignon

  We would like to congratulate our 2008 SILCS graduates on their acceptances into graduate programs, mostly in English but also in French and comparative literature. Read more to see where they’ve been accepted.

  We would like to congratulate our 2008 SILCS graduates on their acceptances into graduate programs, mostly in English but also in French and comparative literature. Our students have currently been accepted into:

  Brown University
  The University of California at Irvine
  Dartmouth College
  Indiana University
  The University of Michigan
  Northwestern University
  The Ohio State University
  Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
  The University of California, Los Angeles
  The University of Pennsylvania
  The University of Texas
  Washington University in St. Louis

  And there are more acceptances arriving every day! Congratulations, everyone.

  Update:
  Here are a few more schools to add to the list:
  Columbia University in the City of New York
  Cornell University
  Rice University
  Tufts University
  University of North Carolina at Greensboro
  University of Vermont

• Applications due Feb 20 February 12, 2009 Lindsay Davignon

  Applications for SILCS 2009 are due Friday, February 20. Remember, the program is open to anyone in their junior year of college with one year of schooling ahead of them. If you are attempting to fax your application and having trouble, please be patient: due to the high volume of applications, the line may be busy. Please wait and try again. Best of luck to those applying!

  Applications for SILCS 2009 are due Friday, February 20. Remember, the program is open to anyone in their junior year of college with one year of schooling ahead of them. If you are attempting to fax your application and having trouble, please be patient: due to the high volume of applications, the line may be busy. Please wait and try again.

  Best of luck to those applying!

• SILCScast 006: Dr. Herman Beavers December 1, 2008 Lindsay Davignon

  In our final podcast episode, Dr. Herman Beavers from the University of Pennsylvania talks about the role of cultural and literary studies in poetry. During his lecture he covers five poems: “Incident” by Countee Cullen; “Frederick Douglass” by Robert E. Hayden; “Miss Rosie” and “Why some people be mad at me sometimes” by Lucille Clifton; and “American History” by Michael Harper. The podcast is marked “explicit” for the brief discussion of “Incident”.

  In our final podcast episode, Dr. Herman Beavers from the University of Pennsylvania talks about the role of cultural and literary studies in poetry. During his lecture he covers five poems: "Incident" by Countee Cullen; "Frederick Douglass" by Robert E. Hayden; "Miss Rosie" and "Why some people be mad at me sometimes" by Lucille Clifton; and "American History" by Michael Harper. The podcast is marked explicit for the brief discussion of "Incident".

  [Podcast no longer available.]

• SILCScast 005: Dr. Beverly Guy-Sheftall November 25, 2008 Lindsay Davignon

  This week’s podcast is a lecture given by Dr. Beverly Guy-Sheftall of Spelman College. Dr. Guy-Sheftall is active in women’s studies and feminist issues, and her most recent book is Gender Talk: The Struggle for Women’s Equality in African American Communities.

  This week's podcast is a lecture given by Dr. Beverly Guy-Sheftall of Spelman College. Dr. Guy-Sheftall is active in women's studies and feminist issues, and her most recent book is Gender Talk: The Struggle for Women's Equality in African American Communities.

  The next podcast will be the last in our series, and due to the holiday will appear on Monday.

  [Podcast no longer available.]

• SILCScast 004: Dr. Dagmawi Woubshet November 17, 2008 Lindsay Davignon

  Today, Dr. Dagmawi Woubshet talks about the literary and cultural analysis that went into completing his dissertation on AIDS writing. Dr. Woubshet received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 2007 and is now an English professor at Cornell University. He spoke to the students of SILCS on June 16, 2008.

  Today, Dr. Dagmawi Woubshet talks about the literary and cultural analysis that went into completing his dissertation on AIDS writing. Dr. Woubshet received his Ph.D. from Harvard University in 2007 and is now an English professor at Cornell University. He spoke to the students of SILCS on June 16, 2008.

  [Podcast no longer available.]

• SILCScast 003: Dr. Darryl Dickson-Carr November 7, 2008 Lindsay Davignon

  This week, Dr. Darryl Dickson-Carr talks to the students about the details of the graduate application process. Dr. Dickson-Carr currently works in the English department at Southern Methodist University, and has worked in the past as both a Director of Graduate Studies and a Director of Undergraduate Studies at Florida State University.

  This week, Dr. Darryl Dickson-Carr talks to the students about the details of the graduate application process. Dr. Dickson-Carr currently works in the English department at Southern Methodist University, and has worked in the past as both a Director of Graduate Studies and a Director of Undergraduate Studies at Florida State University.

  [Podcast no longer available.]

• SILCScast 002: Dr. Emily Bernard October 31, 2008 Lindsay Davignon

  SILCScast002: Dr. Emily Bernard discusses the background of her article “Teaching the N-Word”, which appeared in American Scholar.

  In our second podcast, we have Dr. Emily Bernard from the University of Vermont. Dr. Bernard talks about the background behind her article Teaching the N-Word, which appeared in American Scholar. This podcast is marked "explicit" for language.

  [Podcast no longer available.]