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Practice-based, cross-disciplinary opportunities for graduate students interested in diverse careers

Humanities for the Public Good is an integrative, collaborative, practice-based graduate Certificate and Master’s degree in development. The goal of the both the Certificate and Master’s degree is to explore ways the study of the arts, history, languages, literature, philosophy, religion, and other areas that comprise our strong humanities departments in the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences can be combined with experiential, cross-disciplinary, cross-sectoral learning experiences to prepare students to center equity, inclusion, and social justice in any and every career or workspace. We’re genuinely hopeful that the methods, materials, and mindsets of the humanities combined with practical skills and values-driven purpose can be excellent preparation for any number of careers. The program is funded through grant from the Mellon Foundation. The Obermann Center for Advanced Studies is grateful for energetic collaboration with the UI Graduate College and College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.

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HPG Closing Symposium: A Celebration

Where We've Been & Where We're Headed

On March 1 and 2, 2024, we celebrated the exciting outcomes of the HPG grant with a two-day symposium featuring leaders of innovative graduate programs that see the humanities as crucial to the public good. We shared our successes and advanced the work of building a local and national learning community of students, staff, and faculty committed to new possibilities for graduate education in the humanities.

Schedule & presenters
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HPG Updates

Graduate Students Build Campus-Community Connections, Explore New Careers in Summer Internships

Friday, September 25, 2020
For nine graduate students at the University of Iowa, this was not the summer internship they had anticipated. Unlike summer 2019, this second summer of the Humanities for the Public Good (HPG) internship program came with many unexpected twists and challenges. As the University of Iowa moved to virtual learning, interns joined partner organizations and took on new responsibilities just as many of...

HPG Summer 2020 Internship Program: Final Report

Tuesday, September 1, 2020
In June and July, 2020, nine University of Iowa (UUI) graduate students from the Colleges of Liberal Arts and Education worked with six public-facing organizations as interns. It was the second summer of the Humanities for the Public Good (HPG) internship program, which is one part of an Andrew W. Mellon Foundation funded grant program administered by the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies.
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Laura Perry Joins Obermann

Friday, August 21, 2020
Laura Perry is joining the Obermann Center staff for the next two years as a Mellon Postdoctoral Fellow with the Humanities for the Public Good project. Born in Southern California, Laura recently received her doctoral degree in Literary Studies from the University of Wisconsin­-Madison. In addition to serving as the managing editor of the digital magazine Edge Effects, she was a project assistant...