Undergraduate Work to be Presented During Humanities Conference

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. –– Illinois Wesleyan University will host the day-long “MUSE: An Undergraduate Humanities+ Conference” on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020.

This conference will feature more than 40 presentations from undergraduate students representing many colleges in Illinois, including Illinois Wesleyan, University of Chicago and University of Illinois at Chicago. The students will present on a range of topics in the humanities and in creative writing, including poetry, fiction and drama. 

In addition to student presentations, the conference will feature two panels. The first is on humanities-related professions and the second is on the book publication process. The conference will culminate with a keynote address by Columbia University’s Professor of American Studies Andrew Delbanco. 

Delbanco is the author of numerous books, including the recent publications College: What it Was, Is, and Should Be (2012), and Melville: His World and Work (2005). In 2001, he was named "America's Best Social Critic" by TIME Magazine and elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In February 2012, President Barack Obama presented Delbanco with the National Humanities Medal for his writings on higher education and the role of classic authors in history and contemporary life.

The MUSE conference is being organized by the IWU Humanities Fellows, IWU's chapter of Sigma Tau Delta (the international English honors society), and IWU’s chapter of Sigma Delta Pi (National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society). 

For more information on this event, please email questions to iwuhumanities@gmail.com.

By Megan Baker ’21