Scholarly Residents

• Dovile Vilda Scholar, 2020, Louisiana Dovile Vilda’s academic and research background is in social policy analysis and child/youth research, and her current work examines the role of state-level policies and other social determinants on maternal and child health. She received a Ph.D. in Child &…
• José Sánchez Vera Scholar, 2020, Louisiana José Sánchez Vera is a Ph.D. Candidate at Tulane University’s Spanish and Portuguese Department. His research focuses on contemporary Mexican and Central American Literature taking the interdisciplinary point of view of ecocriticism. His dissertation explores how Mexico City’s ecological crisis…
• AnnieLaurie Erickson Visual Artist and Scholar, 2020, Lousiana AnnieLaurie Erickson is an Associate Professor and the head of photography in the Newcomb Art Department of Tulane. Her work explores how science can combine with artistic creation to probe social and environmental issues in the Gulf South through the…
• Jenny Mercein Scholar, 2020, Louisiana Jenny Mercein is an actor, teacher, writer, and director. A member of Actors Equity Association and SAG-AFTRA, Jenny’s acting credits span theater, film, and television. Along with KJ Sanchez, Jenny is the co-creator of the acclaimed docudrama X’s and O’s…
• Marcia Glass Scholar, 2019, Louisiana Glass used her time in residence to create a year-long curriculum in palliative care, finish editing her book with Oxford University Press, Palliative Care in Crisis Areas, publish a blog story, work on pieces for her blog on the opioid…
• Jeffrey Tasker Scholar, 2019, Louisiana A professor of neuroscience, Jeffrey Tasker will use his time in residence to write a major review article focusing on rapid signaling mechanisms of a novel membrane glucocorticoid receptor and its role in affective disorders of the brain. The Tasker lab uses…
• Katharine Jack Scholar, 2019, Louisiana Katharine Jack is a primate behavioral ecologist whose research examines male reproductive strategies and hormonal correlates of male dominance rank and life history status. Jack has studied a number of different primate species throughout her career, though the bulk of…
• Erin Glackin Scholar, 2019, Louisiana Erin Glackin is a fifth-year graduate student in the School Psychology doctoral program. Her research and clinical interests center on the experience and impact of violence and other forms of trauma, particularly when experienced in early life. Ms. Glackin has…
• Sarah Garner Scholar, 2019, Louisiana Sarah E. Garner holds multiple appointments at Tulane as Director of Pathologists’ Assistant Program; Assistant Professor Department of Cell and Molecular Biology – Tulane University School of Science and Engineering; Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Structural and Cellular Biology –…
• Kate Baldwin Scholar, 2019, Louisiana Kate Baldwin is a scholar and teacher who specializes in comparative literary and cultural histories. Her first book, Beyond the Color Line and the Iron Curtain: Reading Encounters between Black and Red, remaps black American modernism by addressing the involvement…
• Jessica Liddell Scholar, 2018, Louisiana Jessica Liddell participated in a scholarly retreat in fall of 2018 where she continued work on the literature review for her dissertation. Originally from Logan, Utah, Jessica Liddell completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology at Reed College, in Portland, Oregon.…
• Sarah Woodward Scholar, 2018, Louisiana Sarah Woodward worked on her disseratation in the Woods during a scholarly retreat in fall of 2018. Sarah Woodward is a proud New Orleans native. Her research interests include the intersections between art, technology, and education in improving outcomes for…
• Danica Brown Scholar, 2018, Louisiana Danica Brown worked on revising her area exam, preparing her dissertation and conducting data analysis for a research paper during a scholarly retreat in the Woods in the fall of 2018. Danica is a Ph.D. candidate in the City, Culture,…
• Adam Crosson Scholar, Visual Artist, 2018, Louisiana During a scholarly retreat in the fall of 2018 Adam Crosson worked toward completing a video work. Adam Crosson received his MFA in Sculpture + Extended Media from The University of Texas at Austin where he was a Jack G.…
• Anastasia Kurdia Scholar, 2017, Louisiana A professor in the Computer Science program of the School of Science and Engineering, Dr. Kurdia came to A Studio in the Woods to create new and engaging materials for Tulane’s CS program and adapt those materials for Engage-cs.edu, an…
• Amalia Leguizamón Scholar, 2017, Louisiana While in residence, Amalia Leguizamón worked towards completing a manuscript entitled Seeds of Power: Genetically Modified Crops and Socio-Environmental Change in Argentina. Leguizamón is a sociologist interested in the political economy of the environment in Latin America. She is curious…
• Nathan J. Lyons Scholar, 2017, Louisiana Nathan Lyons is a geomorphologist, a scientist that studies the processes and landforms at Earth’s surface. Nathan used his residency to bring together geologists and evolutionary biologists to begin a new research project. This group set out to test ideas…
• Ignacio Sarmiento Scholar, 2017, Louisiana A PhD Candidate in Spanish, Ignacio Sarmiento’s research focuses on postwar Central American literature, paying particular attention to the problems of mourning and national community in Salvadoran and Guatemalan fiction. Sarmiento used his residency to work toward completing his dissertation.
• Chris Rodning Scholar, 2017 and 2019, Louisiana All anthropologists, Christopher Rodning, Marcello Canuto, Tatsuya Murakami, and Jason Nesbitt engaged in collaborative retreats at A Studio in the Woods to explore and exchange ideas about the archaeology of monuments within cultural landscapes in the ancient Americas in both…
• Anjali Niyogi Scholar, 2017, Louisiana Dr. Anjali Niyogi, a physician, and Dr. Ashley Wennerstrom, a public health researcher and practitioner, have been collaborating successfully since 2014 to improve access to health care services for formerly incarcerated persons. Their residency was used to produce a manuscript…
• Robin Vander Scholar, 2017, Louisiana Dr. Robin Vander is a professor of English, African-American and Diaspora Studies, and Performance Studies at Xavier University. During her residency at A Studio in the Woods, Dr. Vander worked on a manuscript length book of images and essays juxtaposing…
• Cirecie A. West-Olatunji Scholar, 2017, Louisiana Focusing on the field of counselor education, Dr. West-Olatunji has initiated several clinical research projects that focus on culture-centered community collaborations designed to address issues rooted in systemic oppression, such as transgenerational trauma and traumatic stress. Dr. West-Olatunji’s residency afforded…
• Matthew Escarra Scholar, 2017, Louisiana An assistant professor in engineering physics, Matthew Escarra used his residency to create a proposal for the NSF CAREER Award, the biggest young investigator award for junior scientists and engineers. Matthew Escarra received his Ph.D. in electrical engineering at Princeton…
• Marcello Canuto Scholar, 2017, Louisiana All anthropologists, Rodning, Canuto, Murakami, and Nesbitt engaged in a weeklong collaborative retreat at A Studio in the Woods to explore and exchange ideas about the archaeology of monuments within cultural landscapes in the ancient Americas. Marcello A. Canuto is…
• Tatsuya Murakami Scholar, 2017, Louisiana All anthropologists, Rodning, Canuto, Murakami, and Nesbitt engaged in a weeklong collaborative retreat at A Studio in the Woods to explore and exchange ideas about the archaeology of monuments within cultural landscapes in the ancient Americas. Dr. Murakami received his…
• Jason Nesbitt Scholar, 2017, Louisiana All anthropologists, Rodning, Canuto, Murakami, and Nesbitt engaged in a weeklong collaborative retreat at A Studio in the Woods to explore and exchange ideas about the archaeology of monuments within cultural landscapes in the ancient Americas. Jason Nesbitt’s fields of…
• Ashley Wennerstrom Scholar, 2017, Louisiana Dr. Anjali Niyogi, a physician, and Dr. Ashley Wennerstrom, a public health researcher and practitioner, have been collaborating successfully since 2014 to improve access to health care services for formerly incarcerated persons. Their residency was used to produce a manuscript…
• MarkAlain Dery Scholar, 2016, Louisiana MarkAlain Dery is a physician and the founder of the Tulane T Cell Clinic who places compassion in the highest category of his professional duties. Dr. Dery used his residency to compile a collection of stories from his life and…
• Jocelyn Horner Scholar, 2016, Louisiana Jocelyn Horner studies the relationship between creative self-expression and positive development among young people. While in residence she completed data analysis for her dissertation, Digital storytelling as positive development: African American adolescent women exploring the politics and possibilities of personal…
• Sarah Gray Scholar, 2016, Louisiana Sarah Gray is a clinical psychologist with a focus on early childhood. Dr. Gray’s research examines the developmental consequences of early life adversity, with a specific focus on intergenerational processes. She takes a multilevel approach, integrating narrative, behavioral, and physiological…
• Lisa Settles Scholar, 2016, Louisiana The main focus of Dr. Lisa Settles’ clinical work is on the treatment of children under the age of six with a variety of emotional, relational, and developmental problems. Dr. Lisa Settles is the program director, lead psychologist, and grant…
• Andy Horowitz Scholar, 2015, Louisiana Andy Horowitz specializes in modern American political, cultural, and environmental history. He is writing a book which is under contract with Harvard University Press. He used his time at A Studio in the Woods to revise the manuscript and think…
• Samantha Lantz Scholar, 2015, Louisiana A behavioral ecologist, Samantha Lantz has been studying birds for over 10 years. While at A Studio in the Woods, she submitted the first chapter of her thesis for publication. The article came out in April 2016 in The Auk:…
• Kevin Morris Scholar, 2015, Louisiana Kevin Morris received his PhD in philosophy from Brown University in 2011. His research is primarily in metaphysics, the philosophy of mind, and the history of analytic philosophy. At A Studio in the Woods in fall 2015, Kevin worked on…
• Workineh Kite Scholar, 2015, Louisiana Dr. Kite and Dr. Blair used their scholarly retreat to analyze immunological data from studies on the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) which has implications for treatment of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).
• Grant McCall Scholar, 2015, Louisiana Dr. McCall and Dr. Townsend convened a two-day symposium at A Studio in the Woods bringing together scholars from the fields of philosophy and anthropology to discuss the some of the shared concerns of both fields; especially those having to…
• Mary Townsend Scholar, 2015, Louisiana Dr. McCall and Dr. Townsend convened a two-day symposium at A Studio in the Woods bringing together scholars from the fields of philosophy and anthropology to discuss the some of the shared concerns of both fields; especially those having to…
• Robert Blair Scholar, 2015, Louisiana Dr. Kite and Dr. Blair used their scholarly retreat to analyze immunological data from studies on the simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) which has implications for treatment of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Dr. Blair is an Assistant professor and veterinary…
• Shivaprasad Adireddy Scholar, 2014, Louisiana As a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Physics and Engineering Physics, Dr. Adireddy used his residency to finish writing a manuscript entitled Flexible Energy Storage Devices Based on Polymer-Dielectric Nanocomposites.
• Catherine Burnette Scholar, 2014, Louisiana An assistant professor in the School of Social Work, Dr. Burnette’s research focuses on health disparities related to Indigenous Peoples. Data analysis conducted during her retreat enabled the identification of factors perpetuating violence and mental health disparities among American Indian…
• Thomas Mulligan Scholar, 2014, Louisiana A philosopher, Thomas Mulligan used his residency at A Studio in the Woods to continue work on his dissertation which sought to answer the question, “What is the role that merit should play when we choose our political leaders and…
• Apollo Nkwake Scholar, 2014, Louisiana Dr. Apollo Nkwake and Prof. Nathan Morrow both teach research methods and program evaluation at Tulane University’s Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. While in residence, they prepared workshop tools and case studies for the American Evaluation Association as well as a…
• Courtney N. Baker Scholar, 2014, Louisiana Courtney N. Baker is a clinical psychologist interested in systems-level interventions that promote the mental health and well-being of children and families. Dr. Baker utilized her time in residence to analyze data and draft an article reporting on the reliability…
• Teresa Cole Scholar, Visual Artist, 2014, Louisiana A professor of printmaking, Teresa Cole spent her time at A Studio in the Woods continuing work on her series Seamless Belonging, an exploration of identity and place, visualized through handmade paper works. Professor Teresa Cole holds the Ellsworth Woodward…
• Nicole Burton Scholar, 2014, Louisiana Nicole Burton spent time in residence while a doctoral candidate in the School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. She worked on her dissertation prospectus at A Studio in the Woods, which attempted to fill in a gap in the…
• Nathan Morrow Scholar, 2014, Louisiana Prof. Nathan Morrow and Dr. Apollo Nkwake both taught research methods and program evaluation at Tulane University’s Disaster Resilience Leadership Academy. While in residence, they prepared workshop tools and case studies for the American Evaluation Association as well as a…