The Axinn Center for the Humanities celebrates the crucial role of the Humanities in a liberal arts education through its vigorous support of humanistic research and pedagogy.

At the broadest level, the task of Humanities fields and disciplines is, in the words of Toni Morrison, to “pursue the human project—which is to remain human and block the dehumanization and estrangement of others.”

In pursuit of these goals, Humanities disciplines examine a rich variety of historical, linguistic, philosophical, literary, and artistic materials that help us better understand our own and others’ vibrant and ever-changing cultures.

Humanities departments and programs also encourage students and faculty to reach across disciplinary boundaries to create innovative projects in medical humanities, oral histories, digital humanities, and many other fields. Our Public Humanities Labs Initiative also gives faculty and students the opportunity to integrate humanistic learning in creative ways into public-facing or community-based projects that address social and cultural issues of urgent importance.

 

Humanities during COVID-19

We’ve built a list of articles, blogs, and other media featuring humanistic inquiry related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Panoramic view of campus with the Green Mountains and beyond in the distance.

Reaching across Disciplines

The Center for the Humanities draws on a wide range of Middlebury’s resources, both on and off campus, to support the vital areas of humanistic research and teaching. 
 

Faculty Research

We support a yearly Humanities Faculty Research Seminar designed to support faculty as they pursue research projects and to create collaboration and community around those projects.

Explore the Faculty Seminar

MiddData

MiddData fosters innovative scholarship in the digital Humanities, supporting the work of faculty, students, and staff across all Middlebury’s schools and programs.  

Explore MiddData
Man writes with feather quill.

Student Research in the Humanities

Middlebury has generous support for student research in the Humanities, including the prestigious Kellogg Fellowship. Explore the Kellogg and other research support.

A humanities graduate at work as a policy consultant.

Careers and the Humanities

Graduates from our Humanities departments and programs leave Middlebury with excellent writing, reading, speaking, and critical thinking skills, with global historical and cultural awareness, and with extensive research skills. Our alumni enter a wide range of fields, including journalism, medicine, finance, business, law, museum work, library work, fields related to the arts, publishing, media production, and many others.

Explore Careers and the Humanities