Marlaina Martin, Michael Baysa, and ElĂs Miller Larsen are adding a wealth of expertise and experience to ¶¶Ňő̽̽ (¶¶Ňő̽̽)’s College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) this fall as new Henderson-Harris fellows. The Henderson-Harris Fellowship, which honors the memory of George Washington Henderson and Andrew Harris, supports postdoctoral scholars whose expertise aligns with advancing ¶¶Ňő̽̽’s research and teaching priorities, particularly those related to Our Common Ground principles and ¶¶Ňő̽̽’s inclusive excellence objectives.
Andrew Harris, class of 1838, was the first African American graduate of ¶¶Ňő̽̽ and the first African American college graduate in the United States to champion the abolition of slavery and to demand full equality for people of color. George Washington Henderson, class of 1877, was one of the first African American students elected to Phi Beta Kappa and to graduate from ¶¶Ňő̽̽.
The three new Henderson-Harris fellows continue this legacy of excellence, both in scholarship and in research and teaching goals that address issues of inequality and injustice. ¶¶Ňő̽̽ and CAS welcomes them and invites you to get to know them a little better.
Marlaina Martin, Ph.D.
Department: Anthropology
Discipline: Cultural Anthropology
Marlaina Martin, Ph.D. (pictured above), specializes in media anthropology, an area of study that examines how people interact with and through media, particularly involving questions of race, gender, class, and other areas of identity and social positioning. She joins ¶¶Ňő̽̽ after completing a two-year Public Anthropology Postdoctoral Fellowship with SAPIENS Anthropology Magazine.
“The Department of Anthropology’s progressive, open-minded, and welcoming energy convinced me that I can do work and have conversations that push me not only as an instructor and intellectual but also as a citizen of much broader local, national, and global communities,” Martin says. She is most excited to see what projects, collaborations, and initiatives she will have the opportunity to take part in.
This semester, Martin is teaching a 3000-level anthropology course called “Media/Culture/Power,” which introduces students to media anthropology as a subfield of cultural anthropology. “Students’ curiosity and willingness to engage without fear of being wrong have sincerely been highlights of my campus experience thus far,” Martin says. Next semester she looks forward to teaching “Black Feminist Anthropology.”
Martin has long enjoyed such varied pastimes as playing the sousaphone and bowling, but these days she doesn’t mind curling up with a cup of hot chocolate and a good Black feminist science fiction novel. (Her current favorites are Octavia E. Butler’s Parable of the Sower and Nalo Hopkinson’s Midnight Robber.) “In my spare time, I also enjoy doing puzzles, trying my best to cook, and thinking up possible names for my future and—as far as memory can carry me—forever-wanted dog.”
Michael Baysa, Ph.D.
Department: Religion
Discipline: Religion and Race in the Americas
Michael Baysa, Ph.D., comes to ¶¶Ňő̽̽ from teaching positions at Washington University in St. Louis and New York University. “I specialize in religions in the Americas,” Baysa says, “with particular emphasis on the histories of religious communities’ encounters with and uses of media technologies.” For example, his research covers figures such as Raphael Hayyim Isaac Carigal, the first Jewish rabbi to visit the British colonies, who was wary of publishing his sermons through the English colonial printing press.
The two things that have excited Baysa most about joining ¶¶Ňő̽̽’s religion department are its strong reputation among higher ed colleagues in the field and the high quality of the faculty’s research projects. He particularly notes Dr. Ilyse Morgenstein Fuerst’s podcast, Keeping it 101, and her new book, Religion Is Not Done with You, and Dr. Vicki Brennan’s work on the American Religious Sounds Project and recent exhibit at ¶¶Ňő̽̽. He’s also looking forward to being a scholar in a research institution with strong commitments to both its local community and the environment.
This semester, Baysa is teaching a course titled “Blood, Heathens, and Pagan Lands,” which explores the intertwining histories of race and religion in the broader Americas. “In the spring, I’m looking forward to teaching a course on religious communities and media technologies, which will explore a range of topics, from spirit photography to televangelism,” he says. He’s especially looking forward to working more with ¶¶Ňő̽̽ students, who he says possess “a unique blend of curiosity and passion both inside and outside the classroom.”
Having grown up in the greater Boston area, Baysa remains a big fan of the Boston Celtics. “I have been rooting for them since 2002,” he says. He also enjoys exploring new places to eat with his family, watching anime, and occasionally playing video games when time allows.
ElĂs Miller Larsen, Ph.D.
Department: Philosophy
Discipline: Epistemology
ElĂs Miller Larsen, Ph.D., was drawn to ¶¶Ňő̽̽ by the excellent faculty in the Department of Philosophy, whom she describes as “kind and compassionate individuals.” She’s excited to have in-depth discussions with these new colleagues and is keenly interested in talking about competing theories on how to judge “bad” beliefs. She also really appreciates ¶¶Ňő̽̽’s collegial atmosphere and looks forward to working with the Vermont Complex Systems Center at ¶¶Ňő̽̽ on various projects exploring the ethics of AI.
Larsen, who most recently taught at Brown University as a presidential postdoctoral fellow, specializes in exploring social epistemic problems—in other words, problems centered on what we can know, believe, ignore, etc., in the face of constraints like oppression and injustice—that address structural injustices through the lens of psychology and philosophy. “I am interested in how and why people perceive the world the way they do,” she says.
The structural injustices Larsen studies include structures of oppression in general, as well as attitudes such as implicit bias. “For example,” she says, “is it okay to be close-minded when we are in hostile environments (such as environments with fake news or other deceptions)? Is it okay to have a racist belief if that belief is (purportedly) supported by statistical evidence and/or the common view in your community? Is it okay to ignore glaring information when that information does not fit the status quo?”
Beyond campus, Larsen is drawn to nature and the outdoors. “I like the fresh air,” she says. She’s excited about visiting the ECHO museum and walking along the lake, and has also begun dipping her toes back into a former favorite activity, ballet. “My hope is that I can transition to finally dancing en pointe,” she says.