Student & Faculty Spotlight

Each week, we feature in our newsletter a current or former student or member of our faculty who is emblematic of the talent of American Studies.

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George Ramirez

An Ecuadorian immigrant raised in The Bronx, NY, George Ramírez is excited to be spending the next few years completing his PhD in the American Studies department at GW.

Maya Thompson

Maya Thompson

Maya Thompson is an MA student in the American Studies department, concentrating in Museums and Material culture. She obtained her BA from Wellesley College, where she majored in American Studies and...

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Aryn Kelly

Aryn entered the Ph.D. program in 2019 with her eye to visual culture, trauma studies, media studies, and Black studies. She holds an M.A. in Liberal Arts with a concentration in American Studies...

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Thomas Gartman

Tommy Gartman is a first-year MA student in American Studies with a concentration in Museums and Material Culture. His interests range from post-war American life to consumer culture and...

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Eric Cheuk

Eric is a PhD student working at the intersection of American studies, Marxist literary studies, and critical ethnic studies.

Sara Awartani

Sara Awartani

Sara Awartani began the Ph.D. program in American Studies in Fall 2014 after receiving her B.A. in History from the University of Florida (Go Gators!).

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Kyle Riismandel

Kyle Riismandel is a 2010 graduate of GW's American Studies PhD program and is a cultural historian of cities, suburbs, media, and technology in recent American history.  He is currently a...

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Becky Beaulieu

Becky Beaulieu is a graduate of GW's American Studies department. She is currently the Director of the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme, Connecticut. We reached out to Becky to feature her in our...

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Jesslyn Zakes

American Studies major Jesslyn Zakes (BA ’20) traveled to the Phil Ochs archive at the Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma in March 2020, with support from Columbian College and the Department of...

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Brooke Schlesinger

Brooke Schlesinger is a graduate of GW's American Studies Department. She has gone on to work at TEDx and currently is employed at Ad Council. We reached out to Brooke to feature her in our...