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Dear Colleagues,
It's that time, where we contemplate the year in its entirety, to consider what fed our imaginations and what has impacted our lives inside and outside of the classroom. Looking from a 15,000 ft. perch and the rumble on the ground that is the life of the AC Center, we can reflect on a fantastic year of Herculean efforts, sprinkled liberally with creativity.
All bubble! Enthusiasm for creativity in the AC curriculum exploded this past semester. AC faculty and academic partners have been busy with their work in the Adobe Fellows program, Wikipedia Workshops, Data Science Modules, Creative Discovery grants and of course, the American Cultures Engaged Scholarship (ACES) program. Much of this bubbling creativity received well deserved public accolades and also sparked the seeds of individual passions that are now building academic paths across campus. Perhaps it is because of today's broader sociopolitical environment, that UC Berkeley's undergraduate 'crown jewel' has necessarily become a fulcrum of creativity and bravery, but from wherever these efforts have been formed, they have been warmly received. Indeed, this semester is a record year for students asking if they can "major in AC"!
Thank you to everyone for the love, passion and intense effort you have given in the 2019 AC curriculum!
Warm Regards, Victoria Robinson
Director, The American Cultures Center
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AC in the News:
NY Times 'What Do We Hear When Women Speak?'
Last month, American Cultures Faculty Member, Tom McEnaney, was featured in a New York Times News Analysis article that 'What Do We Hear When Women Speak?' Article excerpt:
"In a course called “Sounding American,” at the University of California at Berkeley, Tom McEnaney, a professor of comparative literature and Portuguese and Spanish, teaches that there is in fact a sound that people associate with authority in this country — and, while it is constantly evolving, it has its roots in many things, one of which is early broadcast technology. Dating back to the phonograph, he said, engineers had created a device that was designed for the male voice — newscasters, presidents, public figures — to the extent that if a woman spoke into it, her voice would sound distorted, thin or scrambled." Read Article.
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Review Process for new courses & instructors
When a course holds American Cultures (AC) status, it means that the first instructors to offer that class developed course content and assignments towards a critical engagement with race, ethnicity, and culture, past, present, and future. To ensure that this approach is maintained, we ask that a new instructor appointed to teach an AC course (or developing a new one) provides their course materials to the AC Senate committee. The AC Center works directly with faculty to support their submission to the Senate committee. Please email us for any questions or to discuss course development ideas.
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Spring Review Dates
Friday, January 31st
Submission Deadline: Friday, January 24th, 5PM
Friday, February 7th
Submission Deadline: Friday, January 31st, 5PM
Friday, March 6th
Submission Deadline: Friday, February 28th, 5PM
Friday, April 10th
Submission Deadline: Friday, April 3rd, 5PM
Friday, May 1st
Submission Deadline: Friday, April 24th, 5PM
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Request for Proposals: Community Engaged Scholarship Program
ACES Program Grants are designed to provide faculty with the opportunity to develop, broaden, or deepen their research and teaching of community-engaged scholarship, and support community engagement. The ACES Program staff invites you to apply to the 2020 ACES Program Grant to help fund the development of your community engaged scholarship course. Read More.
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AC Student Research Prize
Attention students and instructors!
Faculty, as you finish grading this semester's papers, and students as you you finalize your papers and projects, and reflect on a semester's worth of hard work, consider encouraging students to apply for the AC Student Prize. Students, please consider submitting your a project you have developed an AC course. The AC Student Prize accepts applications from undergraduate students of all levels for projects developed in an American Cultures Course. The submission deadline is March 13, 2020. Instructors, please also encourage students from previous semesters to apply. Please review the How to Apply section for more information.
Recipients will receive $1000, have their work published on the AC' eScholarship site, and be awarded their prize at a ceremony in early May 2020.
Thank you for helping us find and celebrate the best undergraduate research on campus.
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AC Teaching Excellence Award
The ‘AC Teaching Excellence Award’ is intended to recognize individual faculty’s exemplary teaching in the American Cultures curriculum. Instructors are recognized for their inspiring and sustained commitment to creating a learning space able to hold the multiple challenges and opportunities that teaching AC content requires. Please review the Eligibility section for more information.
Recipients will receive a $2,500 award, be honored at a public award ceremony and permanently indicated as a recipient of the AC Teaching Award on the American Cultures website. Learn More.
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Teaching
with Wikipedia
On December 9th, the American Cultures Center, the University Library, and Wiki Education hosted a teaching workshop to support instructors in utilizing Wikipedia as an educational tool. The development of Wikipedia articles allows students to create collaborative work with a visible impact on a global audience. Visit our workshop page to review the recording of the workshop and discover resources that can help you implement Wikipedia assignments into course instruction.
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Teaching in
Troubled Times Series
We've recently updated most of the content from our previous Teaching in Troubled Times workshops so that all of the teaching resources, recommendations, and materials identified are available for download. Please visit our Teaching in Troubled Times homepage and peruse the previous events section.
For any questions about previous events, please email the American Cultures Center.
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Power and People
The U.S. Census and Who Counts
The Library is planning a major exhibition entitled Power and People: The U.S. Census and Who Counts in the Doe Library, September 2019-February 2020. The exhibit will also be online.
In this planning stage, the Library is very interested in collaborating with AC faculty and students on a series of workshops or panel discussions that relate to the exhibit and to the Census. As you know, the Census is vast -- there is so much that could be said, but the following themes have been chosen as a focus. Read More.
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Assistance with Adobe:
In Person Consultation Meetings & Online Support
Adobe Student Support is a service offered by Adobe student consultants to assist students, faculty, and academic staff in using the Adobe Creative Cloud Suite. Consultants are available to schedule individual meetings or during drop-in hours Tuesdays 4-6pm. Online support is also available.
For more information, please visit the Adobe Student Hub bCourses site. Please email adobesupport@berkeley.edu for any questions, scheduling consultation meetings, or online support. |
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