Submitted by NORDP NE Communications Coordinator, Bethany Drews Javidi, University of Connecticut
The NORDP-NE region invited their colleagues from the Atlantic region to join them on a virtual road trip to Dartmouth on December 8 to discuss how research development professionals can support research in the humanities. The road trip to Dartmouth was the third virtual road trip for the region and gave NORDP colleagues the chance to escape their home universities and connect with colleagues over a lively discussion of the important work and contribution of humanities scholars.
Charlotte Bacon, Director of GrantGPS at Dartmouth, provided the energy and vision to coordinate a fantastic meeting. Charlotte gave the attendees an informative presentation on the strategies RD professionals can take to promote the success and wellbeing of humanities scholars.
In addition, a slate of humanities scholars shared their perspectives with the region during a panel discussion. We were fortunate to hear from Laura Edmondson, Professor of Theater, Israel Reyes, Associate Professor of Spanish and Portuguese, and Cori Tucker-Price, Post-Doctoral Fellow in in Ethnicity, Race, and Migration in the U.S. Context. The panel reflected the range of disciplines active in the humanities and the needs of faculty at varying stages in their careers.
“The event was an energizing one that provided not only great ideas & insights to bring back to my office, but also the chance to virtually engage in conversation with colleagues across the regions,” said Daniel Campbell from the Atlantic Region.
A highlight of the meeting was anthropology professor Sienna Craig’s reading of her poems, “Mars Venus Moon” and “Supermarket.” Her reading gave us all a chance to reflect on life and loss in the pandemic. Thank you, Sienna!
Seventy-five RD professionals from New England attended the meeting. NORDP-NE is grateful to Eric Si, Communications and Events Specialist (our wizard behind the curtain), and Anne Maglia, Associate Vice Chancellor for Research Administration and Integrity, at UMass Lowell, who generously contributed their institutional resources and expertise in virtual conferencing to make our three road trips a reality. Many thanks also to Kimberly Eck, NORDP President, who made a special appearance and gave introductory remarks.
Thanks go to our other contributors as well: Anne Maglia, Member, NORDP Board of Directors, who got the group up to speed on events at NORDP national; Jeralyn Haraldsen, Chair of the NORDP-NE Advisory Committee, who convened and chaired the meeting, Edel Minogue, Chair Elect of NORDP-NE and the other members of the NORDP-NE Advisory Committee who contributed their time and ideas to make the meeting a success.
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