Patton named head of School of Interdisciplinary Studies

Venetria K. Patton has been appointed the head of the School of Interdisciplinary Studies in the College of Liberal Arts. Patton has been director of the African American Studies and Research Center for 12 years, and Provost Fellow for Diversity and Inclusion.

Patton's teaching and research focus is on African American and diasporic women's literature. She is the author of "Women in Chains: The Legacy of Slavery in Black Women's Fiction," the co-editor of "Double-Take: A Revisionist Harlem Renaissance Anthology" and editor of "Background Readings for Teachers of American Literature." She also has published "The Grasp That Reaches Beyond the Grave: The Ancestral Call in Black Women's Texts" and edited a second edition of "Background Readings for Teachers of American Literature."

Patton is a former chair of the Purdue Black Caucus of Faculty and Staff, and a former board member of the National Council for Black Studies and the Hanna Community Center.

The School of Interdisciplinary Studies was founded in 2014 and is the home of 14 programs, including African American Studies, American Studies, Asian Studies, Asian American Studies, Comparative Literature, Film and Video Studies, Global Studies, Jewish Studies, Latin American and Latino Studies, Linguistics, Medieval and Renaissance Studies, Peace Studies, Religious Studies and Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies.