Widener University Humanities

10/09/2026

Associate Professor of History, Jordan Smith, will be a panelist at the upcoming 25th annual Sherman Lecture Roundtable hosted by the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

The Sherman Lecture Roundtable brings together a variety of scholars to discuss historical subject matter highlighted in the Sherman Lecture.

09/28/2026

On Tuesday, October 6 at 4pm, there will be a screening of the new documentary called The Librarians. Start time is 4pm.

09/28/2026

Carla Spataro and Eric Smith, two important figures in the Philadelphia literary scene, are coming to campus on Thursday, October 15 to talk about the publishing world. The presentation begins at 4pm but come by at 3:30 (if you're able) for a half hour of socializing and snacks.

07/15/2026

Alumni, Gabby Nye (Spanish/Biology), earns historic NCAA Scholar-Athlete Honor after perfect 4.0 career

Widener's Gabby Nye earned a 4.0 GPA, a doctorate and the NCAA Elite Scholar-Athlete Award, a first in school history.

07/14/2026

Mark Graybill, professor of English, is quoted in this article examining a selection of books that represent American identity.

The great American novels know that this is not an innocent country.

07/13/2026

Laura Polaski ’28, a secondary education and English major, worked on bringing the PMC story to life, which became an opportunity to connect with a part of Widener's history she hadn't fully known.

Widener’s roots as Pennsylvania Military College still echo across the university today. The newly launched PMC website honors its role in the university’s history and helps carry its story forward for future generations.

06/29/2026

Assistant Professor of History, Jordan Smith, is the featured guest on this podcast episode exploring the history of rum in the 17th and 18th centuries. Smith covers the production and transport of rum, and how it served as a vital commodity of the time.

In this episode, we discuss the rum industry in connection with grievances #16 and #17 in the Declaration of Independence: "For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world" "For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent" Topics include the following: -an explanation of rum production, from suga...

06/03/2026

This article features a review of Assistant Professor of History, Jordan Smith's, recently published book "The invention of rum: Creating the quintessential Atlantic commodity," which explores the history of rum around the Atlantic from 1640 to 1810.

In the November 1948 issue of Ebony, Langston Hughes wrote about Jamaica as an easily accessible, “prejudice-free” travel destination. On arrival at

05/26/2026

Sushi-Making event with Professor Mao and Fumiyo Batta - all students in attendance made a California roll and/or a Japanese roll.
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