USI Colloquium to explore the role of girls in preserving the past

The University of Southern Indiana College of Liberal Arts is proud to announce the final Faculty Colloquium presentation of the Spring Semester. Dr. Stella Ress, Associate Professor of History, will present "Singing about 'Tomorrow' while Interpreting the Past: 'Little Girls,' Annie, and Pop History" at 3 p.m. April 21 in Kleymeyer Hall, located in the lower level of the Liberal Arts Center. This event is open to the public at no charge.   

In her presentation, Ress draws from interviews with the cast and creators, contemporary reviews, fan discussions, and content analyses of the comic strip and musical performances to combine the questions asked and methodologies used by public history, popular culture and the history of girls and girlhood. Her argument is that public historians should take pop culture productions of historic subjects seriously. By reading Annie not only as a pop culture product by and for girls but also as a piece of public history, we can learn more about the roles little girls have in the power, production and preservation of the past. 

The College of Liberal Arts Faculty Colloquium features free public lectures by faculty members every Fall and Spring Semester. It provides an opportunity for the community to engage with scholars and learn about their current research. Learn more at USI.edu/lafc. 

For more information, contact Dr. Quentin Maynard, Assistant Professor of Social Work, at 812-465-1003 or qrmaynard@usi.edu.