OSU Humanities Research Group Fellowship sparks innovative research on ‘Land’ and the human experience

OSU Humanities Research Group Fellowship sparks innovative research on 'Land' and the human experience

Wednesday, November 5, 2025

Media Contact: Elizabeth Gosney | CAS Marketing and Communications Manager | 405-744-7497 | [email protected]

Oklahoma State University's Center for the Humanities recently announced its 2025-26 Humanities Research Group Fellowship cohort, which includes Lindsey Abernathy (Educational Leadership and Policy Studies), Dr. Kathleen Burns (English and American Studies), Dr. Mette Flynt (History), Lara Goncalves, (Sociology), Madelyn Powers (History), and Shelby Roberts (Art, Graphic Design, and Art History).

The yearlong program is designed to foster collaborative, interdisciplinary research across the university. It unites faculty, staff and graduate students from diverse fields to explore creative ways to address social challenges on and off campus. Each fellow receives $3,000 and joins bi-monthly meetings focused on grants, publishing, mentoring and leadership.

"The Humanities Research Group Fellowship program is unique in that it was created to support the brainstorming and development phase of research, rather than the outcome or deliverable," said Dr. Jennifer Borland, director of the Center for the Humanities. "This program aims to help better understand each other's skill sets and disciplinary methods, allowing them to truly forge an entirely new research project together."

That emphasis on collaboration and creative exchange is what many fellows find most valuable about the program.

"Unlike traditional research programs that emphasize individual scholarship within departmental boundaries, I've found that OSU's Center for the Humanities fellowship fosters cross-disciplinary projects that bring people together from across campus," said Burns, an associate professor of American Studies and English at OSU. "I'm excited to work with my cohort and our mentors to develop new humanities initiatives from the ground up and to learn from perspectives beyond my own field."

Now in its fourth year, the fellowship's impact continues to grow, namely in showing the vital role the humanities play in OSU research.

"Our advisory committee selected this year's theme of 'Land' because of its breadth and flexibility, allowing for a variety of interpretations depending on perspectives of each fellow and where a group's interests converge," Borland said. "Their research might engage with sovereignty and land rights, perspectives on climate change, the impact of the environment on health, human-animal relationships, or even social and cultural representations of landscape."

While the fellowship focuses on research, Borland explained that the program emphasizes personal and professional growth for faculty members and participants.

"I hope that they learn something about how to do collaborative work and leave the program with a sense of belonging and fulfillment generated by successful collaboration," Borland said. "I want them to understand there are alternatives to the independent, siloed nature of traditional research in the humanities. If they are lucky, they will meet colleagues who might even become life-long collaborators. We need the humanities to stay human."

The Humanities Research Group Fellowship shows OSU's ongoing commitment to bringing people together to share ideas, build community and use the humanities to make a real impact both on campus and in broader communities. To learn more, visit the OSU Center for Humanities website.

Story By: Kierstin Pigg, graduate assistant | [email protected]