News

Grad’s body of work already changing courses

Rachel Sauer — Fri, 02 May 2025 22:19:01 +0000

Grad’s body of work already changing courses Rachel Sauer Fri, 05/02/2025 - 16:19

Tim Grassley

Rachel Suter, who is earning her BA in neuroscience and arts practices, summa cum laude, is named the College of Arts and Science’s outstanding graduate for spring 2025

Fusing her artistic training and scientific understanding, Rachel Suter highlighted the questionable traditions of using cadavers while exploring anatomy through an artistic lens, and in doing so she has helped change how anatomy classes are taught.

Suter, who graduates this month summa cum laude with majors in art practices and neuroscience, has been named the spring 2025 outstanding undergraduate of the University of Colorado Boulder College of Arts and Sciences. Her thesis is titled “Cadaveric ethics in figurative art instruction: Developing a workshop for an anatomical approach.”

In her thesis, Suter explores the history and ethics of body procurement in cadaver labs, as well as the consequential effects of primarily representing white male bodies in these figures. “I was doing anatomy through an artistic lens,” notes Suter.

Rachel Suter, who graduates next week summa cum laude with majors in art practices and neuroscience, has been named the spring 2025 outstanding undergraduate of the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� College of Arts and Sciences. (Photo: Kylie Clarke)

“I created a workshop for artists in the cadaver labs that taught them superficial anatomical structures relevant to figure drawing, and I simultaneously addressed the history of body procurement and dissection to advocate for a more ethical and equitable future.”

Steven Hobbs, who is an associate teaching professor in the Department of Integrative Physiology, coordinates the anatomy lab and served as chair for Suter’s honors committee, notes that Suter’s project was excellent in its scope and caused him to reconsider his approach to teaching anatomy.

“Rachel’s honors thesis is the most original undergraduate undertaking I have witnessed in my 20-plus years at CU,” says Hobbs. “Her work deftly combines history, art, anatomical sciences and advocacy. Any of these domains would be considered original, masterful and compelling. Together, they form a remarkable whole, born entirely from Rachel’s creative thinking, passion and hard work. Her thesis is the quintessential fusion of ‘arts’ and ‘sciences.’”

While Suter’s bachelor’s degree studies in art practices and neuroscience helped her fuse research techniques and art-making workshops, the project’s interdisciplinarity also offered opportunity to initiate instructional practices that could be incorporated into anatomy labs and figure-drawing workshops right away.

“That was my big goal with the thesis,” says Suter. “It was to put theory into practice and make a tangible change.”

Exploring the ethics of how cadavers are procured, studied and illustrated

Suter began her research intending to learn about the history of how bodies are procured by cadaver labs and medical schools to better understand and critique unethical practices. As she charted the medical history, she discovered that labs commonly obtain “unclaimed bodies,” or cadavers that were not claimed by family or friends for burial or cremation and are then made available for medical education and research by the state.

In her thesis, she argues that knowing this background helps anatomy students see cadavers as more than educational objects—they are people deserving of care and respect.

“Some medical schools still use unclaimed bodies today,” says Suter, “and so my thesis promotes the use of consensually donated bodies in anatomy. I didn't know that my project would also turn into more advocacy and activism for working towards a better future.”

While delving into a cursory history of body-procurement and medical ethics, Suter recognized a relationship between her anatomy classes and art classes. While anatomy is generally taught as a science course, it uses art as one of its primary means of communicating findings about the human body, and a stronger understanding of art-making places figures in context.

As an artist interested in figure drawing, Suter experienced first-hand that her stronger understanding of anatomy helped generate more reliable and variable representations of the human body’s structures.

“I was learning how to figure draw at the same time that I was taking the anatomy lab course, and then I continued to work on my figure drawing while I was simultaneously dissecting bodies in the labs,” reflects Suter. “Having an anatomical knowledge of the human body really supported my representation of bodies in art.”

Rachel Suter organized two figure-drawing workshops in the cadaver lab for artists with the goal of helping them better understand the details they observe on the human body, like musculature and skeletal structures. (Photo: Rachel Suter)

Suter noted a tendency for anatomy textbook images and illustrations to rely on white male bodies as representative of all human bodies. She found that this was a common practice historically among medical illustrators and could create misunderstanding among students analyzing these visual representations.

“Anatomy studies people,” says Suter. “In studying people, you want to ensure that you are representative of all of those groups.”

Suter organized two figure-drawing workshops in the cadaver lab for artists with the goal of helping them better understand the details they observe on the human body, like musculature and skeletal structures.

The workshops also covered ethical considerations when working with cadavers, the importance of wide representation and individuality in artistic anatomy and methods attendees could use to advocate for a more inclusive approach to dissection and figurative art.

While she plans to pursue graduate programs in medical illustration after a gap year that includes a 10-week intensive workshop in Florence, Italy, Suter’s thesis has a more immediate effect on how anatomy will be taught at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� in the future.

“The anatomy labs here have not previously taught an ethical dimension or historical dimension,” says Suter. “Throughout my thesis, I really tried to advocate for transparency and education in these topics in a cadaver lab setting, and I'm really excited because I'm now talking to Dr. Hobbs about adding some of this content into the anatomy lab curriculum for anatomy students.”

The expansiveness of this project and its effect on teaching were the two characteristics of Suter’s nomination that drew the committee’s attention. Notes Hobbs, “As an instructor of human anatomy for nearly 20 years, I was surprised and inspired by how much I learned from Rachel. Her lessons reshaped my perspective on the human form through the lens of illustration. Rachel’s workshops and honors thesis could be the blueprint for a fantastic interdisciplinary semester course at CU. Every anatomy program should be so lucky to have a Rachel Suter.”

Suter not only feels honored to be the 2025 A&S outstanding graduate, she is also thrilled that her project leaves a legacy of change made possible through thoughtful, scholarly and artistic work.

“I don't think I've really found the words quite yet,” reflects Suter. “I'm really proud that I was able to make an impact on campus and develop a new educational approach that filled some gaps.”

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about arts and sciences? Show your support.

Rachel Suter, who is earning her BA in neuroscience and arts practices, summa cum laude, is named the College of Arts and Science’s outstanding graduate for spring 2025.

Traditional

White

Top photo: Kylie Clarke/College of Arts and Sciences

Amazing grads share advice and reflect on key lessons

Kylie Clarke — Fri, 02 May 2025 16:10:11 +0000

Amazing grads share advice and reflect on key lessons Kylie Clarke Fri, 05/02/2025 - 10:10

Earning high praise from faculty and staff, students offer words of wisdom and more

Each year, students leave their mark on the College of Arts and Sciences. Their choices, hard work and determination leave a legacy for the next generation.

As graduation approaches, the nostalgia of first days, the pride of achievement and the excitement of what is to come replays in the buzzing minds of almost-graduated students.

To celebrate amazing grads, we asked faculty and staff to nominate remarkable students.

Each nominee answered one of the following questions:

What is your best advice for other students?
What will you carry with you into the next chapter of life?
What does graduating represent for you?

Each nominator answered this question:

In your view, what makes this student amazing?

Q&A
Q: What does graduating represent for you?
Salomé Carrasco, EBIO ‘25: Graduating from college is a representation of the personal commitment and determination I have as a student from a diverse intercultural background, but also the community support and dedication my professors, peers and others have provided for me. This success also represents that students are capable of pursuing higher education despite financial, social and structural inequalities.

Q: What makes Salomé amazing?
Nominator: Salomé transferred to ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� from community college during the fall of 2023. I had the good fortunate of having Salomé in my Art of Science Communication class that term. Since then, Salomé has been an incredibly engaged member of our lab group. She participated in a month-long sampling expedition to western Canada during the summer of 2024 and just defended her honors thesis! Her growth and progress have been outstanding on so many fronts! Our lab is in awe of her artistic and scientific skills. We feel so honored that she has been a part of our research community during her time at CU.

View more responses

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about the College of Arts and Sciences? Show your support.

Earning high praise from faculty and staff, students offer words of wisdom and more

Traditional

White

Degree finally in hand, dancer leaps back onto Boulder stage

Rachel Sauer — Thu, 01 May 2025 22:11:47 +0000

Degree finally in hand, dancer leaps back onto Boulder stage Rachel Sauer Thu, 05/01/2025 - 16:11

Tim Grassley

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� alumna Jessica Fudim was two courses away from graduating in 1997; 26 years later, she’s earned her degree

When Jessica Fudim left the University of Colorado Boulder in 1997, she was two courses away from graduating. Despite being so close, she felt stuck in an unhealthy cycle of signing up for and withdrawing from her final degree requirements. Something needed to change, and she decided it needed to be her studies.

“I’ve learned as a parent, you can only do so much and sometimes you have to cut something out or make something smaller on your plate,” she says. “So, I went to the safe space of being near my parents (in California). But I felt a hurt in my heart about it.”

Fudim went on to have a vibrant career as a dance performance artist, creating and performing original work across the United States. An entrepreneur and, with her husband, a parent of two kids, she owns and operates two businesses: Jessica Fudim Dance and Jessica Fudim Pilates. Despite her successes, her unfinished degree felt like a shadow—an unresolved experience that she privately grieved.

Jessica Fudim portrays Medusa in her dance-theater solo "Venomous." (Photo: Peter Ruocco)

Fudim is not alone. ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Office of Data Analytics notes that each year, an average of 23 students who needed to enroll for only one or two semesters return after five years or more to earn bachelor's degrees. Despite the relative frequency of people returning to the university to finish their graduation requirements, it still felt to Fudim like an impassable hurdle. Then, in spring 2024, after exchanging emails with ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� friends, faculty and staff, Fudim decided it was time for her curtain call.

“My kids are 12 and 14, and I do feel like I want them to see me finish. I want them to know that I did that.”

A college experience across state lines

Fudim (DnceBFA’24) grew up in Sonoma County, California, where she developed a love for dance. In high school, her dance instructor, Lara Branen, invited Fudim and classmates to attend the summer-long Boulder Jazz Dance Workshop, which Branen co-founded. Many of Fudim’s classes were taught in ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Theatre and Dance Building, including performances in the Charlotte York Irey Theatre.

Fudim fell in love with Colorado and Boulder specifically. “It was totally transformative for me,” she recalls. “It helped crystallize this knowing that I wanted to dance—that I am a dancer.”

After graduating from high school, Fudim enrolled at the University of California, Irvine, which she attended from 1991 to 1993. She didn’t feel at home in Irvine, though, and transferred into ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in dance program in 1994. There, she thrived and was often identified as an example student, full of talent and drive.

Unbeknownst to many of her classmates and faculty, though, Fudim’s balance of school, work and personal life began to fray from the outset of her education. While her father paid her tuition, Fudim at one point held three part-time jobs to cover her living expenses, including the now-closed Espresso Roma café.

“I wasn't living lavishly,” she admits. “I lived on beans, rice, pizza and free croissants from the café. I’m a worker bee by nature, but back then especially, I didn't do a good job applying my work nature in the right direction. I spent more time working at my jobs than doing my academic work.”

Because Fudim transferred from California, some of her classes from Irvine did not count at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� for credit. She found herself on a different graduation timeline than her peers in the BFA program, a social challenge that grew as more friends graduated and left town.

“I think I had another semester or two of work to do,” she says, “but I started to check out. I completed my BFA (capstone) performance, but I withdrew from some classes. I’m so embarrassed that I got Fs in a couple of classes. But I didn’t have the skills to know how to ask for help—to say, ‘I’m struggling and I’m not sure what to do next.’”

Fudim went back to California in 1997, hoping to complete her degree by finishing a few classes at a local community college. Those attempts did not work out. She also tried distance learning but withdrew. Eventually, Fudim moved on.

Medusa (portrayed by Jessica Fudim) with her children Pegasus and Chrysaor in "Venomous." (Photo: Kyle Adler)

“It felt like a bad break up. It felt sad—unresolved. I haven’t been back to Boulder since then.”

A phone call leading to an academic plan

After returning to California, Fudim decided to invest fully in her dance career and, over the next 20 years, experienced tremendous success as a solo artist and with her ensemble company, The Dance Animals. She held several dance residencies, co-directed The Experimental Performance Institute (EPI) at New College of California and, with the late Dwayne Calizo, co-produced, choreographed for and performed in the multimedia performance series “Crash Cabaret: Where Queers Collide” at San Francisco’s Roxie Theatre.

Her most recent solo show, Venemous, which reimagines the myth of Medusa, debuted to critical acclaim, and she considered bringing the show to Colorado and ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��. She initially contacted Erika Randall, professor of dance and a friend, about the possibility of creating an alumnus event.

After sending her initial email, though, she felt compelled to follow up. “I sent a second email that said, ‘I want to be transparent—I never fully graduated from CU. It's something that I've wanted to do, and I do feel really motivated at this point in my life to complete that degree. But I just want you to know that I can’t come to Boulder as an alumna. I'm not. I haven't graduated.’”

At that time, Randall was the College of Arts and Sciences associate dean for student success, and part of her duties as dean included overseeing one of the academic advising units that helps students return to ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� and complete their degrees. Randall remembers reading Fudim’s email and decided to call.

“When we talked, she said, ‘I had no idea how much not finishing my degree had held a shadow over me and how much it would mean to finish it,’” recalls Randall. “I got really excited and said, ‘You should come back. You should come to our graduation. You should do the performance you had written to me about performing.’”

“That was definitely a turning point for me,” says Fudim. “She is so warm and genuine and so non-judgmental. It was this healing gift to just have her open her arms like that. I didn't even feel at that point that I needed to be courageous. It just felt like I was so excited to do it.”

Randall connected Fudim with Dawn Fettig, an experienced academic advisor with a deep understanding of ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� historic curricula and degree requirements. As part of her work with special populations, Fettig helps students figure out what courses they need to complete degrees.

To determine how close Fudim was to graduation, Fettig reviewed her transcripts, the university’s old “Permanent Record Card” and handwritten notes included in Fudim’s file. After combing through university documentation, Fettig recreated Fudim’s academic record.

“If I use the transcript as a chronological record, I can see what made sense for a student's progression in their degree,” notes Fettig. “For example, what might make sense for this student to take to complete the requirement? And is there a substitution?”

Fettig emphasizes that the college never waives graduation requirements, and she works hard to maintain the integrity of degrees the university confers. “The ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� degree means something to our departments, to our faculty, to our staff and to our students,” says Fettig. “We figure out a way to look at their completed work and ask if it meets the spirit of the requirements as they were set at the time.”

For Fudim, this meant completing a geography requirement as part of ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� Minimum Academic Preparation Standards (MAPS) and a final departmental stage performance. Fettig found a course in California near Fudim’s home that would count for the MAPS credit. They also explored marking her degree’s stage performance requirement as fulfilled by her career experience and then substituting the required credit with another dance course she had completed at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��.

“In Jessica's case, because her dance degree is a performance art, I did have to go back to the department and say, ‘This is a professional working in the field. I think she’s probably met this stage performance requirement,’” says Fettig.

What would Medusa say if she had a chance to speak for herself?

Jessica Fudim’s dance-theater solo, Venomous, looks at the classic Greek myth from Medusa's perspective and moves her story beyond that of a snake-headed monster.

What: Venomous

When: 6:30 p.m. June 5 and 6

Where: The Pearl Ballroom, 2199 California Street in Denver

Learn more

“She didn't have the class, but she has the experience. She also has other classes that we can use as a substitution” for the major’s requirements.

Together, Fettig and Fudim created a plan that fueled Fudim’s motivation to complete her degree. “Having someone who is in a position of knowledge like Erika and Dawn, who say, ‘Yes, of course you can do this. We have a way for you to do this. And this is awesome.’ I just trusted them—I believed them,” says Fudim. “It shifted my outlook.”

Graduation and healing

While Fudim did have the motivation to tackle her coursework, she still had to juggle a full schedule. “I have two kids and I run two businesses,” notes Fudim. “I do all of my own admin work, and my bookkeeping. My husband works the opposite schedule so that we can tag-team childcare. When I needed to study, I had to plan it.”

Fudim’s mother regularly covered childcare to make room for Fudim to complete her coursework. Many days, her family created a homework club in which they could complete their assignments around the dinner table. This reframed the time needed to finish coursework as an opportunity to connect through shared experiences. While Fudim is happy she received an A in her geography class, the grade plays only a small part in how this experience affects her.

Fudim officially completed her degree and graduated in fall 2024. The experience has widened what she believes possible, and she’s thrilled for fresh opportunities to continue making art, performing and teaching dance. Notably, she will return to Colorado this summer to perform Venemous at the 2025 Denver Fringe Festival June 4-8. While staying in Colorado for the show, she plans to visit Boulder for the first time since leaving in 1997.

“My dear friend and former CU Dance BFA classmate, Kate Weglarz (Thorngren) will be flying out for the show and to go walking down memory lane with me in Boulder,” says Fudim. “I'm excited to return to my roots in Colorado, and to share where I am now as an artist.”

Finishing her degree brings a sense of resolution and a lesson in persistence. “I feel like the primary reason I completed my degree was to create healing,” says Fudim. “It wasn’t closure. It’s opened me back up.”

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about theatre and dance? Show your support.

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� alumna Jessica Fudim was two courses away from graduating in 1997; 26 years later, she’s earned her degree.

Traditional

White

Top image: Medusa (played by Jessica Fudim) welcomes the audience in "Venomous." (Photo: Kyle Adler)

College faculty and staff honored at 2025 recognition ceremony

Kylie Clarke — Thu, 01 May 2025 21:51:26 +0000

College faculty and staff honored at 2025 recognition ceremony Kylie Clarke Thu, 05/01/2025 - 15:51

The annual event recognizes excellence in teaching, scholarship and other work that is a highlight of the College of Arts and Sciences

Faculty and staff from across the University of Colorado Boulder College of Arts and Sciences were honored at the Recognition Reception held Thursday afternoon in the Norlin Library.

Deans of division Irene Blair, Sarah E. Jackson and John-Michael Rivera presented gifts to faculty and staff being recognized for their outstanding achievements during the 2024-2025 academic year.

Awarded recognitions:

College Scholar Awards
Kahn Family Community Teaming Fund
ASCEND Awards
ASSETT Excellence in Teaching with Technology
Award Cogswell Award for Inspirational Instruction
College Professor of Distinction
CU Distinguished Professors
A&S Staﬀ Employees of the Year
Promotion to Full Professor
Tenure & Promotion to Associate Professor
Promotion to Teaching Professor
Promotion to Associate Teaching Professor

View the list of recognized faculty and staff

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about the College of Arts and Sciences? Show your support.

The annual event recognizes excellence in teaching, scholarship and other work that is a highlight of the College of Arts and Sciences.

Traditional

White

Trouble in the developing world? Call the IMF

Rachel Sauer — Tue, 29 Apr 2025 19:49:07 +0000

Trouble in the developing world? Call the IMF Rachel Sauer Tue, 04/29/2025 - 13:49

Bradley Worrell

In a recently published paper, ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� political science Professor Jaroslav Tir highlights how intergovernmental organizations help end civil wars

There’s trouble in Africa, where a protracted civil war between government forces and rebels in the countryside threatens to undo years of hard work to raise the country’s standard of living and its prospects for future economic growth.

This is a job for the IMF.

No, not the Impossible Missions Force—the fictional U.S. covert government agency tasked with successfully completing next-to-impossible missions, as popularized by the Mission: Impossible film franchise helmed by Tom Cruise.

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� researcher Jaroslav Tir, a professor of political science, studies armed conflicts and how to stop them.

The other IMF—the International Money Fund. Yes, really, that IMF.

The role the IMF, the World Bank and other intergovernmental organizations (IGOs) have played in recent years to help broker peace agreements is highlighted in the research paper “Civil War Mediation in the Shadow of IGOs: the Path to Comprehensive Peace Agreements,” published earlier this year in the Journal of Peace Research, which was coauthored by Jaroslav Tir, University of Colorado Boulder Department of Political Science professor, and Johannes Karreth, a ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� PhD political science major and former Tir graduate student.

Tir, whose research focus includes armed conflicts and how to stop them, recently spoke with Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine about how IGOs can help resolve conflicts by offering or denying financial incentives to governments and rebels. His responses have been lightly edited for style and condensed.

Question: How did these international government organizations get into the conflict-resolution business?

Tir: That’s a very good question, right? Because the IMF, the World Bank and various regional development banks don’t have mandates to end civil wars.

One thing we do know from the study of international organizations is that they tend to broaden their mandates. They are bureaucracies—and bureaucracies like to grow, generally. They like more resources. They like to do things well, because if they look good, they get some more resources. So, the fact they are going beyond the original mandates is not that surprising.

The more narrow answer is that a lot of these organizations are financial, so they deal with things like development assistance. They’re trying to get these countries more economically developed, and they’re trying to get their economies functioning better to raise the standard of living for the local populations and things like that.

The bad news for all of these economic agendas are civil wars. So, for example, if the World Bank/IMF invests tens of millions of dollars or sometimes even hundreds of millions of dollars in a country, and that country then ends up in a civil war, a lot of this progress and money that’s been invested is put in jeopardy. Therefore, these organizations have a literally vested self-interest to try to see if they can do something about these civil wars in member countries, because they’re interested in protecting their investments.

Question: How does a bank enforce a peace treaty?

Tir: To clarify, these organizations do not do this (enforce treaties), and in the paper we do not claim that they directly partake in the peace process. This is not them sending in peacekeepers. Instead, this is all done through financial incentives—or denial of incentives. So, it’s carrot and stick, but it’s all financial.

General Soumaila Bakayoko, chief of Staff of the Ivorian Armed Forces, reviews the Ivorian troops during the First Ivorian Civil War in 2007. During the conflict, rebels particularly wanted access to voting rolls, notes ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� researcher Jaroslav Tir. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

To answer your question more directly, how can they, quote unquote, enforce a peace process? For example, with these conflicting parties, the rebels and the governments, working toward peace, (IGOs) will essentially commit to put X amount of money into the country to deal with issues that are usually connected to economic development, but also maybe of interest to both the rebels and the governments. So, that’s the carrot.

And it’s a bit of a double-edged sword, because the idea is IGOs will give you these resources if you honor the commitments toward making peace. However, these resources will be denied or suspended if you fail to do so. Meaning, if you’re a bad actor or you’re backpedaling or acting in malfeasant ways, there are (financial) consequences.

Question: It seems like the IGO might have an easier time incentivizing a government than a rebel group?

Tir: I think they incentivize both, but I think it is easier for them to incentivize the government because the government is a member of the organization. It’s the government of Country X, for example, that actually has a seat at the IMF/World Bank. So, the contact there is pretty direct.

For the rebels, there is not necessarily direct contact with the IGO because they never have a seat at the organization. But rebellions take place typically because rebels need or want something, and whether these things are financial or not, usually money can help them achieve this.

For instance, in the Ivory Coast during its civil war in the early 2000s, one thing that the rebels really wanted was access to voting rolls, to assure that all citizens could vote in the elections. In a way that’s a political issue, but in other ways it’s a very logistical kind of issue. And money needs to be spent to basically go through the records and see who is eligible to vote, and these administrators who are going to do this need to be paid.

Then the other thing the rebels were really interested in was that they did not have very good health care access—for example, childhood vaccines and standard stuff that has been provided for decades around the world, but the government didn’t offer it in the rebel-held areas. The rebels said, ‘This is something that’s very important to us because our children are dying, and our people are getting sick. So, they said, ‘We want access to vaccinations and access to health care.’

The World Bank and the IMF essentially said, ‘If these are kinds of things that are meaningful to you, these things are good for the World Bank/IMF as well.’ And that makes sense, because if people are healthier, they’re more economically productive, right? So, there is your economic incentive, and once this leads to stability, stability is good for economic growth and development.

This is a way in which international organizations can incentivize rebels to come to the negotiating table. That’s the carrot for them.

Question: From reading the paper, it sounds like not all IGOs are created equal.

Tir: Definitely, they are not all created equal. But we’re not just looking at the issue of size of the IGO or how many countries belong to the IGO. We’re basically looking at a different kind of variance that occurs among international organizations, and that is how much leverage they have over member countries.

"(Syria) is a country that’s been internationally isolated for decades under the Assad regime, and part of that isolation is not having memberships in these (IGOs)," notes ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� researcher Jaroslav Tir. "So, when the civil war broke out, there was not a lot of incentive-type influence from the international community that could bring the (factions) in Syria to the negotiating table." (Photo: Mahmoud Sulaiman/Unsplash)

Some organizations have very little leverage over member countries—meaning that the member countries tell the organization what to do and not the other way around. So, it’s a question of who is the boss. Is it the member country, or is it the organization that’s the boss? That’s one source of variation.

The other source is how many resources (IGOs) have. And this is very important in the context of civil wars, because the resources can then be used as carrots to basically get the governments and the rebels to work toward peace.

You have to have both: the institutional leverage that the organization can tell member countries what to do, and that has to be coupled with these material resources. So, it’s not just these organizations telling countries and rebels what to do, it’s actually incentivizing them to work toward peace.

Question: Are there cases in which IGOs are less effective in incentivizing peace? What do those look like?

Tir: One example would be Syria. This is a country that’s been internationally isolated for decades under the Assad regime, and part of that isolation is not having memberships in these (IGOs). So, when the civil war broke out, there was not a lot of incentive-type influence from the international community that could bring the (factions) in Syria to the negotiating table. …

Another example would be Uganda, which had a civil war and there’s been no peace agreement. And the reason there has been no peace agreement is the rebel group. The Lord’s Resistance Army was simply not interested in making any kinds of concessions. It seems like they’re more interested in having a rebellion than advancing any kind of policy or political objectives.

That was a case where international organizations were involved, where they observed the Ugandan government was willing to do its part, but the Lord’s Resistance Army was not serious about negotiating. So, what ended up happening there is that international organizations are just working with the Ugandan government and the LRA is cut out of the whole process.

Question: Your paper talks about IGOs in relation to comprehensive peace agreements. What, specifically, is a comprehensive peace agreement and how is it different from other types of peace agreements?

Tir: It is exactly what it sounds like: It’s a peace agreement that’s comprehensive—that tackles a multitude of issues, whereas partial peace agreements only resolve a subset of the contentious issues.

Civil wars are very complex, with disagreements over a variety of different issues, such as police reform, access to government power, representation, access to health care and who gets to serve in the military. In some countries, military service is ethnically based, depending upon if you are a member of a certain ethnic group.

"The two big benefits of these comprehensive peace agreements are: first, because they do tackle a multitude of issues, they’re much more likely to resolve a civil war; and second, they help ensure that the resolutions the rebels and the government make actually stick."

The two big benefits of these comprehensive peace agreements are: first, because they do tackle a multitude of issues, they’re much more likely to resolve a civil war; and second, they help ensure that the resolutions the rebels and the government make actually stick, which is important, because civil wars are notorious for recidivism. Once a country has a civil war, there’s a much higher likelihood of having a civil war recurrence down the road.

As we highlighted in the article, fewer than one in five conflicts are resolved by comprehensive peace agreements. So, they’re great, but they’re rare.

Question: It sounds like CPAs, or any peace agreements, require an extended commitment of time and resources by the IGOs if they are going to be successful.

Tir: (IGOs) have to write substantial checks … and these resources need to be provided over time. They are committing themselves to be involved in a country for many years. So, it’s not just offering a carrot (financial incentive) today but also in the future. The technical term for it is shadow of the future.

Basically, the idea is: We (the government and rebels, separately) want these future resources and because we want them, that essentially makes us think twice about reneging on the peace agreement. And if we (as a party to the peace process) are in a situation where we believe the other side has an incentive to abide by the agreement, we’re likely to uphold our end as well.

It’s kind of a puzzle, a Rubik’s Cube, how the pieces of the peace process come together, and if they do, we find the chances of these agreements being reached and maintained are substantially higher.

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about political science? Show your support.

In a recently published paper, ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� political science Professor Jaroslav Tir highlights how intergovernmental organizations help end civil wars.

Traditional

White

Women on trial speak clearly through their clothing

Rachel Sauer — Mon, 28 Apr 2025 21:27:03 +0000

Women on trial speak clearly through their clothing Rachel Sauer Mon, 04/28/2025 - 15:27

Collette Mace

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� researcher Carla Jones finds that what Indonesian women wear in court can convey messages of piety and shame, or just the appearance of them

No matter who you are and what clothes you have on, you have probably, at some point, thought about how what you wear affects how you are seen.

Fashion is an important mode of self-expression, but it can also be a significant component of social communication. University of Colorado Boulder anthropology Professor Carla Jones’ recently published research focusing on fashion within the Indonesian criminal justice system illustrates how appearance can be a public and personal feature of social and political communication.

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� researcher Carla Jones, a professor of anthropology, noticed that when Indonesian women were accused of corruption, they faced intense scrutiny about their appearances, both before and during their trials.

Jones’ interest in Indonesia started when she visited the country in college, but her youth in Southeast Asia also played a part in her sustained interest in the culture there. As an anthropologist, she says, she is interested in diversity–in which Indonesian culture and social life is rich.

She also credits her interest in learning to speak Indonesian with her total immersion there. “Learning a new language can change your life,” she says. “Cultural anthropologists need to be able to ask questions and understand. You have to learn how to be an insider and an outsider at once.”

In the past two decades, public political culture in Indonesia has become increasingly focused on corruption. Although Indonesia is not unusually corrupt, many of the most visible corruption trials have captivated public attention through media focus on theft of public funds.

Jones noticed that when women were accused of corruption, they faced intense scrutiny about their appearances, both before and during their trials. Jones says she noticed that female defendants in corruption cases adjusted their clothing in ways that went far beyond the public norms for the majority-Muslim country.

Modesty was a particularly compelling visual strategy. Although modest styles are increasingly popular globally (think: trad-wife trends on TikTok), the styles that accused Indonesian women adopted for trials were especially visible when they appeared in court and were very different from their styles of dress prior to their trials, Jones says.

Many women, she says, would elect to wear facial coverings, called a niqab or cadar, when appearing before a judge. Wearing a niqab is not especially common in Indonesia. Jones argues in her paper that women choosing to express their religion so outwardly was also an effort to appear more pious and ashamed of their actions (or more innocent) to judges and to the public.

Niqab in court

So, does it work? According to Jones, yes, along with other factors. The women in these cases who wore a niqab to court tended to get shorter prison sentences than others did. “Their attorneys also did a really good job conveying that they are mothers, and their justification was to provide for their children,” she says.

However, that doesn’t mean these women on trial were received the same way all over the world. When Anniesa Hasibuan, an internationally famous modest-fashion designer who was charged with fraud, took the stand in West Java, the coverage expanded to all over the world, including the United States.

The international coverage of Hasibuan’s trial called additional attention to her choice to wear a niqab. Some Indonesians who were following her case closely viewed her choice to cover her face much as some Americans might: as an attempt to foreclose transparency about her appearance and therefore her finances. Many Indonesians viewed her appearance as a sign of dishonesty rather than piety.

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about anthropology? Show your support.

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� researcher Carla Jones finds that what Indonesian women wear in court can convey messages of piety and shame, or just the appearance of them.

Traditional

White

Anniesa Hasibuan (center) and her husband leave court in West Java, Indonesia. (Photo: Antara Foto/Reuters)

Scholars aim to build community for women in quantum

Rachel Sauer — Fri, 25 Apr 2025 19:46:50 +0000

Scholars aim to build community for women in quantum Rachel Sauer Fri, 04/25/2025 - 13:46

Rachel Sauer

Quantum Scholars Emily Jerris and Annalise Cabra started CU Women of Quantum to help women interested in careers in quantum to network and share experiences

First, the good news: Between 1970 and 2022, the percentage of U.S. women workers in STEM jobs grew from 7% to 26%.

The obvious and not-so-good news is that while women represent almost half the U.S. workforce, they hold only a quarter of STEM jobs. And the numbers get even more stark in quantum fields. A 2022 report from the London School of Economics and Political Science found that fewer than 2% of applicants for jobs in quantum fields are female.

Quantum Scholars Annalise Cabra (left) and Emily Jerris (right) gave a presentation about CU Women of Quantum at the December Quantum Scholars meeting attended by CU President Todd Saliman. (Photo: Casey Cass/��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��)

However, in the 100 years since German physicist Werner Heisenberg submitted his paper “On quantum-theoretical reinterpretation of kinematic and mechanical relationships” to the journal Zeitschrift für Physik, a July 1925 event that is broadly credited with kick-starting the quantum revolution, the possibilities and potential of quantum science and engineering have grown enormously.

Recognizing that potential, a group of University of Colorado Boulder scholars wants to help ensure that women participate equally and fully in quantum science and engineering.

CU Women of Quantum, founded last semester by Quantum Scholars Emily Jerris and Annalise Cabra, aims to be a community of support, connection, mentorship and networking for women interested in pursuing careers or research in quantum fields.

“Our primary focus,” Cabra explains, “is just to create a space where we can come together, share our experiences and create relationships that are lasting.”

100 years of quantum

Both Jerris and Cabra say that this is an exciting time to be in quantum science and engineering. Not only did the United Nations declare 2025 as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology, and not only did Colorado Gov. Jared Polis last week announce the Blueprint for Advancing K–12 Quantum Information Technology, but research happening on the ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� campus and in Colorado is swiftly expanding the boundaries of quantum technology.

However, they also add that as exciting as this time is, women in quantum fields still face some of the same roadblocks that women in STEM always have.

“I think if you asked most of the women in the club or just in a STEM major if they’ve had a moment where a peer or coworker has talked down to them or they felt not necessarily fully included in a project because they were the only woman in the group, I think most probably have,” Jerris says. “So, it’s nice to have a space to talk about that—how to navigate situations like that. A lot of us do research, too, and those types of situations are also really prevalent in the research space.”

Jerris and Cabra worked with Michael Ritzwoller, a physics professor of distinction and Quantum Scholars co-founder, and physics Professor Noah Finkelstein to create CU Women of Quantum, which is open to all students, as a place for not only female Quantum Scholars, but for women across campus who are interested in pursuing careers in quantum science, technology or engineering.

Annalise Cabra (left) works with Brooke Nelson (right), a career advisor for the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, on her resume during a recent CU Women of Quantum meeting.

Supporting women in quantum

One of the group’s aims is creating networking and mentorship opportunities for members by asking professors and women working in quantum fields to speak at group meetings. This has included Alex Tingle, a ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� physics alumna and senior technical project engineer at Quantinuum, who was named one of the Wonder Women of the Quantum Industry by the Quantum Daily.

CU Women of Quantum gatherings also focus on skill-building, including a recent meeting at which Brooke Nelson, a career advisor for the College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, gave a presentation on creating and honing a resume.

“One of our goals is to help (CU Women of Quantum members) narrow in on their interests and build connections,” Cabra says. “And then also having opportunities to see how women in their shoes were able to navigate and build careers in quantum. I think it’s important for a lot of women in the field, too, to go back and encourage other women who are just starting out or just getting interested in quantum.”

The members of CU Women of Quantum also get together for study sessions, “because even if we’re not taking the same classes, with other women you can feel more open and not like you’re the outlier in the group.”

Both Cabra, who is graduating next month, and Jerris, who is completing her third year, are interested in pursuing careers in a quantum field, bolstered by the support they’ve found in CU Women of Quantum.

“It’s so fascinating because it’s just so unintuitive,” Cabra says. “It makes your brain think in such crazy ways, from the ways particles behave to the ways stars don’t collapse or do collapse, to parallel universes, and it all goes back to quantum. I think it’s just so exciting to study.”

Jerris adds that often the common perception of quantum science and technology is that “it’s kind of magic or something we don’t totally understand, but we actually do have a pretty good understanding of quantum. We know what’s going on and can model it, and we’re maybe just one step behind with how we can actually manipulate things. So, it’s not magic; it’s something we do know a lot about and we’re learning more every day.”

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about quantum scholarship? Show your support.

Quantum Scholars Emily Jerris and Annalise Cabra started CU Women of Quantum to help women interested in careers in quantum to network and share experiences.

Traditional

White

Top image: Casey Cass/��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��

Fifth annual Staff Summit celebrates connection, adaptability, innovation

Clint Talbott — Fri, 25 Apr 2025 19:23:30 +0000

Fifth annual Staff Summit celebrates connection, adaptability, innovation Clint Talbott Fri, 04/25/2025 - 13:23

Staff members in the College of Arts and Sciences are invited to participate in the fifth annual Staff Summit, a two-day event dedicated to learning, community and professional growth. This year’s theme, Thriving Together in Changing Times, reflects the evolving landscape of higher education and our shared commitment to collaboration, adaptability and progress.

Day 1 (Tuesday, May 20) will take place virtually and feature campus leaders, expert panels and timely updates—including a keynote from Chancellor Justin Schwartz, discussions on workplace civility and innovation and briefings on federal policy and HR transformation efforts.

Day 2 (Wednesday, May 21) will bring staff together in person at the Idea Forge for connection, creativity and celebration. Activities include community-building sessions, networking opportunities, updates from the Be Heard 2.0 initiative, a hands-on design thinking workshop and a guided campus tour to close the summit.

All staff in the College of Arts and Sciences are welcome to attend. Registration is required, and we encourage managers and supervisors to support staff participation in this opportunity for professional development and community connection.

The Staff Summit is an outgrowth of the college’s Be Heard initiative and reflects our continued investment in staff engagement and organizational wellbeing. We look forward to seeing you there!

How to attend and next steps:

Please register by Friday, May 9, for one or both days of the Staff Summit at this link.
Please include your dietary restrictions for breakfast and lunch.
Help us celebrate college wins! As part of the 2025 Staff Summit, we want to celebrate the great accomplishments of the arts and sciences departments. Please take a moment to describe your department's biggest win of the year by completing a short questionnaire at this link.

For questions, contact Erin Cunningham Ritter.

Full schedule of events:

Tuesday, May 20, 2025, 10 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

Location: virtual via Zoom

10 a.m.-10:15 a.m.: Welcome and opening remarks

Bernadette Stewart, Assistant dean of culture and people, College of Arts and Sciences

10:15 a.m.-11:15 a.m.: Keynote presentation

Chancellor Justin Schwartz will kick off the summit with a brief keynote that speaks directly to the theme: Thriving Together in Changing Times. In the midst of ongoing reorganization and the challenges facing higher education, his remarks will offer insight, encouragement and connection. Staff are encouraged to bring questions related to campus strategy and how we can move forward—together.

Justin Schwartz, chancellor, ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��

11:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Break

11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Blueprint Project update

Blueprint Project updates will highlight the progress of ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��'s multi-year HR Blueprint initiative, which aims to transform HR systems, processes and governance to create a more equitable and consistent experience for staff and faculty. Co-sponsored by campus leadership, the project supports broader institutional goals around transformation and financial resilience by streamlining operations and enhancing strategic HR partnerships. The session will share key findings from the campus-wide assessment and outline progress related to designing and implementing improvements across HR functions.

Robyn Fergus, vice chancellor of human resources

Michele Moses, vice provost and associate vice chancellor for faculty affairs

12 p.m.–1 p.m.: Lunch break

1 p.m.–2 p.m.: Panel discussion: Brave Spaces & Bold Ideas: Navigating Safety, Discomfort & Innovation

How do we distinguish between being unsafe and merely uncomfortable in the workplace? And how can constructive dissent fuel innovation instead of division? This panel explores the evolving meaning of psychological safety, the role of respectful disagreement in driving creativity and how organizations can foster brave spaces where diverse ideas thrive.

MODERATOR

Marysia Lopez, program manager, access and community engagement, College of Arts and Sciences

PANELISTS

Kirsi Aulin, Ombuds director

Dr. Ashley Grice, Senior consultant, Office of Leadership Support and Programming

Stanley Ly, MA, LPC, ACS, director, Faculty and Staff Assistance Program

2 p.m –2:15 p.m.: Break

2:15 p.m.–3:15 p.m.: Federal transition updates

CU government relations specialists will provide an overview of the latest federal transitions, including recent executive actions and policy shifts, and what they mean for ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��. This session will focus on how these developments may affect staff across our campuses—highlighting both challenges and opportunities as we navigate a changing national landscape together.

Kirsten Schuchman, associate vice chancellor for public policy, government relations, Office of Government and Community Engagement

Heather Bené, associate vice president of research and federal policy, Office of Government Relations

3:15 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.: Wrap-up

Erin Cunningham Ritter, PhD, director of wellness and employee engagement, College of Arts and Sciences

Wednesday, May 21, 2025, 9:45 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Location: Idea Forge | Project-Based Learning Studio

Fleming Building | 2445 Kittredge Loop Dr | Boulder CO, 80309

9:45 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.: Light breakfast

10:15 a.m. – 10:20 a.m.: Welcome and opening remarks

Daryl Maeda, dean, College of Arts and Sciences, interim

10:20 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.: CELEBRATE! Staff Advisory Committee (SAC) Employee of the Year winners

Chris Marelli, SAC co-chair, director of the general chemistry labs

Robyn Ronen, SAC co-chair, business manager, Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences

10:45 a.m. - 11 a.m.: Break

11 a.m. – 12 p.m.: SAC A&S college staff connection networking

Building on the success of the inaugural event held in the spring, this session will provide an opportunity for networking, learning and collaboration. The event will include group activities and discussion designed to foster cross-division collaboration, share best practices and strengthen relationships among staff.

Staff Advisory Committee members

12 p.m. - 1 p.m.: Lunch

1 p.m. - 1:45 p.m.: SAC Be Heard 2.0: Advancing civility and connection in A&S

This presentation provides an update on Be Heard 2.0, the multi-phase initiative to strengthen workplace civility, engagement and inclusion across the College of Arts and Sciences. We will revisit each phase, including Phase 1, which focused on the effect of emotions, stress and resilience on workplace behavior, and Phase 2, in which SAC participants crafted personal leadership narratives aligned with SAC’s vision for civility. We’ll also preview the goals of Phases 3 and 4, which will support team-level dialogue and unit-specific actions that promote a culture of respect, accountability and collaboration.

Staff Advisory Committee Members

Erin Cunningham Ritter, PhD, Director of wellness and employee engagement College of Arts and Sciences

1:45 p.m. - 2 p.m.: Break

2 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.: Design thinking activity

Kristen Alipit will lead the group through a skill-building session on design thinking—a commonly used and very effective approach to solving complex problems and issues in organizations. We will apply these tools to ideating and prototyping the Be Heard 2.0 initiatives to include staff expertise in solutions design. Kristen has many years of experience working in design thinking, both in training others in the framework and leading organizational projects using this technique.

Kristen Alipit, director of organizational effectiveness and engagement, finance and business strategy

3:30 p.m. - 3:45 p.m.: Idea Forge tour

Victoria Lanaghan, program coordinator, Idea Forge

3:45 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.: Campus tour

Concluding the College of Arts and Sciences Staff Summit, we invite you to join us for a tour of the Idea Forge followed by a campus tour of the University of Colorado Boulder. As the final session of the summit, this tour will immerse you in our top-tier public research institution nestled below the Flatirons. Discover the academic excellence, cutting-edge facilities and vibrant community that define the College of Arts and Sciences. From historic landmarks to awe-inspiring outdoor spaces, ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� offers an unforgettable educational journey in a stunning natural setting. Bring your water and walking shoes and dress for our Colorado weather!

Gavin Laing, faculty affairs senior coordinator, College of Arts and Sciences

Staff members in the College of Arts and Sciences are invited to participate in the fifth annual Staff Summit

Traditional

White

How was it for you? Women are finally being asked

Rachel Sauer — Thu, 24 Apr 2025 20:10:57 +0000

How was it for you? Women are finally being asked Rachel Sauer Thu, 04/24/2025 - 14:10

Pam Moore

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� scientist Chelsea Kilimnik is one of a handful of researchers looking at the correlation between sexual trauma and ‘duty sex’

Driven by a long-held interest in the ways in which unwanted and nonconsensual sexual experiences can shape individuals’ future sexual experiences and overall well-being, Chelsea Kilimnik, a licensed clinical psychologist and assistant professor in the University of Colorado Boulder Department Psychology and Neuroscience and the Renée Crown Wellness Institute, teamed up with researchers at the University of Texas at Austin to study that very topic.

It’s not surprising that research has largely neglected how women’s trauma shapes their sex lives, considering that, as a culture, “we’ve only recently acknowledged that women are sexual beings,” says Kilimnik, who is the director of the Growth, Identity, and Sexual Trauma (GIST) Lab at ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ��.

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� researcher Chelsea Kilimnik, an assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience, notes that that, as a culture, "we’ve only recently acknowledged that women are sexual beings."

Kilimnik’s and her colleagues’ research, published recently in The Journal of Sexual Medicine, provides foundational insights into women’s motivations for sex—an area of study that has long been overlooked by the scientific community.

An overlooked area of research

Although the tides are beginning to turn, for many healthcare providers, the idea of prioritizing women’s sexual pleasure is still novel. Many times, when women come to the doctor reporting pelvic pain or pain during sex, their experiences are invalidated and their healthcare needs ignored, says Kilimnik. Not only is this frustrating, but the lack of belief, offered agency and validation can exacerbate mental health difficulties for those with past experiences of sexual trauma.

Meanwhile, the body of data on women’s mental health and its connection to sexual health and well-being is “still in its infancy,” says Kilimnik, who is part of a small community of researchers studying it.

“Sexual trauma affects women at disproportionately higher rates than men and has a significant influence on their sex lives, yet this connection to sexuality is something that was ignored by the literature for centuries, so we need to document it in the literature,” she explains.

While we may think of sex as something that doesn’t affect our lives beyond the bedroom, our sexuality affects many aspects of our day-to-day lives, says Kilimnik. That’s because psychological and sexual well-being are deeply linked.

Psychological well-being encompasses multiple factors, including the presence or absence of mental health disorders, general mood and overall quality of life, says Kilimnik. Sexual well-being, on the other hand, can include your sexual satisfaction, how you feel about yourself as a sexual person, the way your body operates in sexual encounters, body image and the presence or absence of sexual disorders, she says.

“While psychological and sexual well-being are two distinct constructs, they are almost always related,” says Kilimnik. For example, if you’re depressed, that will impact your sex life. And if your sex life is unsatisfying or you struggle to view yourself as a sexual being, that can impact your self-esteem, and in turn, your mental health, she explains.

What the data say

The team of researchers explored the relationships between the frequency of duty sex (the act of engaging in sex out of a sense of obligation or duty), sexual functioning and nonconsensual sexual encounters (NSEs).

"Sexual trauma affects women at disproportionately higher rates than men and has a significant influence on their sex lives, yet this connection to sexuality is something that was ignored by the literature for centuries."

While duty sex is consensual, it’s motivated not by desire but by “the feeling that you have to,” says Kilimnik. That might be for reasons ranging from not wanting your partner to be angry to the fear that they might leave you, or the sense that you have a responsibility to your partner to engage in sex.

The data revealed that people with NSE histories reported higher frequency of duty sex. They also found that people with lower levels of sexual satisfaction and higher levels of sexual pain reported more frequent duty sex.

“These relationships can be bidirectional,” Kilimnik points out, particularly with regard to duty sex and sexual pain and dysfunction. In other words, people may have more duty sex because they don’t enjoy sex due to pain or discomfort, but it’s also true that people may not find their sex lives satisfying because they’re frequently engaging in duty sex.

When the researchers controlled for sexual functioning, they found that NSEs “have this unique impact on engaging in duty sex above and beyond what sexual functioning can account for,” says Kilimnik. This is consistent with existing research that indicates those with NSE histories often have more difficulty asserting their sexual boundaries, she says.

While this paper alone can’t tell us how to improve our sex lives—and, consequently, our overall well-being—it does support the existence of an important pattern, says Kilimnik. “That pattern supports this idea that if the primary reason you’re engaging in sex is out of a sense of obligation, it can be harmful for your sex life and well-being.”

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about psychology and neuroscience? Show your support.

��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� scientist Chelsea Kilimnik is one of a handful of researchers looking at the correlation between sexual trauma and ‘duty sex.’

Traditional

White

Top photo: iStock

Recognizing a century of boats against the current

Rachel Sauer — Wed, 23 Apr 2025 19:17:08 +0000

Recognizing a century of boats against the current Rachel Sauer Wed, 04/23/2025 - 13:17

Collette Mace

The Great Gatsby remains relevant for modern readers by shapeshifting with the times, says ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� scholar Martin Bickman

“So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.”

The final words of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s classic novel, The Great Gatsby—published 100 years ago this month—are among the most known and appreciated in American literature.

Martin Bickman, a ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� professor of English, notes that the intentional vagueness of The Great Gatsby helps readers of all generations connect with the characters.

And according to Martin Bickman, a University of Colorado Boulder professor of English, this line and the novel’s conclusion reflect the age in which it was written and neatly ends a novel that seems to capture the American psyche.

But why is The Great Gatsby considered the Great American Novel? Not because it’s great or because it’s American, Bickman explains—although it is both. This novel has remained relevant from generation to generation because it shapeshifts with the times, continuing to carry themes that Americans are bred to notice.

Questions of the American dream, wealth, class standing and ambition are central to American values in both 1925 and today. And while these themes look very different to the modern American, Bickman says the intentional vagueness of the novel helps readers of all generations connect with the characters.

To understand this, Bickman, a CU President’s Teaching Scholar who has taught a course called American Novel, cites “reader response theory,” a framework he emphasizes is critical in the study of literature. According to reader response theory, the reader of a text to take must take an active role in constructing the meaning within the text; if readers look only at a novel through the perspective of the author, that neglects much of the text’s meaning.

For this reason, no text can be interpreted the exact way by two different people. Readers approach texts differently as a result of their position in the world, and the experiences that have shaped them inform their understanding of what they read. The text then becomes a blank canvas for what readers project onto it, Bickman says

Seeing ourselves in Gatsby

What does this have to do with Gatsby? According to Bickman, the title character is just two-dimensional enough to serve as a perfect projection screen for readers of the novel. He’s mysterious, allowing the narrator, Nick Calloway, to cast his own assumptions about the world and the wealthy onto him, as well as vague enough to allow the reader to project their own internal thoughts and biases onto him.

As well as having characters that reflect the reader in personality and perceptions, The Great Gatsby also reflects classic American messages that are relevant today.

Because of his intentional ambiguity, Gatsby as a character can reflect what the reader thinks of many different things, including the elite, the rich and even the quintessential American dreamer.

This is how The Great Gatsby becomes a chameleon, remaining relevant in era, despite its age, Bickman says. As well as having characters that reflect the reader in personality and perceptions, the novel also reflects classic American messages that are relevant today.

The green light on Daisy’s dock, for example, represents the unattainable hopes for the future that stem from the inability to transcend the past. This feeling is still present, and most likely always will be in a country that believes in the possibility of a glowing future as long as we just work hard enough to get there—such is, in essence, the American dream, Bickman says.

It also showcases the all-to-frequent pain of the American dream. Although Bickman says the billionaires of today had no equal in Fitzgerald’s time, the uneasiness surrounding the callousness of the rich is on full display in Gatsby. Daisy, for example, named for the beautiful and delicate flower that Gatsby sees her as, is just as cruel and selfish as any of the men around her. She was the one driving the car, after all.

However, as she comes from “self-earned” money, and as someone who has seemingly “won” at the American dream, does she get a pass for her selfishness? In a way, she seems to, at least for the moment. And as time moves on, and the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer, it seems that the original questions of whether the rich can be callous changes to whether the rich can be cruel—a key difference in how the world works, according to Bickman.

“It’s a real pathology now,” he says, “I mean, these people are cruel. The richest of the rich in the 1920s were nothing like today’s billionaires.”

So the lessons of The Great Gatsby remain relevant, Bickman says, suggesting that modern readers should take a deep look between the lines and wonder what Gatsby can show us about ourselves.

Did you enjoy this article? Subscribe to our newsletter. Passionate about English? Show your support.

'The Great Gatsby' remains relevant for modern readers by shapeshifting with the times, says ��Ҵ�ý�ƽ�� scholar Martin Bickman.

Traditional

White

Top image: Warner Bros.

News

Grad’s body of work already changing courses

Related Articles

Amazing grads share advice and reflect on key lessons

Related Articles

Degree finally in hand, dancer leaps back onto Boulder stage

Related Articles

College faculty and staff honored at 2025 recognition ceremony

Related Articles

Trouble in the developing world? Call the IMF

Related Articles

Women on trial speak clearly through their clothing

Related Articles

Scholars aim to build community for women in quantum

Related Articles

Fifth annual Staff Summit celebrates connection, adaptability, innovation

Related Articles

How was it for you? Women are finally being asked

Related Articles

Recognizing a century of boats against the current

Related Articles