DAAD Opportunities for Faculty

Prof. Dr. Rich Lee, Professor of Psychology, University of Minnesota;  Prof. Dr. Teresa Swartz Professor of Sociology, University of Minnesota. Prof. Dr. Linda Juang Professor of Psychology/Education, University of  Potsdam, Prof. Dr. Peter Titzmann, Professor of Psychology; University of Hannover

2026-2028

This project builds on 2024–2025 DAAD-funded research to deepen international and interdisciplinary understanding of race, racism, and the experiences of Asian diasporic communities in Germany and Europe. The project will strengthen collaboration with German scholars and community organizations, particularly Asian Voices Europe (AVE) and korientation, while mentoring Asian German early-career scholars.

From 2024–2025, the team established an international working group, held meetings in Berlin and Minnesota, supported community-engaged research, and identified priorities including disseminating research on anti-Asian racism and developing collaborative studies. With new 2026–2028 DAAD funding, the project will produce a special issue on Asian diaspora and anti-Asian racism in Germany/Europe, develop comparative research on Asian immigrants’ adaptation and racialized experiences across Europe, and support early-career scholars through mentorship and methodological training.

The project will include three annual four-day trips to Berlin for collaborative meetings, community engagement, workshops, and guest lectures at universities including Potsdam and Humboldt. Monthly virtual meetings will maintain momentum between visits. The project emphasizes community-engaged research, interdisciplinary scholarship, and translating research into public awareness and advocacy around anti-Asian racism.

Dr. Juliette Cherbuliez, Professor of French University of Minnesota; Dr. Anita Traninger, Professor of Spanish and French Literature, Freie Universität Berlin

Summer 2027

This collaborative project between the University of Minnesota’s Center for German and European Studies and Center for Premodern Studies and Freie Universität Berlin’s ECHO Center examines the “material epistemology” of the book—the ways physical media shape how knowledge is produced, transmitted, received, and manipulated. Focusing on the early modern period, the project explores how the expansion of printing, propaganda, forgery, and new forms of mass communication influenced audiences and perceptions of truth, drawing connections to contemporary media consumption and the rise of AI in Germany and the United States.

The project also situates German book production within broader European networks shaped by war, religious conflict, trade, and knowledge exchange, including the Thirty Years’ War, Frankfurt and Leipzig book fairs, and transnational apprenticeship networks.

Building on a 2025 UMN seminar and the interdisciplinary “Interrogating Archives” research group, UMN and FU scholars will hold virtual research sessions throughout 2026 to develop collaborative research and a shared bibliography. The project will culminate in a five-day gathering in summer 2027, bringing four UMN scholars and four graduate students to Berlin for a colloquium and visits to major libraries and archives in Berlin, Leipzig, and Wolfenbüttel. DAAD funding will support travel, lodging, site visits, and meals.

Emily Beck, Associate Curator,  Wangensteen Historical Library; Theresa Berger, Digital Library Services Librarian;  Lois Hendrickson, Curator, Wangensteen Historical Library; Dr. Elizabeth Harding, Deputy Head of Department of Scholarship Programs and Scientific Events, Herzog August Bibliothek; Dr. Christian Mathieu, Subject Specialist, International and Interdisciplinary Legal Research, Berlin State Library

2026 - 2028

This project, supported by CGES, establishes a partnership among the University of Minnesota’s Wangensteen Historical Library, Herzog August Bibliothek, and Berlin State Library to advance the study, preservation, and digital accessibility of German and European interactive flap books. These fragile, movable books—produced from the late medieval period to today—use layered paper, hinges, and user interaction to communicate knowledge across genres including medicine, science, education, and art. Germany was a major center of early modern flap-book production, with influential works by physicians such as Johannes Remmelin and Georg Bartisch.

The project has three primary goals: establish an international research group of libraries, universities, and cultural heritage institutions; develop standards for creating interactive digital surrogates of flap books; and promote these standards through the International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF). The project will begin with research meetings in Germany and the Netherlands in 2026, followed by collaborative development of a prototype interactive digital edition of UMN’s Catoptrum microcosmicum and an open-source viewer. The project will culminate in 2028 with an international presentation of the new IIIF standards and digital tools.

By combining preservation with innovative digital access, the project will enable scholars worldwide to study fragile materials, compare individual copies and traces of use, and better understand the influence of German flap books on global book history. DAAD funding will support international travel, lodging, and software development.

Prof. Dr. Daniel Nolan, Associate Professor of German Studies and COIL Director, University of Minnesota Duluth

2026-2028

This collaborative project between the University of Minnesota, Freie Universität Berlin, University of Applied Sciences Münster, and University Duisburg-Essen will expand Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) programming in German and European Studies from 2026–2028. COIL enables students and faculty in different countries to engage in sustained international and intercultural collaboration through virtual learning, providing a carbon-efficient and accessible alternative to traditional study abroad.

Building on three virtual exchange programs established with DAAD support in 2023–2024, the project responds to faculty and administrator demand for additional training in designing effective COIL courses, particularly focused on sustainability education. Three progressive, three-day professional development workshops will be held in 2026, 2027, and 2028. Participants will develop and implement COIL modules, build international partnerships, share experiences, and provide peer feedback. The final 2028 workshop will culminate in a COIL and Sustainability Education Symposium and prepare participants to mentor colleagues and expand COIL programming at their institutions.

The project aims to strengthen sustainability education, intercultural communication, systems thinking, and collaborative problem-solving while making international learning more accessible to students regardless of financial means. DAAD funding will support faculty travel and lodging, guest-speaker honoraria, and costs associated with in-person workshops.

Prof. Dr. Michael Bennett McNulty, Professor of Philosophy, University of Minnesota; Prof. Dr. Rudolf Meer, Professor of Philosophy, Ruhr Universität Bochum

2028

This collaboration between the University of Minnesota and Ruhr Universität Bochum explores American and European approaches to scientific realism and their connections in early 20th-century philosophy of science. Led by Michael Bennett McNulty (UMN) and Rudolf Meer (Ruhr Universität Bochum), the project builds on an ongoing scholarly relationship, including Meer’s 2026 Fulbright visit to UMN and engagement with graduate students researching Critical Realism.

The project will culminate in a conference in Bochum in spring 2028, bringing together North American and European scholars, including PhD students, to exchange research, develop new collaborations, and examine the history and influence of Critical Realism. The conference will revisit the connections among the Vienna Circle, Berlin Group, and the philosophical community at the University of Minnesota, particularly the development of “Minnesota Realism” by Herbert Feigl and his colleagues.

By recovering these intellectual connections, the project challenges dominant interpretations of logical empiricism as uniformly anti-realist and highlights the continuity of realist approaches within the movement. The conference will facilitate comparison of American and European Critical Realisms and their influence on 20th-century philosophy of science. With Germany at the forefront of contemporary scholarship on Critical Realism, the project will bring together leading international scholars while providing North American researchers and graduate students opportunities for professional development and networking.

Prof. Dr. Christian Voller, Professor of Media Culture and Media Philosophy, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg; Prof. Dr. Bruno Chaouat, Professor of French & Italian/Jewish Studies,  University of Minnesota

Summer 2026

The Center for German and European Studies (CGES) and Leuphana Universität propose a 12-day Transatlantic Summer Institute (TASI) in summer 2026 for 14 graduate students and junior scholars from North American and German universities. Hosted at Leuphana Universität Lüneburg, the institute will examine the transatlantic exchange of radical political ideas during the 1960s and 1970s, focusing on racial and social justice, decoloniality, anti-imperialism, and the rise of militant movements in the United States and Europe.

The seminar will explore connections among movements and thinkers including the Black Panther Party, the Red Army Faction, the Weather Underground, Jean Genet, and Palestinian liberation movements, while examining the influence of Marxism, the Frankfurt School, and French existentialism. Particular attention will be given to tensions surrounding Zionism, antisemitism, Black-Jewish relations, and the European left’s confrontation with the legacy of Nazism, including the 1976 Entebbe hijacking.

By placing these historical developments within contemporary debates over Israel and Palestine, the TASI seeks to deepen understanding of transnational radicalism and its continuing implications for Germany, Europe, and the United States. The program will combine lectures, discussions, breakout groups, and intensive workshops in which participants develop their own research through peer and faculty feedback.

Prof. Dr. Hazel Rhodes, Professor of German, Nordic, Slavic and Dutch at University of Minnesota; Prof. Dr. Kira Kosnick Professor of Comparative Cultural and Social Anthropology, Director B/Orders in Motion, Europa Universität Viadrina)

Summer 2027

The University of Minnesota Center for German and European Studies (CGES) and Europa Universität Viadrina’s Center B/Orders in Motion will convene a 12-day Transatlantic Summer Institute (TASI) in July 2027 in Frankfurt (Oder) focused on the emerging field of trans German studies. The seminar will examine academic responses to authoritarian, anti-democratic, and populist movements targeting gender variance and sexual diversity in Germany and the United States.

The TASI will bring together 20 graduate students from both universities to develop transnational and comparative research on transgender topics in the humanities and social sciences. Participants will explore anti-trans ideologies at the intersections of gender and sexuality with race and ethnicity, nationalism, migration, class and labor, governmentality, surveillance, and marginalization. The program will also emphasize public-facing scholarship and engagement with artistic and activist perspectives on trans and non-binary experiences.

Through intensive readings, discussions, research workshops, and peer and faculty feedback, students will develop their individual projects while building international scholarly networks. Guest artists and activists will participate in lectures and a public panel in Berlin, while excursions to archives and cultural institutions—including the Schwules Museum, Spinnboden Archive, and Magnus Hirschfeld Society—will connect participants with Germany’s histories and contemporary debates around gender and sexuality.

Prof. Lynn Lukkas,  Art, University of Minnesota;  Prof. Pia Linz, Painting, Kunsthochschule Weißensee

2026 - 2028

The Center for German and European Studies (CGES) at the University of Minnesota will expand its longstanding partnerships with Weißensee Kunsthochschule Berlin and Milchhof Artist Studios to create sustained opportunities for artistic exchange and collaboration between Minnesota and Germany from 2026–2028. Building on 13 years of successful exchanges, the project will broaden participation and extend the benefits of transatlantic collaboration beyond Berlin and the Twin Cities.

With Weißensee, CGES will support three complementary initiatives: annual joint graduate student exhibitions in Minneapolis and Berlin, paired with an online exhibition and collaborative curation; one- to three-month residency exchanges for graduate students; and two- to six-week faculty residencies culminating in a public exhibition or lecture. These programs will provide artists with opportunities to develop their work, collaborate with international peers, and engage with new artistic and academic communities.

CGES will also support an annual summer residency at Milchhof Artist Studios, enabling two UMN MFA students each year to spend six weeks in Berlin working with local artist mentors. Pre-departure virtual meetings will help establish creative goals and connections, while students will showcase their work in Minnesota following their return. DAAD funding will support travel, lodging, exhibition costs, promotion, and related program expenses.

Prof. Dr. Matthias Rothe, Professor of German and Philosophy, University of Minnesota, Hartmut Austen, Professor of Art, Boston College; Ursula Schöndeling, Arbeitsgemeinschaft  deutscher Kunstvereine (AdKV)

2026-2028

CGES, in partnership with Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD), Boston College, and the Arbeitsgemeinschaft deutscher Kunstvereine (ADKV), will continue and strengthen the WorkArt internship program, which provides credit-bearing professional placements for American undergraduate and graduate students at community art organizations (Kunstvereine) across Germany.

From 2026–2028, at least ten students will complete four- to eight-week internships working alongside curators, artists, and community members. Interns will gain hands-on experience in exhibition production, arts education, translation, community engagement, and curatorial projects while developing German-language and professional skills. The competitive selection and tailored matching process connects students with Kunstvereine aligned with their artistic and career interests.

Program enhancements will include expanded outreach to students across UMN campuses, an alumni mentorship program pairing new interns with former participants, and virtual working groups between CGES, ADKV, and participating Kunstvereine to share best practices and address common challenges such as housing. The CGES Director will also visit selected Kunstvereine in Germany in summer 2026 to strengthen institutional relationships.

Prof. Lynn Lukkas, Professor of Art, University of Minnesota

Summer 2027

CGES, in collaboration with the University of Minnesota Department of Art, proposes a new summer 2027 study program bringing 8–10 advanced MFA students to Documenta in Kassel, Germany. One of the world’s most prestigious contemporary art exhibitions, Documenta offers students an opportunity to engage directly with international contemporary art while examining the exhibition’s complex history and its connections to Germany’s postwar reckoning with Nazism, Cold War politics, and US-German relations.

Before traveling, students will study Documenta’s history and controversies, including its role in debates over artistic freedom, postcolonialism, and antisemitism. During the trip, they will attend exhibitions and events and meet with Documenta curators and organizers. The 2027 exhibition, curated by Naomi Beckwith, will explore how art responds to contemporary crises and conflict.

Following the visit, students will participate in bi-weekly discussions throughout the fall 2027 semester, examining Documenta’s role as an instrument of cultural diplomacy and geopolitical influence. Each student will also conduct further research on an exhibiting artist. The program will culminate in a public presentation sharing students’ experiences and research with the UMN academic and broader Minnesota communities, extending the impact of the international experience beyond participating students.

Prof. Dr. Michaal Kolbialka, Professor of Theater, University of Minnesota, Prof. Dr. Jan Lazardzig, Professor of Theater, FU Berlin, Prof. Dr. Anna Burzynska, Professor of Polish literature and Prof. Dr. Marcin Koscielnian, Professor of Theater, Jagiellonian University Krakow

2026

CGES and the University of Minnesota Department of Theatre Arts & Dance will partner with Freie Universität Berlin, the Academy of Performing Arts (DAMU) in Prague, and Jagiellonian University in Kraków to organize a graduate seminar in fall 2026 examining how theatre, performance, museums, and public memorials represent and remember difficult histories during times of crisis. The 10-day program will bring UMN and European graduate students together in Berlin, Prague, and Kraków for lectures, research presentations, and site visits.

Using these three cities as living archives of crisis, resistance, and remembrance, students will investigate how authoritarianism, genocide, war, fascism, communism, and other historical crises from 1945 to the present have been represented and contested. The seminar will explore how cultural institutions construct historical narratives, the role of material objects and archives in representing difficult pasts, and the ways performance and visual culture can reinforce or challenge dominant understandings of history and memory.

Students will engage with sites including Berlin’s Topography of Terror, the Jewish Museum in Prague, and Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory in Kraków, alongside performances, exhibitions, and archival materials. The program will connect European memory politics and historical responsibility to contemporary debates about crisis, identity, and remembrance in Germany, Poland, Czechia, and the United States.

Dr. Michael Goldman, Professor of Sociology, University of Minnesota; Dr. Sebastian Kohl, Professor of Sociology, Freie Universität Berlin

Summer 2028

In partnership with the JFK Institute for North American Studies at Freie Universität Berlin, CGES will offer an interdisciplinary summer 2028 seminar examining urban housing challenges in Germany and the United States. The course will bring together 10 University of Minnesota and 10 FU Berlin undergraduates, who will collaborate on research projects through virtual meetings, asynchronous work, and an in-person program in Minneapolis and Berlin.

The seminar will explore how cities have responded to rising housing costs, affordability challenges, privatization of public goods, and growing inequalities since the 2008 global financial crisis, with particular attention to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Students will compare urban policy, planning, and grassroots responses in Minneapolis and Berlin, examining how governments, residents, and community organizations seek to create more affordable, equitable, and responsive cities.

Beginning in Minneapolis and continuing in Berlin, students will conduct fieldwork and engage directly with city planners, scholars, residents, and community organizations. Berlin’s neighborhoods will serve as a living classroom for exploring housing justice, urban change, and community organizing. The program will culminate in a public panel in Berlin bringing students and local and European organizations together to discuss shared housing challenges and potential solutions, extending the seminar’s impact to the broader community.

Prof. Dr. Dwight Lewis Jr., Professor of Philosophy, University of Minnesota,  Prof. Dr. Falk Wunderlich, Professor of Philosophy Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg

2028

CGES and the University of Minnesota Department of Philosophy propose a graduate seminar in fall 2028 focused on Anton Wilhelm Amo and the history and contemporary experience of Black Germany. The seminar will engage 10 graduate students with Amo’s life and philosophy before culminating in a week-long study trip to Wittenberg and Berlin.

Amo, born in West Africa and enslaved before becoming a scholar in Germany, was the first African to earn an advanced degree at a European university. In 1734, he defended his dissertation at the University of Wittenberg, challenging aspects of René Descartes’ distinction between mind and body. His life and intellectual contributions provide a lens for examining race, enslavement, philosophy, and the often-overlooked history of Black intellectual life in Germany.

The program will include archival research in Wittenberg, a creative workshop with filmmaker Daphne Di Cinto, and a public symposium organized with Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg scholar Falk Wunderlich. Students will present their own research and reflections alongside leading scholars and German activists involved in commemorating Amo’s legacy, including the renaming of Berlin’s Mohrenstraße.

The project aims to connect historical and contemporary perspectives on Black Germany while encouraging students to consider Amo as a challenge to conventional narratives of European philosophy and academia. Students will ultimately create a website documenting and showcasing their research.

Joe Eggers, Interim Director, Center for Holocaust & Genocide Studies; Dr. George Dalbo Professor of Education Beloit College; Dr. Markus Gloe Professor of Political Education and Social Studies Ludwig-Maximillians-University Munich

CY 2026 - 2028

CGES and the University of Minnesota’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies (CHGS) propose an international project using oral testimonies from descendants of the Herero and Nama communities to develop culturally responsive teaching resources on the 1904–1908 genocide perpetrated by German colonial forces in present-day Namibia. The project draws on lessons from Holocaust education and Germany’s efforts to confront its Nazi past, adapting established genocide-pedagogy practices to a colonial context while centering Herero and Nama voices and agency.

The project builds on CHGS’s existing archive of oral testimonies from survivor-descendant communities in Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa and brings together an international research group of scholars, educators, and community leaders from Germany, the United States, and Southern Africa.

The project will unfold in two phases. In summer 2026, German scholars will travel to Namibia to conduct genocide-education workshops with teachers, with a particular focus on rural communities that have limited access to educational resources. In summer 2027, the research group will convene in Hamburg with scholars, secondary-school teachers, and Herero and Nama community members to develop and test curriculum using the oral testimony archive. Feedback from participants will inform the creation of digital and physical teaching materials for classrooms in Europe, North America, and Southern Africa, while also expanding access to the testimony archive for future scholarly research.

Dr. Hazel Rhodes, Dr. Jamele Watkins, German, Nordic, Slavic & Dutch, University of Minnesota

2027 - 2028

Building on the success of a 2024–2025 collaboration between CGES and the Department of German, Nordic, Slavic, and Dutch, this project will expand opportunities for UMN students, faculty, and K–12 educators to engage directly with contemporary German literature and authors. In 2027–2028, four German authors will visit UMN, with two authors each semester participating in advanced undergraduate and graduate seminars, bilingual public readings, and discussions.

The project will strengthen the connection between higher education and secondary German education by offering virtual professional development workshops for high school German teachers before each author’s visit. These workshops will introduce teachers to the authors and their work, enabling them to incorporate selected books into their curricula. Teachers and students will then be invited to participate in the authors’ bilingual readings and discussions, with virtual access available for those unable to attend in person.

The initiative will also continue involving graduate students as event hosts, discussion facilitators, translators, and promoters. By sharing professional development opportunities across North America and coordinating outreach through other CGES centers, the project will broaden access to contemporary German literature, strengthen German-language education, and increase the visibility and appeal of German Studies among future university students.