Jason Murray is a senior double majoring in Classical Languages and Philosophy with a minor in Political Science. In addition to serving as a Trinity Ambassador, he co-leads the Transformative Ideas Living Learning Community, works with the Center for Christianity and Scholarship and is a Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellow. His academic interests center on ancient history and theology, particularly the intellectual life of the Eastern Roman Empire. In his free time, he enjoys playing chess and strategy video games. As… read more about Jason Murray '26: Studying the Ancient World While Building Community in Durham »
Deven Gupta came to Duke because he didn’t have to compromise. A double major in Biophysics and Classical Civilization, Gupta arrived knowing he wanted a career in medicine without sacrificing the humanities — a perspective shaped by growing up in a home where math and science carried the same importance as the arts and humanities. Gupta joined the Biomedical Interferometry Optics and Spectroscopy lab as a first-year student. What surprised him most wasn’t the technical… read more about Deven Gupta '26: Duke Through a Wider Lens »
Wells, along with Ashley Lance, co-edited a special issue of Res Difficiles - "Rez Diff: Indigenous Perspectives."READ IT HERE.In this issue, the editors and the authors seek to reclaim and "recover Indigenous experiences through ancient texts; recognize the role of Classical Studies and anthropology in land dispossession and destruction; question definitions of ‘indigeneity,’ ‘autochthony,’ and other terms; analyze visual and material depictions of Indigenous peoples; explore representations of Indigenous thought… read more about Tara Wells co-edits volume of Res Difficiles »
Duke’s Trinity College of Arts & Sciences has invited its faculty to submit proposals for the creation of new research initiatives on campus.Following the successful launches of the SPACE Initiative and the Society-Centered AI Initiative, the Trinity Research Initiative will support new directions for interdisciplinary research through seed funding for nascent research collaborations, community-building, and complementary educational and outreach activities.Open to all areas of research and… read more about Trinity College of Arts & Sciences Invites Proposals for New Research Initiatives »
Four faculty in the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences were recently recognized by the Arts & Sciences Council for outstanding achievements in undergraduate teaching.Each year, the Council’s Committee on Undergraduate Teaching honors outstanding faculty for their commitment to their students, for engaging them deeply in research and scholarship, for their continued development as innovative teachers and mentors, and more.Members of the council — in collaboration with the dean's office — select… read more about Four Trinity Faculty Receive 2025 Undergraduate Teaching Awards »
It was late in the evening in December and I was sitting at my desk crying. I don’t mean dainty tears, I mean ugly crying. Why? Because the ongoing impact of Covid-19 had exhausted all my mentoring tools (not to mention exhausted me!) and, as a result, I worried that I was failing mentees in crisis in my role as DGS. I simply did not know what to do, and that lack of knowing felt awful. read more about A Humanist’s Very Human Perspective on the Realities of Mentoring »
On June 5, 2025, Professor Maurizio Forte published his new book A New Etruscan Archaeology: Twenty-First Century Techniques and Methods (Oxford University Press). Abstract:“A New Etruscan Archaeology” redefines our understanding of Etruscan civilization by emphasizing the transformative impact of innovative technologies and multidisciplinary approaches. Historically overshadowed by Roman and Greek studies, Etruscan archaeology provides essential insights into the Mediterranean's cultural… read more about Professor Forte Publishes New Book! »
A Day in the Life at Pottery Wash featuring area supervisor Hannah During the Summer of 2025, I had the privilege of volunteering with the American School of Classical Studies in Athens’ excavation at the Athenian Agora. During my time as a volunteer, I gained valuable hands-on field experiences, worked closely with ceramic specialists, and made meaningful connections with fellow graduate students. Aside from these experiences in the field, I also became intimately familiar with the… read more about Theresa Cole: Athenian Agora Excavation »
Thanks to the support of the Department, between June 16 and 27 I had the opportunity to attend the two-week online Summer School Digital Tools for Humanists 2025 organized by the Laboratory for Digital Culture at the University of Pisa, Italy. The Summer School was divided into two modules: Working on History for the first week and Working with AI for the second week. It was designed as an introductory course and an intensive exploration of different tools that recent technological… read more about Beatrice Milanesi: Digital Humanities Online Summer School »
In the fall semester of 2022, I read what at the time I thought was the best academic paper on Plato ever written. “‘I Went Down to the Piraeus Yesterday’: Routes, Roads, and Plato’s Republic” (Hesperia Vol. 89 No. 4. Oct-Dec. 2020. 725-755) cracked open Plato’s Republic in a way that I had never before thought possible: asking what route Socrates and Glaucon son of Ariston (and older brother of Plato) had taken from the city to house of Cephalus in the Piraeus in the opening lines… read more about Daniel Orr: People and Places of Greek Philosophy »
Thanks to the CLST Department’s Research Travel Award, I was able to spend a significant portion of my summer in Greece, visiting sites and museums which are central to my dissertation research on migrant women in the ancient Greek world. In particular, the funding made it possible for me to travel and stay in Athens for about 6 weeks, giving me a solid homebase for my work. I was able to hold an Associate Membership at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens, which gave me access to the school’s libraries and… read more about Tara Wells: Analyzing Stelae and Inscriptions in Athens and Delphi »
This summer, with the generous funding from the Classical Studies travel award, I participated in the American Academy in Rome Classical Summer School, which took place from June to July. With the support from this award, I spent over five weeks in Italy, during which I visited many different ancient sites and museums including those in Rome, the Bay of Naples, Tarquinia, and Florence. Under the direction of Dr. Evan Jewell (Rutgers University, Camden), our group explored themes of “wayfinding” in ancient cities, personal… read more about Brooke Braden: Classical Summer School at the American Academy in Rome »
Through the generous funding provided by the Classics Department, I undertook a transformative three-week journey to Greece focused on experiencing ancient Greek as a living linguistic tradition. This immersive experience fundamentally enhanced my understanding of the language's continuity from antiquity to the present day.Mount Athos: Living Ancient GreekMy journey began with four days on Mount Athos, an autonomous monastic republic where Greek serves as the lingua franca among monks from diverse international backgrounds… read more about Jason Murray Jr.: Ancient Greek Language Immersion in Greece »
Translating a spoliated inscription in a church in Mistras This summer, thanks to the generosity of the Duke Department of Classical Studies’ Research Travel Award, I was able to attend the Gennadius Library Medieval Greek Language Summer School, held between July 1 and 28. This intensive program was not only an excellent introduction to medieval Greek in its many forms between the fourth and fourteenth centuries CE, but was also an outstanding overview of medieval Greek literature and… read more about Mina Moon-Black: Gennadius Library Medieval Greek Language Summer School »
I am grateful for the department’s travel funding, which enabled me to conduct dissertation research in Andalucía and to use specialist libraries in Madrid as I write my dissertation on peasant labor and the olive oil industry in Roman Iberia. In the first phase of my summer research, I joined a team from the University of Sevilla in excavating the site of Cerro Macareno, a few miles north of Sevilla. This site is the type site for Pellicer B–C and Pellicer D amphorae, which were used to… read more about Andrew Welser: Archaeological Fieldwork in Spain »
Although unfazed by the term “dead languages,” Josh Sosin is quick to champion the lasting values that come with studying Latin and Ancient Greek at Duke. The associate professor with the Department of Classical Studies shares that when we confront a language that’s so remote from our own, it forces us to reflect, to linger and to read in a way we rarely make time for. “That’s not a skill we learn and move on from — it’s a fungible habit,” he explains.Engaging with the original texts offers an immersive and intimate… read more about Speaking the Past Forward »
Professor Lauren Ginsberg participated in the 2023 NEH Institute for Higher Education Faculty where participants explored scholarship in Roman comedy, including filming and staging scenes from various examples of work. The 2023 Institute brought together 30 faculty and grad-student participants from numerous disciplines and fields to study ancient Roman comedy on the stage. Over the course of four weeks, and under the instruction of visiting experts representing three generations of scholarly excellence and a wide… read more about Professor Ginsberg helps bring Roman comedy to life »
The following is a partial list of national, university, school and departmental awards presented to the members of the Class of 2025. In some awards where there are multiple winners, only members of the Class of 2025 are included. read more about Department Honors and Laurels for the Class of 2025 »
Benjamin Peng is a Trinity senior graduating in 2025 with a double major in Classical Studies and Computer Science. We asked him to tell us a little bit about his experience, and about the unexpected benefits of graduating with these two very different majors.Were you always interested in Classical Studies?I came into Duke with no experience with Latin and no experience with the classics more broadly, but I've come to really appreciate the four years I've spent studying Latin, and I can honestly… read more about Introducing Trinity’s Class of 2025: Benjamin Peng »