USC Society of
Fellows in the Humanities
An interdisciplinary community that
supports advanced research in the humanities
The USC Society of Fellows in the Humanities is an interdisciplinary community that supports advanced research by faculty, postdoctoral scholars, and graduate students, promoting intellectual exchange and interdisciplinary approaches to research and teaching in the humanities and humanistic social sciences.
Fellows meet regularly in formal and informal settings to present and discuss advanced scholarly research. Postdoctoral fellows are affiliated with the Society as well as with a USC department of their choice, and have faculty mentors in both. Postdoctoral fellows in the humanities engage with each other as well as humanities departments, institutes, and centers at USC and in the broader Los Angeles area.
Join the Society of Fellows
Each year the Society admits five postdoctoral fellows, who are appointed for two-year terms. The fellows pursue research and teach three courses over four semesters, with one semester for full-time research. They participate in the scholarly life of the Society, the host department, and the university.
Yearly topic: Each two-year cohort of the USC Society of Fellows in the Humanities is organized around a research topic that engages scholars across the humanities and humanistic social sciences. The topic for the next cycle is announced every October.
Learn more about eligibility, requested materials, and commonly asked questions.
Pictured left to right: Onur Arslan, Shaibal Dev Roy, Kristine Ericson, Joan Flores-Villalobos, Magdalena Grüner, Ana Iwataki, Jeongin Lee, Nancy Lutkehaus, Adelaide Mandeville, Maxwell Shiller, Fernanda Soria-Cruz, Scott Spencer, Antonia Szabari, Aro Velmet
The Society’s research topic for 2025–2027 is Sites of Inquiry, focusing on places and spaces of knowledge production such as the archive, the museum, the library, the university, the field, the laboratory, the clinic, the book, or the body, as well as questions of the politics and geography of the production, transmission, and translation of knowledge.
Please join us in welcoming and congratulating the Sites of Inquiry research group.
Faculty Fellows
- Joan Flores-Villalobos, Associate Professor of History, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Nancy Lutkehaus (Topic Director), Professor of Anthropology and Political Science, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Scott Spencer, Assistant Professor of Musicology, Thornton School of Music
- Antonia Szabari, Professor of French and Comparative Literature, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Aro Velmet, Associate Professor of History, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Postdoctoral Fellows
- Onur Arslan, Anthropology, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Kristine Ericson, Architectural History and Theory, School of Architecture
- Magdalena Grüner, Art History, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Jeongin Lee, East Asian Languages and Cultures, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Adelaide Mandeville, History, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
Levan Graduate Scholars
- Shaibal Dev Roy, English, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Ana Iwataki, Comparative Literature, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Nisarg Patel, Comparative Literature, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Maxwell Shiller, Classics, Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences
- Fernanda Soria-Cruz, Communication, Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
Society of Fellows in the Humanities 2024 Newsletter
Explore the 2024 newsletter of the USC Society of Fellows in the Humanities.
About the Society of Fellows
Learn more about the USC Society of Fellows in the Humanities.
Members of the Society
Get to know our faculty fellows, postdoctoral fellows, and graduate scholars.