College of Arts and Science
Seven Vanderbilt faculty members elected as fellows in prominent psychological science associations
Nov. 23, 2020—Seven Vanderbilt faculty recently were elected as fellows in the Association for Psychological Science and the American Psychological Association.
James S. “Jim” Gilliland, BA’55, LLB’57: USDA General Counsel
Nov. 3, 2020—After decades influencing political and social change, both locally and nationally, Memphis attorney James S. Gilliland died Feb. 24. He was 86.
Supporting STEM Scholars
Nov. 3, 2020—David Potts and his wife, Frances Candi Potts, recently documented their intent to establish the Potts Scholarship to provide financial support for undergraduate students studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics at the College of Arts and Science or the School of Engineering.
Steady Hand: Gov. Andy Beshear, BA’00, seeks the ‘why’ in governing as he guides Kentucky through the pandemic and political divide
Oct. 27, 2020—Beshear, the first-term Democratic governor of Kentucky, was elected last November by a margin as thin as a surgical mask, just in time to steer his largely Republican state through a runaway pandemic, the resulting economic damage, and America’s most consequential reckoning with racial injustice since the 1960s.
Washington Insiders: Vanderbilt alumni in CNN’s Washington Bureau are playing key roles in the network’s around-the-clock political coverage
Oct. 22, 2020—This election night, Sam Feist, BA’91, will perform one of his more unusual duties as head of CNN’s Washington Bureau. Assuming the results are clear-cut, he will—in consultation with CNN’s statisticians and political scientists—call the winner of the presidential race for the network. It is a responsibility he has held since 2004, and one that he does not take lightly.
Theatre instructor takes her teaching, latest play into VR world
Oct. 19, 2020—Writer in Residence in Theatre Krista Knight is taking a creative twist on COVID-19 protocols by teaching her Introduction to Writing for Stage and Screen course in an online, virtual reality world.
Diermeier shares research interests with Owen, Arts and Science communities
Oct. 9, 2020—Chancellor Daniel Diermeier discussed his research and scholarship on management, political science, public policy and more during two recent virtual webinars with Owen Graduate School of Management and the College of Arts and Science.
Words in Common: Mother-daughter duo and writers-in-residence Alice Randall and Caroline Randall Williams share a deep creative calling
Oct. 2, 2020—Alice Randall and Caroline Randall Williams are both writers-in-residence at Vanderbilt—Randall in the Department of African American and Diaspora Studies and Williams in the Department of Medicine, Health and Society. And neither is afraid to shine a light on complicated questions around race.
Trailblazing alumna Dorothy Phillips discusses her career as a chemist, importance of diversity in the physical sciences
Oct. 2, 2020—Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips, BA’67, the first African American woman to receive an undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt and a member of the inaugural class of Vanderbilt Trailblazers, recently was interviewed by the American Chemical Society about her career as a chemist and the importance of making the physical sciences more inclusive for women and underrepresented minorities.
Vanderbilt Trailblazer Dorothy Phillips receives lifetime achievement award
Sep. 25, 2020—Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips, BS’67, is being honored with a lifetime achievement award from the National Organization for the Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers. Phillips, the first African American woman to receive an undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt, is a 2020 recipient of NOBCChE’s Lifetime Service Award.
Ethnic fears eroding democratic attitudes among Republicans, new research finds
Sep. 4, 2020—Ethnocentric concerns about the growing political power and social influence of immigrants, African Americans and Latinos are undermining Republicans’ commitment to long-held democratic norms, according to new research by Vanderbilt University political science professor Larry Bartels.
A&S tackling world’s greatest problems with Grand Challenge Initiative
Aug. 26, 2020—Vanderbilt University’s College of Arts and Science has launched the Grand Challenge Initiative to invest in collaborative research projects with the potential of making a significant impact on some of society’s most pressing questions.