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Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce the appointments of two new division directors: Yukari Hirata, Harrington and Shirley Drake Professor of Japanese and Linguistics, will lead the Division of Arts and Humanities (AHUM) and Rob Nemes, Charles A. Dana Professor of History, will lead the Division of Social Sciences (SOSC) beginning July 1, 2024. 

Yukari Hirata - Arts and Humanities

Yukari Hirata joined the �Ա���Ƶ faculty in 1999, after receiving her PhD from the University of Chicago. At �Ա���Ƶ, she teaches Japanese language and culture, linguistics, and language acquisition and is the founding co-director of the Center for Language and Brain. She has served as director of the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures and director of the Linguistics Program. Yukari’s research interests are second-language speech acquisition, computer-assisted training for the acquisition of second-language speech, and the acoustical analysis of native and non-native speakers’ speech. Specifically, she examines how non-native speakers learn to perceive and produce Japanese speech. She has published numerous articles and scientific studies that have appeared in, among others, the Journal of the Acoustical Society of America and the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, and has served as associate editor for the journal Language and Speech. Yukari’s research has been supported by grants from the National Science Foundation and the Japan Foundation. She spent the spring 2023 semester in Kyoto focusing on faculty development and research activities. In particular, she dedicated herself to revising her “Hidden Japan: Tea Ceremony” course by becoming a student of the Way of Tea. As a professor of language who is deeply committed to cultural understanding and is herself an artist and musician, Yukari is clearly well-suited to lead the division.

Lynn Schwarzer has ably and thoughtfully guided the entire division, serving as an advocate for all departments in AHUM. She has provided particularly invaluable leadership around the Arts, Creativity, and Innovation initiative. My deep thanks to her for her imaginative and energizing leadership as we have begun to set the Middle Campus in motion. As we transition to Yukari’s leadership, I have asked Christian DuComb, associate dean of the faculty for faculty recruitment and development and associate professor of theater, to take up the Middle Campus planning reins.

Robert Nemes - Social Sciences

Robert Nemes joined the tenure-stream faculty in 2000 after serving one year as a visiting assistant professor in the history department. He is a Columbia University–educated historian with a research specialty in Central and Eastern Europe. His current projects focus on Central Europe’s big cities and small towns; the Danube River’s past and present; and the hidden history of everyday commodities such as tobacco, coffee, and wine. Rob has published two books, Another Hungary: The Nineteenth-Century Provinces in Eight Lives and The Once and Future Budapest, as well as a number of articles. He is the co-editor of the book Sites of European Antisemitism in the Age of Mass Politics. His service to the profession includes being co-editor of the Austrian History Yearbook and a member of the prize committee for the Wayne S. Vucinich Book Prize, awarded by ASEEES, a large professional organization dedicated to the study of Eastern Europe, Russia, and Eurasia. On campus, Rob pioneered courses titled Coffee and Cigarettes: A Global History and European History Through Tourists’ Eyes, first taught in the original Sophomore Residential Seminar program, and more recently developed a new FSEM on Ukraine and Russia, as well as teaching a variety of other European history courses. His service to �Ա���Ƶ includes directing the Alumni Memorial Scholars program, chairing the Due Process Oversight Committee, serving on the Academic Affairs Board, and Research Council, and undertaking two stints as chair of the Department of History.

Jill Harsin has directed the SOSC Division with a wonderful combination of wit and wisdom. She has been a steady advocate for the division as a whole and a valued mentor and advocate for its colleagues, particularly those on the path to tenure. I am confident that Rob will ably continue the work undertaken by Jill, approaching it with his hallmark measured thoughtfulness and good judgment (both inflected with a wry humor).

2024–25 Dean’s Advisory Council

Yukari and Rob will join Yariv Amir (Athletics), Rick Geier (NASC), and Chris Henke (UNST) as the five DD’s on the Dean’s Advisory Council (DAC). The other continuing members next year will be Doug Johnson, dean of academic and curricular affairs; April Baptiste, associate dean of the faculty for global and local initiatives; and Christian DuComb, associate dean of the faculty for faculty recruitment and development.

Nearer to the end of the semester, we will have opportunities to thank Jill and Lynn fully for their excellent service to the University. In the meantime, I hope you will congratulate our recently appointed colleagues on their new roles.

My best,

Lesleigh Cushing
Provost and Dean of the Faculty
Murray W. and Mildred K. Finard Professor of Jewish Studies and Professor of Religion