Liberal Arts Experiences

Liberal Arts Experiences
Liberal Arts Experiences

Each Liberal Arts Experience is unique

But they all share similar traits: a sense of curiosity and exploration, a desire to learn and grow, and a yearning to make the world a better place. Experience some of that “experience” yourself through the stories of our students, faculty, staff, and alumni. 

Students Janiyah Davis (left) and Carter Gangl (right) sit with Dean Lang (center) outside Sparks Building.
Students Janiyah Davis (left) and Carter Gangl (right) sit with Dean Lang (center) outside Sparks Building.
Four Liberal Arts students walk down steps in Burrowes Building while conversing.
Four Liberal Arts students walk down steps in Burrowes Building while conversing.

Student Experiences

Read stories about our students making a difference on campus and in the community, and their experiences inside and beyond the classroom. 

“The Chaiken Center means community. I know it is a place I am welcomed and validated.”
Anonymous
InternshipSociology

Azziyah LaRue

’23
Sociology
Sociology
Azziyah interned with the Miami Dolphins at Hard Rock Stadium this past summer. Azziyah used her knowledge from her sociology and security and risk analysis courses to work with the other interns and assist the Dolphins’ information technology department.
Azziyah LaRue in the Miami Dolphins locker room
Enrichment FundingInternational ResearchUndergrad Research

Sarah Paterno

’22
Anthropology
|
Psychology
Anthropology
Psychology
Sarah received enrichment funding to spend two months on an archaeological excavation in Bolivia. “This project has taught me how archaeological research is carried out, and I believe it has prepared me for continuing research at a graduate level,” she said.
Sarah Paterno
Grad Research

Maggie Hernandez

’24
Ph.D. Anthropology
Ph.D. Anthropology
Maggie received a five-year, $327,812 Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Transition Award for a Diverse Genomics Workforce from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) to support her multifaceted research project, “Noventa Millas: Migration history, genomic ancestry, and health disparities among Cuban immigrants and Cuban-Americans in the United States.”
Maggie Hernandez
Grad Research

Alex Herrera

’25
Ph.D. Latin American History and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Ph.D. Latin American History and Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
Alex was awarded the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad fellowship through the U.S. Department of Education to conduct her dissertation research in Guatemala, where is is examining how transnational networks of Guatemalan, American, and European doctors, public health officials, politicians, city police, and sex workers created and shaped prostitution regulations and medical knowledge about sexually transmitted infections in Guatemala City.
Alex Herrera
Grad Research

Estilita Maria Cassiani Obeso

’22
Ph.D. Spanish and Linguistics
Ph.D. Spanish and Linguistics
“My research focuses on the use of Creole by a new generation. Palenquero is a Creole language, so my research compares its uses by other speakers, and I am reporting changes in the language. I am also helping teachers at schools in Palenque find better ways to teach Palenquero.”
Estilita Maria Cassiani Obeso
Career Enrichment NetworkCommunication Arts and SciencesEducation AbroadEnglishEnrichment FundingPaterno FellowsPhilosophyResearch

Daniel Zahn

’20
English
|
Philosophy
|
Communication Arts and Sciences
English
Philosophy
Communication Arts and Sciences
As a student, Daniel, a Paterno Fellow alumnus, participated in a linguistics research project in Bassila, Benin made possible by the Career Enrichment Network, where his research focused on everyday language use.
DanielZahn (1)
5,500
+

undergraduate students

800
+

students participating in out-of-classroom experiences

870

graduate students

1,500

undergraduates met with a career coach

66

events hosted by the Career Enrichment Network 

40
%

of students identity as a member of a minority group

Most diverse college at Penn State University Park

Majors of Our Students

76%

social sciences

13%

humanities

6%

languages

5%

area and interdisciplinary studies

Faculty and Staff Experiences

Read stories about our faculty and the amazing work they do examining the past in order to make meaningful changes in the present that lead to a promising future, and the incredible staff who are so deeply committed to student, faculty, and alumni success.   

Faculty ResearchHistoryRichards Center

Rachel Shelden

Director of the George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center
Director of the George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center
Rachel is an associate professor of history who focuses her resarch on the political and constitutional history of the the long nineteenth century—encompassing 1789 to 1914.
RachelShelden
Faculty ResearchHistoryMiddle East Studies

Laura Robson

William L. and Donna F. Oliver-McCourtney Professor of History
William L. and Donna F. Oliver-McCourtney Professor of History
A scholar who specializes in the Middle East and especially the Arab world, Laura and a fellow scholar launched a digital humanities project to tell the stories of and raise awareness and scholarship about stateless people.
LauraRobson
AnthroplogyFaculty AchievementFaculty Research

Kirk French

Teaching Professor of Anthropology
Teaching Professor of Anthropology
In the summer of 2022, Kirk’s documentary—which explores environmental challenges faced by a Mexican community—was nominated for a Mid-Atlantic Emmy.
Kirk French
AnthropologyArchaeologyFaculty ResearchMatson Museum of Anthropology

James Doyle

Director, Matson Museum of Anthropology
Director, Matson Museum of Anthropology
A former assistant curator of art of the ancient Americas at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, James Doyle has big plans for the Matson Museum of Anthropology at Penn State, which will be relocated in the Susan Welch Liberal Arts Building in 2024.
JamesDoyle (1)
782 full-time faculty

325

tenured faculty

83

tenure-track faculty

374

non-tenure track faculty (full-time)

159

non-tenure track faculty (part-time)

122 Named and Distinguished Professors

25

named professors

24

Liberal Arts professors

21

distinguished professors

20

Sparks professors

17

early career professors and
career development professors

8

University
endowed fellows

4

Evan Pugh University
Professors

4

named deans chairs
and directorships

305

full-time staff

Alumni Experiences

Read stories about the incredible impact our alumni have on their alma mater, their professions, and the communities in which they live through their leadership, engagement, and philanthropy. 

The scholarship I received from the College of the Liberal Arts was immensely important because it allowed me to focus entirely on my studies without having to devote time and energy to a part-time job. Before having been awarded this scholarship, I held a part-time job at FedEx, where I would lift and load boxes for five hours a day, three days a week. Needless to say, this scholarship also alleviated much mental and physical stress.
KatoGriffiths (1)
Kato Griffiths
Sarah Paterno
Enrichment FundingInternational ResearchUndergrad Research

Sarah Paterno

’22
Anthropology
|
Psychology
Anthropology
Psychology
Sarah received enrichment funding to spend two months on an archaeological excavation in Bolivia. “This project has taught me how archaeological research is carried out, and I believe it has prepared me for continuing research at a graduate level,” she said.
DanielZahn (1)
Career Enrichment NetworkCommunication Arts and SciencesEducation AbroadEnglishEnrichment FundingPaterno FellowsPhilosophyResearch

Daniel Zahn

’20
English
|
Philosophy
|
Communication Arts and Sciences
English
Philosophy
Communication Arts and Sciences
As a student, Daniel, a Paterno Fellow alumnus, participated in a linguistics research project in Bassila, Benin made possible by the Career Enrichment Network, where his research focused on everyday language use.
KiaraSmith2 (1)
Enrichment FundingGermanMultidisciplinary StudiesPaterno Fellows

Kiara Smith

Letters, Arts, and Sciences
|
Nutritional Sciences
|
German minor
Letters, Arts, and Sciences
Nutritional Sciences
German minor
Kiara spent a summer in Berlin earning credits towards her German minor. “The Paterno Fellows Program and the College of the Liberal Arts helped to fund my trip, which meant that while I was in Berlin I was able to focus more on my experiences and learning than on calculating and worrying about the cost of everything. Instead of staying in my room to save money, I went out and took day trips to places just outside of Berlin and a weekend trip out of Poland; I went to museums and cafes and bars where I got to meet Germans and make German friends.”
Najee Rodriguez
HistoryInternational PoliticsMentorship

Najee Rodriguez

’23
International Politics
|
History
International Politics
History
Najee’s alumni mentor helped guide him toward internship opportunities. “As a first-generation college student, it was extremely difficult to acclimate to college. My mentor has made me feel confident about the future that I want to have for myself. The magnitude of impact that Sharon has had in my life is indescribable.”
DanRisser (1)
Chapel InternsEnrichment FundingInternshipLabor and Human ResourcesPolitical Science

Dan Risser

’23
Political Science
|
Labor and Human Resources
Political Science
Labor and Human Resources
Dan, a York, Pennsylvania native, had the opportunity to blend his two majors through a summer internship at Southwest Airlines, thanks to funding he received through the Virginia Todd Chapel Executive Internship Program in the College of the Liberal Arts.
ECON-Josie Krieger
EconomicsHistoryJewish StudiesMiddle East StudiesSchwartz Fellows

Josie Krieger

’22
History
|
Economics
|
Jewish Studies minor
|
Middle East Studies minor
History
Economics
Jewish Studies minor
Middle East Studies minor
Josie is the inaugural Rhea S. Schwartz Fellow in the College of the Liberal Arts. She started her fellowship in August 2022 working with AmeriCorps VISTA on refugee case management and economic empowerment in Salt Lake City, Utah.
213

student/alumni mentoring relationships

100K
+

liberal arts alumni

760
+

donor-funded accounts in the college

$ 0 M+

provided in scholarships (2021–22)

$ 0 k

provided in enrichment funding last year

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