Beginning in Fall 2021, the Department of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese and the Program in Global Studies are thrilled to announce the arrival of Mauricio Acuña, one of six postdoctoral fellows in the university's new Rising Scholar program. Professor Acuña is a scholar of Afro-Latin American Studies, focusing on the literatures and cultures of the African Diaspora in the Americas, especially Brazil and Cuba. His research interests includes World Festivals of Black Arts, poetry, fiction, performances and the Afro-Brazilian martial art capoeira, and he is eager to collaborate with colleagues in Global South Studies, Caribbean Studies, Latin American Studies, and Digital Humanities. Please visit Mauricio's profile page to learn more about his research and teaching at UVA.
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As part of the Rising Scholars Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, sponsored by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and a Mellon Foundation Grant on Race, Place, and Equity, UVA's Department of Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese is seeking applications for two-year postdoctoral positions (2021-2023) for scholars interested in research and teaching collaborations in the following priority areas:
- Migration, immigration, and diaspora in any region of the Italian, Lusophone, or Hispanophone world, including language enclaves and contact zones such as the Mediterranean, Amazon, and US
- Intersectional studies of racial justice, equity, and capitalism in Italian, Portuguese, and/or Spanish-speaking communities
- Place-based knowledges (especially work that uses approaches from Environmental Humanities, Black Studies, and Indigenous Studies)
- New and emerging approaches to the humanities, such as Medical Humanities, Digital Humanities, and Environmental Humanities, focusing on issues that include health inequities, carceral studies, critical code studies, and environmental racism
The Department seeks a rising scholar (Ph.D. received between August 24, 2019 and August 24, 2021) whose research and teaching are grounded in transhistorical understandings of race, place, and equity within global contexts, and who has a deep interest in the study of culture, language, and texts. Native, near-native, and/or heritage fluency in Spanish, Italian, and/or Portuguese is required. Underrepresented scholars are especially encouraged to apply.
The Department is committed to providing rising scholars with support for research, teaching, and professional development. Faculty mentors will connect postdoctoral fellows to research, teaching, and community engagement collaborations involving race, anti-racist pedagogy, justice, and equity in fields like Caribbean Studies, Environmental Humanities, Global South Studies, Indigenous Studies, Latin American and Latinx studies, Medieval and Early Modern Studies, and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies. Across campus, postdocs will find opportunities to collaborate on research and teaching at places like the Center for the Liberal Arts (K-12 outreach), Center for Teaching Excellence, Equity Center, Institute of Humanities and Global Cultures, and networked community of DH@UVA.
Please contact Sam Amago, chair of the Department, with any questions about how we can support your application.
Click here to apply: https://graduate.as.virginia.edu/rising-scholars. Applications are due by 12 April 2021.