NMCC Founding Director Kate Mondloch is stepping down after four years of leading the NMCC. Under Kate’s direction, the program has enrolled over forty MA and PhD students from a wide range of degree programs, from Comparative Literature to Conflict Resolution. The NMCC now lists ninety affiliated staff and faculty from across campus and boasts a vibrant social media presence, making NMCC a widely-recognized hub for all things “new media” at UO. “I’m honored to have overseen the NMCC from proposal-on-paper to thriving transdisciplinary program,” says Kate. “It’s a great feeling to know that we’ve helped so many grads enhance their new media credentials and secure top positions– tenure-track jobs at the Universities of Maryland and Georgia, postdoc fellowships at Penn and Lafayette, research positions at IBM and Microsoft, and the list goes on.” Kate notes that special thanks are due to Doug Blandy and Carol Stabile, who served as the architects behind the certificate proposal and tirelessly shepherded it through the approval process, as well as the advisory committee members and the staff in the Digital Scholarship Center. Deans Scott Pratt and Christoph Lindner were instrumental in securing a permanent home for the certificate in the Graduate School, where the NMCC will transition to new leadership.

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Colin Koopman is an Associate Professor in Philosophy whose current research is focused on new media theory and the politics of data. He is currently writing a book on the history of information-driven conceptions of selfhood in the early twentieth century. Colin has been enthusiastic about NMCC since its inception during his first few years at UO and is looking forward to his new role as Director. As he settles into helping manage the regular operations and strategic vision of the program, Colin is excited about expanding the kinds of opportunities NMCC offers to students. Next academic year he hopes to begin growing the number of events put on for the community, pairing the quarterly NMCC open houses with events geared explicitly at NMCC students.  These events might range from workshops to guest lectures to panel presentations featuring NMCC faculty.

If you have an idea for an event you would like to see, please email Colin at koopman@uoregon.edu and let him know!