Project Humanities Director talks about Impact of MLK Day in Arizona
TEMPE, Ariz - Today, the City of Tempe announced winners of the annual MLK Diversity Awards. This year's winners include the creator of ASU’s Humanity 101 Movement, Tempe's Challenge Day organizers, a welcoming church, a group that helps at-risk youth of all backgrounds and other outstanding community members.
Arizona State University’s Project Humanities was conceptualized in 2010 when Neal Lester, Ph.D., served as Arizona State University’s dean of humanities in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Lester’s university-level initiative engaged those within ASU and beyond in critical conversations about humanities research as well as about what’s happening in the world.
What was initially slated to be a “Year of the Humanities” with intense humanities programming across disciplines has, with president Michael M. Crow’s support, become a year-round offering of diverse programming that continues to bring individuals and communities together to “talk, listen, and connect.”
Echo: As the founding director of ASU Project Humanities, can you tell us a little about your process of realizing this was a need wishing the community and what it was like to bring this effort to life? 2010?
ASU’s Project Humanities was selected as the Phi Beta Kappa Society’s inaugural recipient for the Key of Excellence Award at a Dec. 4 ceremony in Washington, D.C. The ceremony was the launch of The Phi Beta Kappa Society’s National Arts & Sciences Initiative, which recognized the project for its leadership and impact.
The ASU Committee for Campus Inclusion has announced that Dr. Neal A. Lester of Ahwatukee is the 2016 recipient of the Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion Faculty Award. Lester is the founding director of the award-winnning Project Humanities initiative and a foundation professor of English at Arizona State University. The committee, in its announcement, highlighted Lester's dedication to promoting diversity and inclusion at Arizona State University. Rachel Kemmerle, committee co-chair, noted Lester's hard work and persistence in making campus environments an enriching, positive one for all students, faculty, and stuff.
The 2015 Invisible Heroes Awards were presented Feb. 3, 2015, at the Mount of Olives Lutheran Church. The recipients, Neal Lester, Donna McHenry and Robbie Fields, were selected by United Gay Informed Men of African descent (UGIMA) for recognition of their activism within the LGBT and African-American community.
Tempe, AZ- Dr. Neal A. Lester, Founding Director of ASU Project Humanities and Foundation Professor of English, was presented the 2014 Francis Andrew March Award by the Modern Language Association of America (MLA) at the Annual Convention in Vancouver (Canada) on January 10, 2015.
The Francis Andrew March Award was established by the Association of English Departments (ADE) Executive Committee in 1984. The award is named for Francis March (1823 – 1911), professor of English at Lafayette College and the first professor of English in America. The Andrew Francis March Award honors those who have committed exceptional service to the profession of English.
The Phi Beta Kappa Society selected Project Humanities as its inaugural recipient for the Key of Excellence Award at a Dec. 4 ceremony in Washington D.C. The ceremony was the launch of The Phi Beta Kappa Society’s National Arts & Sciences Initiative, which recognized Project Humanities for its leadership and impact.
(In Picture) Anne Wise, director of Phi Beta Kappa's National Arts & Sciences Initiative; Neal Lester, director of ASU's Project Humanities and NPR's Shankar Vedantam.
