FASS Research Centre in American Studies
About us
The purpose of the FASS Research Centre in American Studies is to provide an intellectual home for those at Carleton working from different disciplines toward a better understanding of the culture, politics, history, and identity of the United States. Much of the public face of Carleton’s American research and teaching (how the United States is “advertised” here) is currently guided toward policy and Canadian-American relations. As indispensible as this has been, this Centre seeks to broaden our engagement with the complexity and diversity of the United States in its own right by providing expertise, a wider and longer perspective, and up to the moment scholarship by specialists in the U.S. field.
The community of scholars we bring together come from literature, history, political science, economics, and cultural studies, among others, and this collaborative environment will highlight the points of disciplinary intersection around the thematic area of “American Studies.” To that end, the Centre also serves as a home for two journals: The Canadian Review of American Studies (edited by Professor of English Priscilla Walton) and NeoAmericanist, an on-line student run journal, co-funded by the Centre for American Studies at the University of Western Ontario, and edited by Carleton graduate students Chris Vanderwees, Brian Foster, and Maureen Mahoney. In addition, we will provide an institutional locus for building student and faculty ties to American institutions. One of our faculty, Melissa Haussman, is a member of the College Advisory Liaison Board of The Washington Center, the world’s largest provider of public, private and advocacy-sector internships. She brought the agreement for internship provision through The Washington Center upon her arrival at Carleton in 2005.
Core faculty
- Miranda Brady (Journalism and Communications)
- Neil Gerlach (Sociology)
- Hal Goldman (History)
- Fred Goodwin (History)
- Root Gorelick (Biology)
- Melissa Haussman (Political Science)
- Michel Hogue (History)
- Rob Holton (English)
- Ian Lee (Sprott)
- Andrew Johnston (History)
- Kanta Marwah (Economics)
- James Miller (History)
- W. Randy Newell (Political Science)
- Richard Nimijean (Canadian Studies)
- Franny Nudelman (English)
- Chris Russill (Journalism and Communications)
- Priscilla Walton (English)
Management board
The RCAS will be managed by a Board consisting of its Director and faculty representing some of the fields represented, with the FASS Associate Dean (Research) serving ex officio. We will also develop an external advisory committee to help maintain our relations with the U.S. Embassy as well as cultivate a wider network of support in the American community in Canada and Ottawa specifically. Our Board will initially consist of Percy Walton, Andrew Johnston, and Melissa Haussman.
Director
Percy Walton (with associate directors Andrew Johnston and Melissa Haussman)
For further information, contact Percy Walton at percy_walton@carleton.ca or 613-520-2600, x2322