Congratulations to current junior fellow Julio Villa-Palomino, whose article, “Home Sweet Harm: Confinement and Tranquilidad in Post-Asylum Peru,” received the 2026 Article Prize from the Latin American Studies Association’s Health, Science, and Technology Section.
Published in Medical Anthropology Quarterly, the article examines how Peru’s community mental health model can contribute to exclusion and confinement at home. Drawing on 18 months of ethnographic fieldwork in Lima, Villa-Palomino explores how the home can become both a place of protection and a form of constraint for people with mental illness.
The Michigan Society of Fellows opened the academic year with a day in Detroit devoted to scholarship, art, and fellowship.
The retreat’s morning program at the University of Michigan Detroit Center featured presentations by five senior fellows of the Society. Their talks ranged across literature, history, sociology, physiology, engineering, and the experience of work:
Benjamin Paloff, “What Do You Actually Do?: A Lesson in Humanity from a Shanghai Crosswalk”
Bénédicte Boisseron, “Lost Roots”
Ormond MacDougald, “Ruminations of a Fat Physiologist”
Alford Young Jr., “Dignity at Work: African American Lower-Tier—but Essential—Workers During COVID”
Margaret Wooldridge, “Keeping the Lights On and Getting to Work: Challenges of Power and Propulsion”
Together, the presentations demonstrated the breadth of inquiry represented in the Society and created opportunities for discussion across disciplines.
Following the morning program, the group visited the recently renovated Michigan Central Station. Society members explored the historic building before continuing to the Detroit Institute of Arts.
At the museum, curator Ben Coleman led a tour of Rivera Court and the American galleries. The group examined the rich details of Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry Murals and considered the works in relation to Detroit’s artistic, industrial, and cultural history.
The retreat concluded with dinner at the Scarab Club, one of Detroit’s oldest arts organizations. Founded in 1907 by artists and art patrons, the club has long served as a gathering place for the region’s creative community. Its current clubhouse opened in 1928 and includes a remarkable record of Detroit’s cultural life: signatures covering the ceiling beams of its second-floor lounge. Among them are the names of Diego Rivera, photographer Margaret Bourke-White, artist Leroy Foster, and writer John Dos Passos.
From senior fellows’ presentations to visits to three distinctive Detroit institutions, the retreat gave Society members a day to exchange ideas, encounter the city’s history and culture, and build connections across cohorts and fields.
Ormond MacDougald presenting “Ruminations of a Fat Physiologist”.Al Young, Jr. presenting “Dignity at Work: African American Lower-Tier — but Essential — Workers during COVID”.Society members explore Diego Rivera’s murals with DIA curator Ben Coleman.MSF Chair Scotti Parrish welcomes Society members and opens the Fall Retreat at the U-M Detroit Center.Society members discuss Frederic Edwin Church’s Cotopaxi (1862) with DIA curator Ben Coleman.Society members ended the retreat with a dinner at the Scarab Club in Detroit, MI on Friday, September 18, 2026.
The Spring 2026 edition of the Michigan Society of Fellows newsletter is now available.
In this issue, Chair Scotti Parrish announces a new collaboration with the U-M Arts Initiative to pilot a dedicated fellowship for emerging artists. The newsletter also introduces the Society’s 2026–2029 cohort of postdoctoral junior fellows, recognizes outgoing fellows, celebrates the results of Giving Blueday, and highlights recent appointments, publications, awards, and other accomplishments across the MSF community.
We’re excited to have opened registration for the 55th Anniversary Symposium of the Michigan Society of Fellows, taking place on November 6-7, 2025, at the Rackham Graduate School in Ann Arbor. This event celebrates over five decades of interdisciplinary excellence and promises to be a landmark gathering for scholars and artists from diverse fields.
Join us for two days of inspiring discussions, performances, and the celebration of a community that continues to shape the landscape of academic and artistic innovation.
This symposium will feature a stellar lineup of alumni junior fellows who have made significant contributions in their fields across the nation. It’s an opportunity to honor our shared legacy and explore new horizons of interdisciplinary collaboration.
Reserve your spot today for this inspiring event! The deadline to RSVP is October 17, 2025.
Don’t miss this chance to honor our shared legacy and explore new avenues for innovation and creativity. We look forward to seeing you in November.
We invite all our fellows, current and former to join us in Ann Arbor. We also keenly welcome interested faculty, researchers, and students at the University of Michigan to attend!
For additional information, please visit our website or contact us directly. Let’s make this an unforgettable celebration.
The Michigan Society of Fellows invites applications for its prestigious 2026-2029 Fellowships in the humanities, arts, sciences, and professions. These positions offer recent Ph.D. graduates the opportunity to engage in research and teaching at a major research university, providing both financial and intellectual support. Fellows are appointed as Assistant Professors in relevant departments and Postdoctoral Scholars in the Michigan Society of Fellows for a three-year term, starting August 31, 2026.
The Society and the University of Michigan value contributions that address social, environmental, and technical challenges. Applicants are encouraged to highlight how their research, teaching, service, and outreach activities engage with these pressing issues. A comprehensive list of eligible departments for the upcoming fellowship term will be available on August 1.
The application period opens on August 1 and must be submitted electronically by September 15, 2025, at 11:59 PM EDT. Prospective fellows can access the online application and obtain additional details by visiting http://www.societyoffellows.umich.edu/.
This is a unique opportunity for early-career scholars to further their research and academic careers in a supportive and collaborative environment.
We are delighted to announce the 55th Anniversary Symposium of the Michigan Society of Fellows, celebrating decades of groundbreaking interdisciplinary scholarship and artistic expression. This momentous occasion will take place on November 6-7, 2025, at the iconic Rackham Graduate School on the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus.
Join us for a series of dynamic panels featuring esteemed speakers:
Sounding History: Alice Goff, Roger Matthew Grant, Scott Watson
Forest Thinking: Paul V.A. Fine, Eduardo Kohn, Meghna Sapui
Inequalities: Elizabeth Hinton, Rebecca Spang, Marlous van Waijenburg
Migrations & Media: Cécile Fromont, Neil Gong, Zeynep Gursel, Michael Szalay
Healing Dilemmas: Vaughn Cooper, Ana Vinea
The symposium will also feature a special musical performance and commentary featuring alumni junior fellow, Henry Stoll’s Haitian Revolution music.
Stay Tuned for More Details
Registration for this event will open on August 1, and can be found on the 55th Anniversary Symposium tab of our website. Keep an eye out for the official announcement and prepare to secure your spot at this unforgettable event.
We eagerly anticipate your presence in November to celebrate the rich history and promising future of the Michigan Society of Fellows. Let’s gather to honor our past, inspire our present, and envision our future together.
For updates and more information, please visit our website or contact us directly. We look forward to celebrating with you!
Dr. Ifeolu David, a distinguished physician and scholar at the University of Michigan, offers profound insights into the intersecting realms of vaccine decision-making, health disparities, and promotion in his presentation, “Insights from Sierra Leone.” Having garnered extensive experience from his frontline role during the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone, Dr. David delves into the historical and systemic factors that shaped the region’s healthcare foundations and its responses to subsequent health crises like COVID-19. His work adeptly combines clinical expertise, public health knowledge, and community engagement to address critical health disparities. Through his research, he highlights how past experiences with infectious diseases influence current vaccine behaviors, especially among health workers who played pivotal roles during both the Ebola and COVID-19 outbreaks.
Drawing on a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods, Dr. David uncovers how factors such as brand trust, availability of reliable health information, and educational influences significantly affect vaccine uptake in Sierra Leone. Importantly, he sheds light on the disparities in vaccine distribution, stressing the inequities faced by low-resource settings, even years after global vaccine deployment. The experiences from Sierra Leone emphasize the global responsibility to ensure equitable healthcare access, which is paramount not just for regional welfare but also for global health security. To explore Dr. David’s comprehensive analysis and findings, watch the full presentation on the Michigan Society of Fellows YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8wmxRSFSPM.
We are delighted to introduce the newest members of the prestigious Michigan Society of Fellows. After an extensive selection process from over 860 highly qualified applicants, six outstanding scholars have been chosen to embark on an exciting three-year journey as postdoctoral fellows and non-tenure track assistant professors at the University of Michigan.
These distinguished fellows were selected for their exceptional scholarship and their commitment to collaborative, interdisciplinary research. During their tenure at Michigan, they will contribute to the academic community through innovative teaching and pioneering research, embodying the spirit of intellectual exploration that the Society of Fellows stands for.
A Focus on Exceptional Scholarship
The new junior fellows each bring a unique perspective and expertise to their respective fields, which include law, astronomy, history of art, and more. These scholars will engage with diverse research questions, from the microcosms of everyday life in historical contexts to the vast reaches of space. The interdisciplinary nature of their work promises to foster cross-departmental collaborations and enhance the educational experience for students and faculty alike.
The new junior fellows, with their affiliated department at Michigan, their degree-granting institution, and their research project are:
Aabid Allibhai
Law (Michigan Law), Harvard University “Belinda Sutton’s World: Everyday Life, Legal Claims, and Political Activism”
Amber Jacob
Middle East Studies (LSA), New York University “Scientific Knowledge Exchange: Medical Multiculturalism in Graeco-Roman Egypt”
Teresa Paneque-Carreño
Astronomy (LSA), Leiden University “Structure, Chemistry and Turbulence at the Origins of Planets”
Erik Peterson
Physics (LSA), Duke University “Supernova Cosmology: Peculiar Velocities, the Near Infrared, and Dust” Sylvia Ryerson – American Culture (LSA), Yale University “Listening Past Carceral Power in Central Appalachia”
Sylvia Ryerson
American Culture (LSA), Yale University “Listening Past Carceral Power in Central Appalachia”
Phoebe Springstubb
History of Art (LSA), Massachusetts Institute of Technology “The Inhabited Arctic: Architecture, Land, and the Politics of Time in the Bering Strait”
Looking Forward
We warmly welcome these exceptional scholars to the University of Michigan and eagerly anticipate the significant contributions they will make to our vibrant academic community. Their groundbreaking work promises to foster a new era of intellectual growth and interdisciplinary collaboration. With projects ranging from exploring the complexities of historical legal systems to examining the cosmic phenomena that shape our universe, each fellow is poised to make a lasting impact. Stay tuned for the inspiring advancements they are set to achieve in the coming years!
By nurturing a scholarly environment underpinned by curiosity and innovation, the Michigan Society of Fellows continues to lead the way in academic excellence and discovery.
Dr. Anne Kort recently delivered a captivating presentation titled “Bridging Mammalian Locomotion Past and Present” at the University of Michigan, where she is a Second Fellow at the Society of Fellows. With a robust academic background in earth science and geological sciences from the University of Minnesota and Indiana University, Dr. Kort brings her passion for uncovering evolutionary mysteries into focus. Her research journey delves deep into how mammalian movement has evolved over millennia in response to changing environments. By examining how animals like Michigan’s mascot, the Wolverine, navigate their ecosystems, Dr. Kort aims to unravel the intricate dance between an animal’s morphology and its environmental interactions.
Her work employs state-of-the-art tools like GPS tracking and CT scans to explore these evolutionary changes. By studying both ancient fossils and modern movement patterns, Dr. Kort offers insights into how past climates and landscapes influenced the creatures of today. Her approach investigates not only daily locomotion but also the evolutionary lineage over time. During the presentation, she highlighted groundbreaking findings that show how slight morphological adaptations can lead to significant functional diversity within species. For example, her research has explored how variations in limb structure impact the locomotion strategies of different mammal species, providing a window into their adaptive strategies.
Moreover, Dr. Kort discussed the implications of these evolutionary patterns for understanding current biodiversity and conservation efforts. By predicting how animals might continue to adapt, her research holds significance for preserving species facing rapidly changing climates. Her work underscores the importance of integrating paleontological data with modern biology to enrich our understanding of life’s resilience through time.
For those interested in the dynamic interplay of structure and movement across the ages, you can watch the full presentation on the Michigan Society of Fellows YouTube channel.
Congratulations to Sungwon Park, current junior fellow and assistant professor with the School of Nursing, for earning the title of 2024-26 Ewha Global Fellow.
Ewha Womans University awards the fellowship to distinguished scholars from around the world for collaboration in research and education with its faculty members in Seoul, South Korea. Established in 1886, Ewha has grown into one of the world’s largest women’s educational institutes.
Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Assistant Professor, School of Nursing
