This spring, the University of Missouri is launching the Veterans Humanities Initiative, a series of community engagement events aimed at helping the university community and the public better understand veterans' experiences through storytelling, creative writing, and scholarship.
Led by the Center for the Humanities, a newly established research center within the University of Missouri College of Arts and Science, the initiative seeks to advance humanities research, foster cross-disciplinary collaboration, and promote public scholarship.
Phong Nguyen, co-director of the Center for the Humanities and a professor at the MU College of Arts and Science, emphasizes the initiative’s community focus: “One of the main missions of the Center for the Humanities is to engage with the community by bringing arts and humanities to populations where arts and humanities don’t traditionally have a prominent role. Our main goal with this initiative is fostering an open dialogue with veterans and military-connected individuals by creating programming for them and listening to — and learning from — them.”
The initiative’s kickoff event, in partnership with the Missouri Humanities organization, will be free and open to the public. The first event, “Military Service/Literary Solace: A Conversation with Veteran Writers,” is scheduled for April 18 at 6 p.m. at the State Historical Society of Missouri. A panel of four veteran writers who represent three different military branches will talk about their writing and how it helps them reconcile with their military experiences.
Nguyen explains, “The event will showcase how one’s life experiences in the military can inform artistic work, and vice versa. The experiences of veterans are sometimes quite extreme, so individuals from both our university community and the general public are invited to learn from and benefit from hearing about these experiences.”
Lisa Carrico, program director for Missouri Humanities, highlights the importance of this initiative: “By inviting veterans to open up, we as civilians can hear their perspectives and gain empathy and understanding, which is what the humanities is all about. The humanities play that connector role, and by giving veterans a platform to tell stories that often go untold, we encourage the preservation of stories and can feel more connected to our friends and loved ones who have served.”
Upcoming events in 2024 include writing workshops for veterans and their families and a public lecture on the history of the military’s approach to post-traumatic stress disorder and mental health.
Keith Glindemann, director of the MU Veterans Center and a committee member for the initiative, sees it as a great opportunity for veteran students: “MU has a strong support network for student veterans. This initiative adds to that and is a chance for us to showcase some of our talented veteran students who are writers. As I previewed some of the writings, I was amazed at the creativity expressed.”
Recognitions for Ongoing Support:
- An eighth-place ranking in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report’s Best Online Master’s in Education Programs for Veterans.
- A 2022-2023 Military Friendly Schools Gold Award for its work helping student veterans and their families succeed on campus and after graduation.
- A 2019 distinction as a Purple Heart University for its support of the nation’s military members wounded while serving.
