American Studies in the News: Phuong Le’s unconventional journey at UC Berkeley unlocked a new passion and career trajectory
Phuong Le graduated from UC Berkeley’s College of Letters & Science with a degree in American Studies (Class of 2022). While that may sound straightforward, her path was anything but traditional. After building a strong academic foundation at Berkeley, personal challenges with her mental health and finances ultimately led Phuong to withdraw from school just shy of graduation in 2017. Over the next five years, Phuong worked tirelessly to overcome these obstacles, which were intensified by the onset and duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fortunately, this period of uncertainty enabled […]
American Studies in the News: Alumnus T.J. Bollers Featured in the Daily Cal
The Daily Cal has published a profile on T.J. Bollers, American Studies alumnus, current UC Berkeley graduate student, and member of the Bears football team. Bollers, who finished his thesis in Spring, credits his time in American Studies as being crucial to him finding a place at the university and helping shape his future career. Read more here.
New Graduate Profiles on the American Studies website!
Please check out new profiles of American Studies graduates under People/Graduate Profiles.
In Memoriam: American Studies co-founder Don McQuade
It is with great sadness that we bring you news of the passing of Don McQuade, Professor Emeritus of English and former dean of Undergraduate and Interdisciplinary Studies (1989–1995). McQuade was instrumental in the founding of the American Studies program here at Berkeley, helping to establish and find financial support for key aspects of the program, such as regular co-teaching between colleagues affiliated with differing departments and programs. McQuade was born in Brooklyn 1941 and educated at St. Francis College, going on to earn an M.A. and a Ph.D., both in English from […]
American Studies Alumnus Ramzi Fawaz (’06) to give a talk on the psychedelic humanities (September 25, 2025) and hosts “Nerd From the Future” podcast (September 8, 2025)
On September 25 from 5–7 PM, Ramzi Fawaz, a graduate of the American Studies program (class of 2006) and Professor of English at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, will return to campus for a talk the psychedelic humanities. In partnership with the Center for Interdisciplinary Critical Inquiry, Fawaz will join Ramsey McGlazer to discuss his current book project, How to Think Like a Multiverse: Psychedelic Pathways to Embracing a Diverse World. The event is free and open to the public; more information is available here. Fawaz also hosts a new podcast, […]
Retirement of Corliss Lee, American Studies Library Liaison
American Studies honors the retirement of Corliss Lee, whose decades of unwavering service as the American Studies Library Liaison, supported the research and scholarship of our students and faculty. Thousands of American Studies majors and minors relied on Corliss’s expertise to conduct the library research required for the senior capstone project, and her steady guidance was central to their successes. Over the years, Corliss helped students navigate an extraordinary range of materials, from scholarly works and professional manuals to legal cases, historical archives, and the popular press. Her breadth of […]
Fall ’25 Bancroft Library Book Talk Features American Studies Faculty
Bancroft Library Roundtable Presentations will be held on the third Thursday of the month on Zoom, from 12:00-1:00, and are free and open to all. Note that the October talk will be held on the 4th Thursday of the month due to a scheduling conflict – it will be on October 23rd. Dr. Sarah Gold McBride, a lecturer in the Interdisciplinary American Studies program here at Berkeley, will get us started on September 18th with: Whiskerology: Finding the 19th-Century Culture of Hair in the Bancroft Collection Sarah Gold McBride’s recent […]
Sarah Gold McBride’s new book, Whiskerology, reviewed in the New Yorker
A review of American Studies lecturer Sarah Gold McBride’s new book, Whiskerology: The Culture of Hair in Nineteenth-Century America (Harvard University Press, 2025) appeared in the New Yorker on July 21, 2025. The book is a surprising history of human hair in nineteenth-century America, where length, texture, color, and coiffure became powerful indicators of race, gender, and national belonging. You can read the review here.
American Studies Alumni in the News: Nseke Ngilbus, Class of 2023
Chancellor Richard Lyons wrote in his August 13, 2025 Berkeley Brief: Dear Cal alums, parents, and friends, Nseke Ngilbus faced several complex challenges when he started at Cal. He was an older student, a transfer student, and interested in product design — a field he knew little about. “For me, the academics were not the most difficult part,” he wrote in a blog. “Instead, it was understanding the things that are outside of academics … the hidden curriculum.” An Oakland native, Nseke found his footing through two programs that, he […]
2025 UGIS Commencement Ceremony Video
