Society And Culture

March 16 marked the one-year anniversary of the day a 21-year-old man went on a shooting rampage at three spas in the Atlanta area, killing eight people—six of them women of Asian descent. The shootings stoked outrage and fear among Asian Americans, who were already experiencing discrimination, racism and hate crimes related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The act of violence led to dialogue at Vanderbilt and college campuses across the country and resulted in calls to create more inclusive spaces for AAPI populations.    Read More

To observe the first anniversary of the shootings that targeted Asian American women in Atlanta and the 40th anniversary of the killing of Chinese American Vincent Chin by white autoworkers, Vanderbilt’s AAPI employee affinity group will host an in-person event with author and activist Helen Zia, 12:30–2 p.m. March 24. Read More

During the first-ever public conversation between former Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and sex trafficking victim and convicted murderer Cyntoia Brown-Long, the two agreed that significant improvements are needed in the criminal justice system. On March 15, Brown-Long and Haslam came together for Vanderbilt’s first public lecture at Langford Auditorium since the COVID-19 pandemic halted similar events for nearly two years.  Read More

The Initiative for Race Research and Justice at Vanderbilt Peabody College will host a virtual panel discussion to address actor Whoopi Goldberg’s recent comments about race, Jewishness and the Holocaust. The free event is scheduled for Thursday, March 24, at 6:30 p.m. CT. Registration is required.  Read More

Six women who have helped shape the university and its history are being honored as part of a new Women at Vanderbilt Portrait Project at the Margaret Cuninggim Women’s Center. The portraits, commemorating women from the 19th century through today, will be unveiled at an event on March 14. Read More

Kimberly Welch, associate professor of history and assistant professor of law at Vanderbilt University, has been awarded a 2022 Dan David Prize. The internationally renowned annual award, headquartered at Tel Aviv University, gives prizes of $300,000 each to nine early- to mid-career history scholars whose outstanding contributions expand knowledge of the past, enrich society in the present and promise to improve the future of the world.   Read More

Science’s influence on pop culture is undeniable, and the reverse is equally important. Research led by Jay Clayton, the first literature professor to ever receive funding from the NIH, shows that films portray genetic science as risky far more often than television shows. Read More

Daniel J. Gervais, Milton R. Underwood Chair in Law, director of the Vanderbilt Intellectual Property Program and faculty co-director of the LL.M. Program, as well as professor of French, describes how his work in international law has shaped his view on collaboration and teaching. Read More

The intersection of science and society is the foundation of a multi-institutional collaboration of students and faculty in a virtual and physical art exhibit titled "Nested Knowledge: Disentangling History, Truth and Race in STEM Experiences." The exhibit can be experienced online and at the Wond’ry, Vanderbilt’s Innovation Center, through February 2022 in honor of Black History Month. Read More

Students may now apply to participate in Map the System, the Wond'ry's global systems thinking competition that prepares students to understand and help resolve complex social and environmental problems confronting our communities. Read More

Associate professor of percussion at Blair School of Music Ji Hye Jung describes how her teaching is informed by her perspective as an international faculty member. Read More

Recognizing the long-term historical significance of the signs, posters and stickers encouraging COVID-19 health and safety protocols on campus over the past two years, Associate Professor of Sociology and Jewish Studies Shaul Kelner has collected these artifacts in a pop-up art installation on the third floor of Garland Hall. Read More

Vanderbilt's Coffee Equity Lab has launched the Coffee Equity Design Challenge, in which students and coffee professionals will team up to co-create meaningful innovations for a more equitable and sustainable coffee industry. Read More

With help from the Wondr'y, Vanderbilt students and peers have designed an African language learning app to connect with their native roots. Read More

Darwin Baluran, a doctoral student in the Department of Sociology, sought to investigate the intermixture of ethnicities included under the “Asian” racial category—one of the nation’s fastest-growing groups—and the health of these groups in the United States. Read More

A team of Vanderbilt and Vanderbilt University Medical Center faculty are working together to produce a series of children’s science books aimed at fourth grade–level readers. Read More

Join global coffee entrepreneurs and experts throughout October and November for discussions on the socio-economic factors contributing to the coffee industry’s growth. Read More

Holling Smith-Borne, director of the Vanderbilt Blair School of Music’s Anne Potter Wilson Library, uses his own music background in assisting faculty to teach unique aspects of music as well as curating exhibits for library patrons that showcase local music history. Read More

Associate Professor of Sociology Lijun Song explored whether social network connections harmed or hurt one’s well-being in published research that won the American Sociological Association’s 2021 Best Publication Award in the Sociology of Mental Health Section.   Read More

Two graduate students in Peabody College have been named runners-up in the Global Map the System competition, hosted by Oxford University’s Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship. Read More