MIT introduces six newly appointed Martin Luther King Jr. visiting professors and researchers
The Martin Luther King Jr. Visiting Professors and Scholars Program at MIT has announced the extension of the appointments for Chanda Prescod Weinstein, Eilaf Ahmed, Susan Perkins, Sophia Inzunza, and Paul Ampadu for an additional year.
Chanda Prescod Weinstein, a theoretical physicist and science fiction writer, currently holds a position as an assistant professor of physics and astronomy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Eilaf Ahmed, a scholar and activist with a focus on gender and sexuality in Muslim communities, is a doctoral candidate in Islamic studies at Harvard University. Susan Perkins is an assistant professor of literature at the University of Chicago, with a focus on African American literature and critical race theory. Sophia Inzunza, a scholar of Mexican American history and culture, serves as an assistant professor of history at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Paul Ampadu is a scholar of African American history, currently serving as an assistant professor of history at the University of Connecticut.
The current group of MLK Visiting Professors and Scholars at MIT includes Chanda Prescod Weinstein, Eilaf Ahmed, Susan Perkins, Sophia Inzunza, Paul Ampadu, and Julio D'Arcy. Julio D'Arcy, a chemist who received his PhD in chemistry at UCLA in June 2012, is currently working as an MLK Visiting Scholar with Professor Paula Hammond's research group in the Department of Chemical Engineering.
Since 1991, MIT's MLK Jr. Visiting Professors and Scholars Program has invited scholars of diverse backgrounds to campus to engage in teaching and research. To date, 68 visiting professors and 24 visiting scholars have come to MIT through the program.
This year, the MLK Visiting Scholars and Professors at MIT also include Ta-Nehisi Coates, a senior editor at The Atlantic, who is a leading journalist and public intellectual whose work centers on politics, culture, and society. Thomas Epps III '98, SM '99, an associate professor and the Thomas and Kipp Gutshall Chair of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the University of Delaware, is an MLK Visiting Associate Professor working closely with Professor Tim Swager in the Department of Chemistry on novel materials.
Carlos Castillo-Chavez, a Regents Professor and the Joaquin Bustoz Jr. Professor of Mathematical Biology at Arizona State University, is an MLK Visiting Professor with a focus on mathematical biology and a member of the President's Committee on the National Medal of Science. Robert Hampshire, an assistant professor at the John H. Heinz III School of Public Policy and Management at Carnegie Mellon University, is an MLK Visiting Assistant Professor with a research focus on urban transportation systems.
The appointments of these distinguished scholars and activists aim to contribute to the academic and cultural environment at MIT during the academic year. However, the exact list of professors and scholars for previous years, such as the 2012-2013 academic year, is typically listed on the MIT website or related departmental announcements for that time. For the most accurate answer, checking MIT's official archives or contacting their relevant department would be recommended.
- Chanda Prescod Weinstein, an undergraduate in physics and astronomy at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, is a theoretical physicist and science fiction writer.
- Eilaf Ahmed, a doctoral candidate in Islamic studies at Harvard University, is a scholar and activist with a focus on gender and sexuality in Muslim communities.
- Susan Perkins, an assistant professor of literature at the University of Chicago, focuses on African American literature and critical race theory in her teaching.
- Sophia Inzunza, an assistant professor of history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, is a scholar of Mexican American history and culture.
- Paul Ampadu, an assistant professor of history at the University of Connecticut, is a scholar of African American history.
- TheCampus of MIT hosts a diverse group of visiting professors and scholars each academic year through the Martin Luther King Jr. Visiting Professors and Scholars Program.
- Energy research and sustainable materials are among the topics that these visiting scholars and researchers at MIT are working on.
- Public policy, business, chemistry, biology, finance, diversity-and-inclusion, and education-and-self-development are some of the fields covered by the visiting professors and scholars at MIT.
- The appointments of these visiting scholars and professors serve to enrich the academic and cultural environment at MIT.
- Besides Chanda Prescod Weinstein, Eilaf Ahmed, Susan Perkins, Sophia Inzunza, Paul Ampadu, and Julio D'Arcy, this year's visiting scholars and professors at MIT also include Ta-Nehisi Coates and Thomas Epps III.
- Graduate students attending MIT may take courses taught by these visiting professors, contributing to their own research and learning.
- The news of these visiting professors and scholars extending their appointments at MIT for an additional year was announced this week, generating excitement on campus for the precious knowledge and insights they will bring in the upcoming academic year.
