ACLS Community in the News: Summer 2026

Awards and Promotions

• Ada Ferrer, 2011 ACLS Fellow and Professor of History at Princeton University, has been named a finalist for the 9th Annual Institute for Immigration Research New American Voices Award for her book Keeper of My Kin: Memoir of an Immigrant Daughter (Simon & Schuster, 2026).
• Kristel Smentek, 2016 ACLS Fellow, has been promoted to full professor at the MIT School of Architecture and Planning.
• Marcus P. Smith, 2024 Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Innovation Fellow and Resident Historian at the Du Bois Freedom Center, has received the 2026 History Tellers Award, which recognizes educators, interpreters, preservationists, guides, and storytellers who keep our nation’s history alive.

Opinions

• Serena Mayeri, Professor at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, and Amanda Shanor, Associate Professor at ACLS Research University Consortium member University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, co-authored “Linda McMahon’s Letter to Colleges Is a Trap,” for The New York Times.

Quoted and Newly Published

• Julian Butterfield, 2024 Dissertation Fellow in Buddhist Studies, authored the feature, “Heavy Dharma,” for Tricycle: The Buddhist Review.
• Jacob Green, 2026 ACLS Graduate Intern on the Spiritual Infrastructure of the Future, is featured in a video by the Institute for Islamic, Christian, and Jewish Studies on how AI platforms respond to interfaith and interreligious inquiries.
• Kaelin Rapport, 2024 Leading Edge Fellow, issued a statement on behalf of the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) on the harmful surveillance of Black communities.
• Quinn Slobodian, 2017 LAC Burkhardt Fellow and Professor of international history at Boston University, featured on The Weekly Show with Jon Stewart to discuss America’s tech oligarchy.
• Swati Srivastava, 2016 Dissertation Completion Fellow and Associate Professor of Political Science at Purdue University, spoke with E-International Relations on the concept of hybrid sovereignty, the power of Big Tech, and the use and regulation of AI by governing bodies.

Scholars in Action Beyond Campus

• Carol Anderson, 1998 ACLS Fellow, Professor at Emory University, and author of “One Person, No Vote,” will speak with Minnesota Public Radio journalist Kerri Miller at “Freedom, Democracy and Your Right – and Responsibility,” a free community event in Red Wing, MN on September 23, 2026.