Broadly defined, a mentor is someone who takes a special interest in helping another person develop professionally. An effective mentoring relationship is characterized by mutual respect, trust, understanding, and empathy.

Eric Vázquez, assistant professor of American Studies and Latino Studies, presented "The Innovator's Dilemma - Bitcoin in El Salvador" to the Iowa Foreign Relations Council on April 5, 2022. This talk examines bitcoin enthusiasts' arguments about the viability of bitcoin as legal tender in El Salvador. It raises specific concerns about bitcoin adoption in a context of growing authoritarianism, a history of unstable monetary policy, and limited technology.

Sport studies major and Daily Iowa Assistant Sports Editor Chloe Peterson examines the impact of former athletic director Christine Grant.

Three trailblazers who led the national effort for gender equality in athletics are being honored through a new fund dedicated to collecting, archiving, and highlighting their achievements and the efforts of other women. The Three Women for Equality: Christine Grant, Peggy Burke, and Bonnie Slatton Fund will provide support for the Iowa Women's Archives at UI Libraries, one of the few archives of its kind embedded within a higher education academic research library in the U.S.

Dr. Eric Vázquez, assistant professor of American studies and Latina/o studies, has an essay in the Duke University Press Public Culture publication.

David Andrews, Professor, Department of Kinesiology at the University of Maryland, will present "Articulating Trump's America: Sport, Politics, and the Culture Wars" on May 6, 2022 at 4:00 p.m. CST. Register in advance for this meeting.

Natalie Robertson (PhD 1996) is pleased to announce that the story of America's last slave ship and the fate of her 110 West African captives will air on the National Geographic Channel on Monday, February 7th at 10pm (EST). The film will begin streaming on Hulu and Disney+ the following day. The film is based, in part, on her book entitled, The Slave Ship Clotilda and the Making of AfricaTown, USA: Spirit of Our Ancestors whose research was funded by the Stanley-UI Foundation and PASALA (Project for the Study of Art and Life in Africa).

Dr. Naomi Greyser had a piece published in the December 21, 2021 Los Angeles Review of Books about being Jewish at Christmastime. "O Night Divine: Observing Christianity" can be found here.

Thomas Oates (American studies and Journalism and Mass Communication) is the 2021 winner of the Outstanding SSJ Article Award for his article, “Where I’m From”: Jay-Z’s “Hip Hop Cosmopolitanism,” Basketball, and the Neoliberal Politics of Urban Space (Vol 37 issue 3). In the article Dr. Oates make nuanced connections between hip-hop culture/Jay-Z and sport, presents a robust methodology, cleverly weaves various aspects of the analysis together, and tells an extremely engaging story about Jay-Z, sport, urban space, and neoliberalism.

This scholarship will be awarded to students demonstrating a commitment to partnering with and supporting Native American and Indigenous communities. This award is open to undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Iowa. This scholarship awards $500-1000, and up to two scholarships are awarded each academic year.