Alumni Accolades, November 2021

~1998 Cohort~

Reginald Wilburn, IRT ’98
Congratulations to Reginald who has been appointed Dean of the School of Interdisciplinary Studies at Texas Christian University. Wilburn earned his Ph.D. and M.A. in English from the University of Connecticut, and his B.A. in English from the University of the District of Columbia.

~2001 Cohort~

Brighid Dwyer, IRT ’01
Brighid was named Vice Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania beginning in December. Congratulations to Brighid on this appointment.  She received her undergraduate degree in sociology from UCLA and a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan. 

~2005 Cohort~

Monica Muñoz Martinez, IRT ’05
Monica was named a 2021 MacArthur Fellow. The MacArthur Fellowship is unrestricted and unofficially known as the “Genius Grant.” The MacArthur Foundation considers that the fellowship “is not a reward for past accomplishment, but rather an investment in a person’s originality, insight, and potential.” Congratulations, Monica, on this prestigious award. 

~2006 Cohort~

Angel Rubiel Gonzalez, IRT ’06 was named Head of School at De La Salle Academy in New York. Angel received his master’s and Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley.

~2011 Cohort~

Aria Halliday, IRT ‘ 11
Congratulations to Aria on her newest publication, Buy Black  – How Black Women Transformed US Pop Culture, (2022). Urbana: University of Illinois Press. Aria  is an assistant professor in the Department of Gender and Women’s Studies and Program in African American and Africana Studies at the University of Kentucky.

~2014 Cohort~

Andrea Adomako, IRT ’14 – Andrea is a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of African American Studies at Northwestern University and a Presidential Fellow, the most prestigious fellowship awarded to graduate students by Northwestern. She is the winner of the inaugural Feminist Formations – National Women’s Studies Association Paper Award. Her piece “First Wave Friendships: Ann Plato and Black Feminist Praxis” will be published in a future issue of Feminist Foundations. Congratulations! Highlights on Andrea’s work is available in an interview on the Northwestern University’s website.

~2018 Cohort~

Melvin Villaver Jr., IRT ‘18 received two awards from Purdue University’s American Studies program – the 2021 Paul and Eslanda Robeson International Studies Award and the 2021 Howard Zinn Memorial Research Award. Congratulations!

~2021 Cohort~

Barbara Ofosu-Somuah, IRT ‘21 translated the introduction in Italian of the book, Lose Your Mother: A Journey Along the Atlantic Slave Route, written by Saidiya Hartman. Barbara has done other translation projects and talks about her experiences in an article, Translating Italy, Translating Blackness. Barbara is working with the IRT this year on applying to PhD programs in African Diaspora Studies.