1991 Cohort – Page 2 – Institute for Recruitment of Teachers

Exploring Russian and Slavic Languages

Leislie Godo-Solo, IRT ’91 recently spoke to A’Yanna Solomon, IRT’21 to discuss her work and interests

On a regular basis, I am captivated by the innovative, interdisciplinary, and relevant scholarship that IRT Scholars are engaging. This sentiment also rings true as it relates to the scholarly work that A’Yanna Solomon, IRT ’21 is pursuing as a second-year graduate student in the Slavic Languages and Literature Department at the University of Michigan.

A’Yanna’s trajectory and interest in Russian and Slavic languages originally began in East Baltimore, Maryland, where she grew up listening to hip hop music which she says resonated with her, much in the same way that Black culture did. A’Yanna knew that she wanted to study Russian because she was fascinated by its phonetics and written script during her youth. Upon enrolling at Goucher College, she majored in Russian and Spanish Languages. Because the Russian program was being phased out of existence at Goucher College, one of A’Yanna’s professors also introduced her to Slavic Studies, Eastern European, and Eurasian Studies which have gained more cache as the focus on Russian language decreases in the field. Within Russian Studies, A’Yanna focused on comparative marginalization and popular culture and the ways that the LGBTQ communities in Russia resisted homophobic queer phobic legislation. In what ways did these communities create and maintain community? This preoccupation with marginalization stemmed from her own treatment as an outsider studying Russian language. Often, a student would lean over quietly and ask her, “This is intermediate Russian, right?” Fifteen minutes would pass, and the same student would respond, “So, do you like speaking Russian?” “Yea, I do, I do.”

Godo-Solo, IRT ’91 Exploring Digital Humanities this Summer

Leislie Godo-Solo, IRT ’91 will be heading to Nashville at the end of June to attend a Summer Institute Towards a More Equitable and Inclusive Digital World in Latin America: A Workshop for K-12 Educators at Vanderbilt University.

This institute is part of a four-year series in collaboration with the Stone Center for Latin American Studies at Tulane University and the Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Arizona. This summer’s institute will be hosted by the Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies (CLACX) at Vanderbilt University, taking place on campus in Nashville, TN.

Associate Director & Manager of Programs Update, June 2023

Dear IRT Community,

During our transition from Spring into Summer, it is a time of joy and new beginnings. IRT warmly congratulates our outgoing IRT scholars who will be entering graduate school this Fall and who have now been inducted into the IRT alumni network, approximately 3000 strong. At the same time, we also welcome our incoming 2023 IRT Scholar cohort who started on June 1st for a comprehensive 10 month program to include advising, webinars, an intensive summer workshop taught by IRT alum faculty and opportunities to engage directly with the IRT Consortium of Colleges and Universities. IRT has truly grown to be responsive to the changing educational landscape. Providing aspiring BIPOC graduate students with ongoing mentorship and support to successfully navigate graduate school and beyond is critical for diversifying and retaining educators across PK-12 through higher education.

Alumni Accolades, June 2023

Sonia Garcia, IRT ‘92 was appointed as the new assistant dean for Undergraduate Diversity, Equity & Inclusion with the College of Engineering at the University of Georgia.

Monica Muñoz Martinez, IRT ’05 named one of USA Today’s Women of the Year recognizing women who have made a significant impact in their communities across the country. She is an associate professor at the University of Texas.

Candis Watts Smith, IRT ‘05 is the interim Vice Provost of undergraduate education at Duke University.

Cecilia Márquez, IRT ’10 wrote a book “Making the Latino South,” which will be out in September 2023 from the University of North Carolina Press. Márquez is Hunt Family Assistant Professor of History at Duke University. For information on the book visit the UNC Press website.

Alumni Accolades, September 2022

Julia Jordan-Zachery, IRT ‘91
Jordan-Zachery has assumed the role of Professor and Chair of Women’s Gender and Sexuality Studies at Wake Forest University. The following books from Jordan-Zachery are available or will be available soon – Eat the Meat and Spit out the Bones (poetry from Main Street Rag); Erotic Testimonies: Black Women Daring to be Wild and Free (SUNY Press); Lavender Fields: Black Women Experiencing fear, agency and hope in the time of COVID-19 (Univ. of Arizona Press).