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Welcome to

Department of Humanities and Politics
Winter Newsletter

Chair Message

As we all know, it has been a turbulent year to say the

least. Here at DHP I have transitioned into the new role of chair, following in the footsteps of Dr. Kilroy. In the Halmos College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Cooper has begun transitioning into her role as dean, in the wake of Dean Baumgartner leaving. We also saw a transition at the very top of the university, with Dr. Harry K. Moon taking over from Dr. George Hanbury as President of NSU. It surely has been a year of many changes both within and outside of the university community. However, I am happy to say we emerged only slightly scathed and largely intact.

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In the pages that follow you will see what our students and faculty managed to accomplish amidst all the chaos – and there is a lot to be proud of. Dr. Jeremy Weissman was awarded the Provost’s Research Award, marking back-to-back years that a member of DHP was recognized with this honor. Our students traveled around the country to present their original research at conferences along with faculty mentors. The Applied Humanities Center hosted yet another successful Crossroads Conference with record turnout. Our Mock Trial and Model UN teams continued to win awards and be excellent representatives of NSU. The Department hosted an alumni gathering in February. And we met to discuss banned books, watch films with The Reel, and celebrate our graduates. As always, DHP punched above their weight. Though the seas have been a bit rough, I am prouder than ever to be part of this department and I hope you are too.

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Welcome to the Winter 2025 Department of Humanities and Politics newsletter! I am excited to share with you some of the many amazing things our students and faculty have been doing over these past few months.

Professors from the Halmos College after Graduation. In the back row from the left are Drs. Nelson Bass, John Vsetecka, and Charles Zelden. Dr. Yair Solan far left middle row (turquoise blue hood) Dr. Farrar (2nd from left front row red gown). Dr. Amanda Furiasse (4th from left front row) and Dr. Ying Ma (3rd from right, front row)

Department News

Center for Applied Humanities

The Center for Applied Humanities had a busy spring, beginning with two events in its “Out of Sight, Not Out of Mind” Banned Books Series. Conceived of and hosted by psychology graduate student and former political science major Alexis Lass, this series featured faculty, students, librarians, lawyers, and activists to discuss the issues surrounding banned and challenged books in the state of Florida and beyond. The February 3rd event focused on Alice Walker’s The Color Purple and the March 13th event on Kate Chopin’s The Awakening. The series will continue in Fall 2025-Winter 2026.

 

The Center’s biggest event of the year was the 7th annual Crossroads Student Humanities Conference, which was held on Saturday, March 29, 2025. This year’s Crossroads theme, “Reconciliation and Responsibility,” explored how the humanities both inspire and reflect the search for common ground in the face of injustice and the issues surrounding the struggle between peace and accountability. Paper topics ranged from healthcare disparities to free speech responsibility to policing and security to literary archetypes. Research was presented by undergraduate and graduate students from NSU, Florida International University, and the University of Oxford.

 

The conference’s opening plenary speaker was Professor and Associate Dean Jane Cross from NSU’s Shepherd Broad College of Law. Professor Cross’ talk focused on the development of death penalty abolition in Caribbean countries and the responsibilities therein. The event’s keynote speaker, made possible by the Stolzenberg-Doan fund, was author M. Evelina Galang, who shared powerful stories about subjugation and dignity from her non-fiction book Lola’s House: Filipino Women Living with War.

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The faculty Crossroads committee was comprised of Dr. Marlisa Santos, Director of the NSU Center for Applied Humanities, and Drs. Joanne Urrechaga, Amanda Furiasse, Jeremy Weissman, Ying Ma, and John Vsetecka.

 

The Center for Applied Humanities is committed to the study and application of the humanities to the human environment with particular attention to the relevance of the humanities to the current conditions of national life and international concerns. The CAH actively promotes the humanities as a force for stimulating positive change for the public good

Model UN

The Nova International Relations Association (NIRA) which serves as NSU’s Model UN team had an amazing semester. For the first time ever, we traveled to New York to compete in the World Model United Nations Conference (WIMUN). Usually, the team competes in regional competitions in the spring, however this year NIRA President Paula Recio was insistent that the team take on an even bigger challenge: competing against thousands of students from all around the world!

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We brought 8 students on the trip: Paula Recio, Catalina Cusano, Suraj Doobay, Rahul Pandit, Sallete (Cristal) Da Silva, Kyle Bell, Varun Jagarlamudi, and Sarah Abushi. The students prepared for months in advance – watching training videos (over 18 hours’ worth) to learn the special rules for WIMUN. Unlike the vast majority of Model UN conferences – this event is billed as the most realistic Model UN conference in the world. It uses completely different rules and procedures and mimics how the actual UN functions. Most importantly, the opening and closing sessions were held in the General Assembly at the actual UN.

 

I am proud to report that our students were excellent representatives of DHP and NSU. When we met in the GA for closing ceremonies the students were thrilled to learn that four of our delegates won individual awards for their work in committees (Paula, Rahul, Catalina, and Kyle). However, the big shock came at the end – WIMUN only has two delegation awards for the conference: Best Small and Best Large University. We were all thrilled when Nova Southeastern University was announced as the Best Large University Award! Congratulations to the team, and on behalf of NIRA – thanks to the DHP faculty for all their support!

Mock Trial

Coach Bill Barner (J.D.) took 9 members of the Mock Trial team to Florida State University Law School in Tallahassee over Valentine’s Day weekend this spring to compete in the American Mock Trial Association (AMTA) Regional Tournament.

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In the words of Dr. Teng Li, our Department of Humanities and Politics Pre-Law Advisor “[f]or the tournament, three team members play the role of plaintiff's attorneys, and three members the defendant's attorneys; each side prepares their own witnesses. For a typical round, a team will be either plaintiff or defendant by lottery. Since the witness part is full of acting and "objections" and explanations of objections, one round can be as long as 3 hours. Every team completed a gruesome 12-hour competition schedule over the weekend.”

 

The team consisted of:

 

Plaintiff attorneys: Isabela Garcia; Angelo Nathan; and Tyler Williams.

Defendant attorneys: Zashawn Christopher; Brianna Ritman; and Sophia Wehle.

Witnesses: Yann Philips; Bryan Soudrain; and Montunique Van Staden.

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Coach Barner and the team put on an impressive performance at the tournament, with Angelo winning an award for Best Attorney and Bryan winning as award for Best Witness! As Dr. Li notes, the team is poised to do even better next year noting that Coach Barner “has built an impressive team and a healthy makeup of young talents and veterans in a short time!” Congratulations to the team and to Coach Barner!

Modern Language Activities: Winter 2025

Travel Smart: Language and Etiquette Essentials Event​

 

Our department co-hosted Travel Smart: Language and Etiquette Essentials on Tuesday, March 18th from 12:30-1:30 in the Alvin Sherman Library’s Cotilla Gallery. International Studies /Political Science double major, Paula Recio Rey organized the event with the help of Dr. Yvette Fuentes and counted with the participation of full time and part time DHP faculty and students. During this special event, participants had the opportunity to learn basic language skills in Arabic, French, Hebrew, Greek, Mandarin Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, Ukrainian, as well as learned about practical skills needed when traveling abroad. The events were co-hosted by NSU’s Alpha Alpha Zeta Chapter of Alpha Mu Gamma and Razor’s Edge Global. All participants received a “passport” and a “travel bag”. Refreshments were also provided.

 

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Alpha Mu Gamma: National Collegiate Foreign Language Honor Society

 

NSU’s Alpha Alpha Zeta Chapter of Alpha Mu Gamma: National Collegiate Foreign Language Honor Society held its annual induction ceremony on Thursday, April 10th in the DeSantis Bldg. AMG officers Alora Da Fonseca (President), Madison Ferry (VP) and Makayla Walas (Secretary) officiated the ceremony together with Dr. Yvette Fuentes, Associate Professor and AMG Faculty Advisor. Also assisting were Dr. Joanne P. Urrechaga, Associate Professor of Spanish, Dr. Ying Ma, Assistant Professor of Chinese and Literature, and Professor Riva Markowitz, ASL Instructor at the Patel College of Health Care Sciences. A reception followed the ceremony.

The Reel

NSU’s Annual Film Series, The Reel, wrapped up its eighth season of film programs and audience discussions, which were attended by over fifty students, faculty, and members of the NSU community. The Reel’s January event presented its international film selection of the year, Io Capitano, and April’s show was a screening of the blockbuster hit Top Gun: Maverick. As always, DHP faculty participated in engaging talkbacks at The Reel’s film programs. Dr. Yvette Fuentes led a thought-provoking discussion following Io Capitano, a film in Wolof and French that was nominated for Best International Feature Film at the 2024 Academy Awards (First picture below). Dr. Nelson Bass facilitated a wide-ranging conversation on politics, militarism, and all things Top Gun at The Reel’s April show (second picture below).

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This semester, The Reel was proud to partner with DHP’s Modern Language program, NSU's chapter of Alpha Mu Gamma (National Collegiate Foreign Language Honor Society), and the student-led film club Fin Films. On top of co-sponsoring The Reel’s Top Gun: Maverick show, Fin Films continues to organize its own film events twice a month, which included screenings of Pan’s Labyrinth, The Princess Bride, The Parent Trap, The Lego Ninjago Movie, and many more, as well as an online Oscars watch party. In addition, NSU’s student newspaper The Current featured Fin Films and Film Studies students in an article published in the lead-up to the Oscars.

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The Reel and Fin Films will return this fall for another exciting season of film programs – for more information, contact The Reel’s coordinator and Fin Films’ faculty advisor, Dr. Yair Solan (ysolan@nova.edu)

Legal Studies (Prelaw) Events

On March 13, Legal Studies (Prelaw) hosted an Internship & Career Panel. Ms. Yineth Aslan, Esq., a double NSU alumna (Legal Studies and Shepard Broad JD) currently at the Law Office of Kate Vazzana, Mr. William Barner, Esq., the founder of Barner Legal and NSU adjunct professor, and Ms. Brittany Johnston, Esq. an NSU JD alumna currently at the Law Office of Forrest & Forrest, were extremely generously with their time and fielded questions from our students for two hours!

On March 20, Legal Studies (Prelaw) hosted a Law School Application Panel. Ms. Isabela Garcia Arregui, a graduate of NSU Legal Studies Class of 2025 and an admitted JD candidate in the incoming Class of 2028 at Levin College of Law University of Florida, shared their LSAP preparation and law school application journeys!

 

4 students participated in the 2025 Winter Semester LSAT Workshop series. We wish them and everyone else who is preparing for LSAT in the summer the best!

 

Honor Society:

 

The Honor Society for International Studies, Sigma Iota Rho, inducted 3 new members in 2025 winter.

Alumni Reunion and Two Lectures by Peter Watson

On Sunday February 16, 2025, NSU’s Halmos College of Arts and Sciences hosted a reception for alumni of the Department of Humanities and Politics. The reception was held in the Arena Club Room of the Don Taft University Center. This year about forty alumni attended as well as eleven professors. Department Chair, Dr. Nelson Bass, was there to welcome the group.

The food this year was fabulous. The professors and alumni again had a great opportunity to talk and catch up on what had transpired in the year since our last event in 2024. After the alumni gathering, the Department offered alumni and students an opportunity to hear Peter Watson, a renowned Scottish lawyer, speak about his experiences working on the Gecas case. The Gacas case involved a libel suit against Scottish television for exposing the identify and story of a war criminal, who had participated in carrying out the murder of the Jews of Lithuania.

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On Monday February 17, at the Sherman Library, Peter Watson delivered a special lecture to students and alumni, as well as members of the Lifelong Learning Institute, about his work on the Lockerbie air disaster case.

Graduate Students Participate in Fleet Week Fort Lauderdale 2025

Graduate students from DHP’s National Security Affairs and International Relations M.S. Program collaborated with NSU’s Military Affairs Office during Fort Lauderdale's Fleet Week 2025 to host the Military Flag Officer Panel at NSU. The panel’s focus included U.S. national security, international relations, STEM, cybersecurity, disaster and emergency management, global trade, the Panama Canal, and career insight and advice.  

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Held annually by the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard, Fleet Week entails the docking of active military vessels in respective cities (Port Everglades, FL) to honor their service, engage with the local community, and showcase the capabilities of the U.S. military and its sea power. 

Panelists included Rear Admirals John Hewitt (Commander Navy Region Southeast) and David Walt (Navy Expeditionary Strike Group 2 & Director Operations Division), and Captain Aaron Delano-Johnson (Coast Guard - Southern Command & International Affairs Officer). These distinguished guests answered students’ questions based on their respective geographical regions and expertise. They provided students invaluable career advice and insight into job opportunities in the U.S. Military and clarified the skills the U.S. Armed Forces is seeking.  

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Amber Paquette, DHP graduate student, B.S. Legal Studies 24, (Presidential Scholarship recipient and President’s 64 member), and DHP staff member, moderated and collaborated with NSU’s Office of Military Affairs to help make the panel vision come to fruition. Following the conclusion of the Panel, Admiral John Hewitt (Commander of the USS Cole) presented Ms. Paquette with a U.S. Navy challenge coin, a great civilian honor. In addition, DHP Graduate Assistant Gemma Cortés González and NSU Office of Military Affairs personnel Matthew Chenworth and Awilda Carozza assisted in event organization and support.  

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Brain Bowl 2025

Brain Bowl 2025 featured our Model UN, Phi Alpha Delta, Pre Law, Pi Sigma Alpha, and Undergraduate-Graduate Leadership Council student organizations all going head-to-head in a Jeopardy-style trivia competition. The Honors Great Room was at capacity and buzzing throughout as the night had several twists and turns. Following four fun and exciting rounds, it came down to the wire and Pi Sigma Alpha, on the Final Jeopardy question, prevailed over Model UN. This marks Pi Sigma Alpha’s second consecutive year winning the belt and their fourth time in the last five years.

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Pi Sigma Alpha (2025 Student Research Conference)

In February, DHP students traveled to Washington, DC, to present their research at the 2025 12TH Annual Pi Sigma Alpha Political Science Student Research Conference held at George Washington University. Most of the DHP students who attended the conference were part of Dr. Edwards’s Political Science course: Qualitative Research Methods. The Pi Sigma Alpha conference is an annual conference for students, allowing for a highly interactive forum for students to share their research.

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During the conference, students networked with other students from universities across the country and the world. In addition, students attended career development sessions and other panel discussions. This opportunity was a great experience for DHP students to gain knowledge, practice their presentation skills, present their research, and further their professional development.

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Students in attendance included: Kyle Bell, Catalina Cusano, Aruhi Kodeboyina, Italia Lewis, Amber Paquette, and Melina Pecci.

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Popular Culture Association Conference

This past April, DHP students Gloria Mendez, Chetana Movva, and Cassandra Stevens presented individual papers at the Popular Culture Association Conference (PCA) in New Orleans. PCA’s large national conference hosts over 1500 presenters annually, promoting the study of popular culture while showcasing a wide range of interdisciplinary research. Gloria, Chetana, and Cassandra are all English majors, and they presented their scholarly work on panels alongside graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and university faculty. They were sponsored at PCA by Dr. Aileen Miyuki Farrar, Associate Professor of Literature, and Dr. Yair Solan, Assistant Professor of Literature and Film, and had their professional development supported by the Department of Humanities & Politics Scholar Fund.

 

Gloria is an English major graduating in May 2025 and presented on the “Science Fiction and Fantasy: Moods, Emotions, and Mental Health” panel. Gloria’s paper, “The Bespoke Psychopath: Examining Potential Origins of River Song’s Madness,” explored the representation of psychopathy and gender in Doctor Who.

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Chetana is a double major in English and Biology and presented on the “Disasters and Apocalypses” panel. Chetana’s paper, “A Reflection on Human Nature through The Decameron: Have We Changed for Good?”, discussed Boccaccio’s The Decameron as well as the Covid-era Decameron Project and articulated the value of the humanities for understanding human responses to global disease.

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Cassandra is a double major in English and English Education and presented on the panel “American Literature: The Power of the Written Word.” Cassandra’s paper, “The Trifles of Women,” examined Susan Glaspell’s classic 1916 play Trifles within the context of its broader media culture and the discourse of women’s rights.

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The presentations were based on these students' particular academic interests and on research they developed in their courses. Dr. Solan praised their work at PCA: “While new to scholarly conferences, Gloria, Chetana, and Cassandra presented with such ease and nuance, and they were all adept at fielding questions from the audience during their Q&As. Their fellow panelists were clearly impressed, and the department is very proud of them for representing us so well at PCA.” In addition to sharing their research, the students attended panels on an assortment of popular culture topics and toured the New Orleans French Quarter.

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Graduates of 2025

ENGLISH

  • ​Anjaly Ann Kappen

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  • Gloria D Mendez

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  • Sabrina Solaman

HISTORY

  • Julian Orellana

INTERNTATIONAL STUDIES

  • Sama H Ali

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  • Kareilys Castillo

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  • Catalina Cusano

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  • Jenny Davila

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  • Alexandra Diana Hernandez

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  • Jihnny P De Giles

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  • Sophia Carolyn Wehle

POLITICAL SCIENCE

  • Joshua Hertzel Abadi

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  • Madison Alvarez

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  • Kyle Bell

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  • Suraj H Doobay

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  • Gabriella R Fidanze

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  • Casey L Homorody

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  • Taylor M Margherita

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  • Danisse Martinez

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  • Parker J Morgan

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  • Melina Isabelle Pecci

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  • Raul Andres Riquelme Forero

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  • Nikolas David Tousis

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  • Emily Nicolette Troy

INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES

  • Eleni Angelos

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  • Blake Alexander Barker

LEGAL STUDIES

  • Grace Acierno

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  • Victoria Arutunian

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  • Isabella Dell'Api

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  • Jareth Garcia

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  • Isabela Garcia Arregui

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  • Priya Goyal

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  • Farrah Hashish

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  • Nadia J Hayslip

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  • Monica V Kiselyuk

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  • Nicholette K Lanane

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  • Adam Tamsis

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  • Alba Luz Vargas Rodriguez

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  • Ravyn White

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  • Tyler Jeffrey Williams

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  • Maria-Elissa Zamora

NSAIR GRADUATES

  • Diner Aldeus

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  • Modupe N Bamiro​

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  • Roger Barrios

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  • Mohammad Durrani

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  • Chad A Kuhens​

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  • Laurie Love

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  • Sharmon Monagan

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  • Zyon Slue​​

Faculty Highlights

Conference Presentations

  • “The Myth of Objectivity and Corelli’s Romance,” Popular Culture Association Conference (PCA) in New Orleans, LA, 16-19 April 2025.

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  • “Spectral Science: I Will Believe It When I See It,” Modern Language Association Convention in New Orleans, LA 9-12 January 2025.

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  • “Why Children?: Collins’s Reply, Enough of Science AND of Heart,” Modern Language Association Convention in New Orleans, LA 9-12 January 2025.

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​Invited Lectures

  • “Christina Rossetti and Fatal Art,” Lifelong Learning Institute, Nova Southeastern U, 18 March 2025.

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  • Panel Discussion of Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, Banned Books Series “Out of Sight: Not Out of Mind,” NSU’s Center for Applied Humanities, 12 Mar. 2025.

Dr. Aileen Farrar

  • Dr. Yvette Fuentes served as Co-Pi with Dr. Amanda Furiasse on the “Florida 2100” grant funded by Florida Humanities. She is co-producer and co-host of the grant’s Florida 2100 podcast.

 

  • Dr. Yvette Fuentes was the moderator of the “Future of Spanglish” roundtable discussion with Dr. Philip Carter (Florida International University) and Dr. Andrew Lynch (University of Miami), on September 30, 2024. The event was part of the Center for the Applied Humanities annual Hispanic Heritage Month Series

Dr. Yvette Fuentes

  • Dr. Teng Li published a book review of The Geography of Injustice: East Asia’s Battle Between Memory and History (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2024), authored by Prof. Barak Kushner, in Twentieth-century China 50, no. 2 (2025).

Dr. Teng Li

  • Jeremy Weissman published "Ethics and AI Super Toys" in Techné: Research in Philosophy and Technology

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  • Jeremy Weissman presented "Children, Ethics and A.I. Super Toys" as part of NSU's Open Classroom series.

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  • Dr. Jeremy Weissman won the Provost’s Research Award.

Dr. Jeremy Weissman

  • Dr. Ying Ma helped organize Travel Smart: Language and Etiquette Essentials on March 18, 2025 to teach students useful expressions, etiquette, and customs for visiting China.

Dr. Ying Ma

  • Dr. Hibbs gave a presentation titled, “Hegelian Non-Philosophy” at the Florida Philosophical Association Conference at Flagler College

Dr. Darren Hibbs

Publications:

  • “Teaching Eastern Europe in the Age of Russia’s Imperial Invasions: A Conversation on Being Postcolonial when No One Takes Any Notice”. Contributor to this forum organized by Oksana Dudko and Anna Hajkova. History Workshop Journal (May 2025).

 

Grants:

  • American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) Project Development Grant (Spring 2025)

 

Conferences/Invited Talks:

  • “Famine Justice: Investigative Famine Commissions, Ukraine, and Transitional Justice in the Age of Cold War Decolonization.” Conference presentation at the Association for the Study of Nationalities (ASN). Columbia University, New York City, NY. May 24th, 2025.

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  • “The (Re)Built Environment” as part of the Temerty Contemporary Ukraine Program (TCUP) Conference at the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute (HURI). Invited by Dr. Emily Channell-Justice to moderate a panel about the revitalization of Ukraine during and after the current war. Harvard University, Cambridge, MA. February 7-8th, 2025.

 

Media Appearances and Interviews:

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  • Interviewed by Kyiv Post about the 1932-1933 Holodomor as a legacy of Russian violence and its connections to a Lenin statue in Seattle. “Seattle’s Lenin Statue and the Fight for Historical Memory” (May 5th, 2025). https://www.kyivpost.com/post/51768

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Dr. John Vstecka

Dr. Marlisa Santos

  • Dr. Marlisa Santos published “The Butterfly Effect: Robert McGinnis’s Poster Metamorphoses of Bond Women.” The International Journal of James Bond Studies 8.1 (Spring 2025)

Dr. Yair Solan

  • Dr. Yair Solan participated in a panel discussion on Alice Walker's novel The Color Purple, Banned Books Series "Out of Sight, Not Out of Mind," NSU's Center for Applied Humanities, February 3, 2025.

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  • Dr. Solan presented "The Yellow Wallpaper in Other Patterns: Rest Cure Fiction and the Periodical Press" at the Popular Culture Association Conference (PCA) in New Orleans, LA, April 16-19, 2025.

Address

​Halmos College of Arts and Sciences

Department of Humanities & Politics

 

Mailman Hollywood Building #250

3300 S. University Drive

Fort Lauderdale, FL 33328

Phone

(954) 262-8147

Connect

Connect with DHP on LinkedIn

Connect with the DHP Alumni Network

Connect with the NSAIR Alumni Network

 Winter 2025 Department of Humanities and Politics Newsletter

Committee:

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Associate Professor Stephen Ross Levitt, LLM

 

​Dr. Amanda Furiasse, PhD

 

​Dr. John Vsetecka​​, PhD​

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DHP Graduate Research Assistant: Gemma Cortes Gonzalez

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