Research & Creative Excellence
College of Liberal Arts faculty are driven to shine a light on inequality and injustice with the goal of creating a more representative, equitable and diverse society for everyone. Learn what inspires their research, creative work, and approaches to teaching. View the individual stories below.

Assistant Professor of Chicano & Latino Studies Jessica Lopez Lyman discusses the connection of social justice with a “radical imagination” as a profound, responsive pathway toward equity, diversity, and inclusiveness in our communities. View the full interview with Jessica Lopez Lyman.

Psychology Professor Rich Lee examines how Korean adoptees have more than one world to navigate while trying to find what “home” means to them. View the full interview with Rich Lee.

University of Minnesota CLA Assistant Professor of Sociology Elizabeth Wrigley-Field reckons with and remaps the realities of race and mortality throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. View the full interview with Elizabeth Wrigley-Field.

Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing Douglas Kearney looks at instability and discomfort in poetry and the collision of texts. View the full interview with Douglas Kearney.

Assistant Professor Chotsani Elaine Dean explores the power art holds in storytelling. Her work with quilts delves into the stories of slavery in American past. Discover how her ceramic quilts correspond to the cotton quilts of the past. View the full interview with Chotsani Elaine Dean.

UMN College of Liberal Arts Professor Ben Munson and postdoc research partner Dr. Alayo Tripp discuss how speech and race connect today. View the full interview with Ben Munson & Alayo Tripp.