Department of Arts and Humanities, Teachers College, Columbia University

A&H Communal Dinner: On Courage

We hope you will join us for an evening of food and communal conversation.

The A&H Diversity, Community, and Social Justice Committee invites students, staff, and faculty to join a communal sit-down dinner centered on the theme of courage.

Food and drinks will be provided.

Participants are asked to bring an object, a song, or a reading that represents what courage means to them. During the dinner, guests will have the opportunity to share the story behind it.

This gathering is intended as an informal space for community building, reflection, and conversation around courage, belonging, and the values that define us as an academic community.

Space is limited to 20 participants.

RSVP: https://tinyurl.com/4rxdy622

The A&H Diversity, Community and Social Justice Committee welcomes students and staff to submit proposals that will engage members of our department and foster a sense of community and belonging through in-person and virtual environments.

To submit a proposal, please use this Google form: https://bit.ly/4lfcsu2

Here are some example past projects: https://bit.ly/4uuDTV5

Deadline: March 15, 2026

Happy Lunar New Year!

We wish you and your loved ones a happy, healthy and harmonious Year of the Horse. We hope the strong spirit of the horse brings renewed energy, opportunities and adventures. May we pursue growth, embrace bold innovation and make meaningful discoveries together.

Still searching for Spring 2026 classes? The following A&H courses are open for registration:⁠
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Fostering Critical Thinking and Social Engagement through Embodied Education. ⁠
Instructor: Dr. Allison Trotta⁠
⁠
Afro-Caribbean Dance as Healing Practice⁠
Instructor: Careitha Davis⁠
⁠
Creative Technologies Seminar⁠
Instructor: Minne Atairu⁠
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Laban Movement Analysis for Embodied Research⁠
Instructor: Ana Bella⁠
⁠
Community & the Arts: Implement Your Vision!⁠
Instructor: Ayelet Danielle Aldouby

Our hearts are heavy with the loss of such a caring, knowledgeable, and deeply committed teacher and learner.

While with us at Teachers College from 2009 to 2024, Sheridan served as Professor of Practice in Arts and Humanities and for many years as Director of the Program in English Education and the Teaching of English. Before coming to TC, he was Professor of English and Education (emeritus) at the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he taught for nearly forty years and directed the South Coast Writing Project and the Literature Institute for Teachers.

A former President of the National Council of Teachers of English (1997–98), Sheridan also served on the presidential team from 1995–2000 and received the NCTE Distinguished Service Award in 2007 for his leadership, teaching, and exemplary writing. His influential book, The Literature Workshop: Teaching Texts and Their Readers (Heinemann, 2003), received the Richard Meade Award for outstanding research in English education.

Our students reflect our collective sense of loss and gratitude. One writes, “Like everyone who had the chance to take classes with Sheridan, I’m endlessly grateful I had the chance to learn from him. I hope to carry and share his persistent curiosity and open-mindedness forever.” Another remembers: “Sheridan loved the classroom more than anybody—so impassioned and unafraid of the knotty nature of ideas and dialogue.” And many, each in their own way remind us of Sheridan’s commitment to students: “If I can make any of my students feel as smart and interesting as Sheridan made me feel, that will be the greatest testament to his legacy that I could offer.”

His partner captures Sheridan’s spirit best: “As you think of Sheridan, remember that reading Milton’s Paradise Lost will help you understand the dangers of consuming false knowledge; that teaching is the enemy of learning; and that embracing confusion leads to an advanced state of understanding. Interrupt often when you hear injustices and disagree loudly when your principles are offended. And always, write.”

His lessons remain with us—in the questions we keep asking, in the courage to enter confusion, and in the quiet joy of discovery that animated his every class. Sheridan taught us to think with others, to interrupt for justice, and to write our way toward understanding. His presence lingers in the rooms where learning still feels alive, generous, and unfinished. As Mary Oliver reminds us,

“To live in this world you must be able to do three things:
to love what is mortal;
to hold it against your bones knowing your own life depends on it;
and, when the time comes to let it go, to let it go.”

On Friday, September 26th, 3:00 – 6:00 PM: Join Printmaking Fellow Arzu Mistry for a Printmaking workshop @ Macy Hall ( MY 58 )

More below:

Is there still space for the handmade book?

As researchers and educators, we are surrounded by books. They are ubiquitous in our world. But is there still space for the hand-made book in our practice? This workshop will focus on handmade books that we can create for ourselves and their value in our research and arts education practice.

Arzu Mistry facilitates the Accordion Book Project. She makes accordion books to document, reflect, plan, and think expansively about her practice as an artist, researcher, and educator. The act of making these books, and the ways of structured and unstructured thinking that they enable, have become deeply woven, not only into her teaching, research, and artistic practice but into the ways that she thinks, feels, and acts in the world. Over the past decade, she has shared this practice of creative inquiry with teachers and students worldwide, and they have found it valuable in their learning journeys. We are excited to share this practice with you.

Calling All Language Educators!

Ready for professional development that’s truly driven by YOU?
Join us for the Unconference for Language Educators — an innovative, collaborative online event hosted by CIFLTE at Teachers College, Columbia University!

Saturday, May 31, 2025
Session 1: 8:00–10:00 AM (EDT)
Session 2: 2:00–4:00 PM (EDT)
Location: Zoom (online)

YOU set the agenda. Choose the topics that matter to YOU and collaborate with language educators from around the world in dynamic, participant-led breakout sessions.

What to expect:
Real conversations.
Practical takeaways.
Global connections.

Open to:
Language teachers around the world
MA students/grads in Applied Linguistics, TESOL, Bilingual/Multilingual Ed, and more
College seniors or recent grads in language-related fields

Register by May 28: tinyurl.com/CIFLTE-unconference
Don’t miss your chance to be part of something different — something created by educators, for educators!

SAVE THE DATE
April 24–27, 2025
Teachers College, Columbia University

We invite you to ‘save the date’ and join us for Conversations Across Culture, a three-day convening of artists, educators, researchers, and the broader cultural community at Teachers College, Columbia University in April 2025. We’ll explore the power of art to catalyze cross-cultural dialogue and community connection via two days (Friday and Saturday) of thought-provoking keynotes, engaging student panels, original case studies, and community art-making. Together, we’ll consider how artists and educators can transform their classrooms and communities into sites of possibility for personal and cultural learning. The final event of the conference will be a community activation and artmaking lab in the atrium of Gottesman Library (Sunday).

Happy Lunar New Year!⁠
⁠
A&H is wishing you, your family and loved ones much happiness, health and harmony in the Year of the Snake.

Many congratulations to the recipients of the 2025 Myers Art Prize!

The 2025 Myers Prize features student artworks selected by Cris Scorza (The Helena Rubinstein Chair of Education at the Whitney Museum of American Art) for their success in exploring the theme Serendipity through a range of media and processes.

See the recipients below:

Yoo Jung Hong
Jennifer Ruth Hoyden
Lily Morgan
Rafael Morseletto
Samantha Savides
Magin Schantz
Cara Sherr-Messing
Ann Miceli Teed
Dongjun Wang
Han Seok (John) You

Attend the exhibition at Macy Art Gallery from January 21–February 6, 2025

✨ Get ready for the TC Community Pottery Sale! ✨

Discover unique, handcrafted pottery made with love by our talented community.

Dates: December 9-10
Time: 9:30 AM – 7:00 PM
Location: Zankel Hallway, 1st Floor