Distinguished Professor Emeritus Mischa Penn passed at age 89. He taught for more than 50 years at the University and was the recipient of numerous teaching awards. Penn's home department was anthropology and worked on a committee that led to the creation of the Department of African American Studies.

Associate Professor David Valentine is a cultural and linguistic anthropologist who researches commercial space settlement movement. Valentine believes that studying outer space can help shed light on possible ways of approaching the current climate change crisis.

Professor Gloria Goodwin Raheja has worked in archives across Appalachia and conducted oral history interviews to explore the ways American vernacular music registered transformations in the social and economic landscapes of coal mining communities in the 1920s and 1930s.

Anthropology and history student Dana Queen reflects on her time at the University of Minnesota as she prepares to graduate in the spring. Her dedication to creating programs for informal learning spaces in libraries has been nurtured by her liberal arts education and experiences.