Joseph Acquisto, professor of French and chair of the Department of Romance languages and Cultures at the University of Vermont, has been named inaugural director of UVM's newly formed School of World Languages and Cultures in the College of Arts and Sciences.
“There is no doubt that Joseph has the experience, knowledge, communication skills and energy to guide the school in fulfilling its promise of elevating the importance of scholarship and instruction in languages and cultures at UVM,” said William Falls, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “I am very confident that Joseph will lead the School of World Languages and Cultures with the same thoughtfulness and compassion with which he has led academic departments.”
Acquisto is an accomplished scholar and author of seven books, including the forthcoming "Reading Baudelaire With Adorno: Dissonance, Subjectivity, Transcendence" (Bloomsbury, June 2023) and numerous articles and book chapters. He is also the editor of two essay collections. In 2020-21, Acquisto received the University Scholars Award, which recognizes distinguished UVM faculty members for sustained excellence in research, creative and scholarly activities.
The School of World Languages and Cultures brings together four departments — Asian Languages and Literatures; Classics; German and Russian; and Romance Languages and Cultures, along with the program in linguistics — under the same roof. It will be formally introduced to the UVM and surrounding communities in September.