College of Literature, Science, and the Arts

The University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA) is the liberal arts and sciences school of the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Established in 1841, the college is home to both the University of Michigan Honors Program and Residential College.

University of Michigan
College of Literature, Science, and the Arts

Other name	LSA
Motto	Leading in Thought and Action
Type	Public
Established	1841; 184 years ago (1841)
Parent institution	University of Michigan
Endowment	$750 million (2011)[citation needed]
Dean	Rosario Ceballo[1]
Academic staff	1,372
Administrative staff	2,200
Undergraduates	17,149[2]
Location	Ann Arbor, Michigan , United States 42°16′34.4″N 83°44′28.8″W
Campus	40 acres (16 ha)
Website	lsa.umich.edu

History

Literary Class of 1880 (includes Mary Henrietta Graham, the first African American woman graduate of the University of Michigan)

Angell Hall, one of the major buildings housing the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts

The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts was originally designated the Literary Department and was the core of the University of Michigan. From 1841 to 1874, the faculty elected a president that communicated with the regents about department needs. In 1875, Henry Simmons Frieze became the first of the deans of LSA.

In March 2013 Helen Zell gave $50 million to LSA, the largest gift in LSA history, to support scholarships and stipends for Master's students in creative writing.^[3]

Deans

Henry Simmons Frieze, first of the deans of the University of Michigan College of Literature, Science, and the Arts

Faculty of Literature, Science, and the Arts

Name	Service year	Length (Approx.)	Field of study
Henry Simmons Frieze	1875–1880	5 years	Classical Studies[4]
Charles Kendall Adams	1880–1881	1 year	History[5]
Edward Olney	1881–1882	1 year	Mathematics[6]
Henry Simmons Frieze	1882–1889	7 years	Classical Studies

Department of Literature, Science, and the Arts

Name	Service year	Length (Approx.)	Field of study
Martin Luther D'Ooge	1890–1897	7 years	Classical Studies[7]
Richard Hudson	1897–1907	10 years	History[8]
John Oren Reed	1907–1914	1 year	Physics[9]
John Robert Effinger (acting)	1912–1915	3 years	French[10]

College of Literature, Science, and the Arts

Name	Service year	Length (Approx.)	Field of study
John Robert Effinger	1915–1933	8 years	French
Edward Henry Kraus	1933–1945	12 years	Mineralogy[11]
Hayward Keniston	1945–1951	6 year	Romance Languages[12]
Burton Doan Thuma (acting)	1951–1952	1 year	Psychology[13]
Charles Edwin Odegaard	1952–1958	6 years	History[14]
Roger William Heyns	1959–1960	1 year	Education[15]
Burton Doan Thuma (acting)	1962–1963	1 year	Psychology
William Haber	1963–1968	5 years	Economics[16]
William Lee Hays	1968–1970	2 years	Psychology[17]
Alfred S. Sussman (acting)	1970–1971	1 year	Botany[18]
Frank H. T. Rhodes	1971–1974	3 years	Geological Sciences/Mineralogy[19]
Billy E. Frye (acting)	1974–1976	2 years	Zoology[20]
Billy E. Frye	1976–1980	4 years	Zoology
John R. Knott (acting)	1980–1981	1 year	English[21]
Peter O. Steiner	1981–1989	8 years	Economics/Law[22]
Edie Goldenberg	1989–1998	9 years	Political Science[23]
Patricia Gurin (acting)	1998–1999	1 year	Psychology/Women's Studies[24]
Shirley Neuman	1999–2002	3 years	English/Women's Studies[25]
Terrence J. McDonald (acting)	2002–2003	1 year	History[26]
Terrence J. McDonald	2003–2013	10 years	History
Susan A. Gelman (interim)	2013–2014	1 year	Psychology[27]
Andrew D. Martin	2014–2018	4 years	Political Science[28]
Elizabeth Cole (interim)	2018–2019	1 year	Social Sciences[29]
Anne Curzan	2019–2024	5 years	Linguistics[30]
Rosario Ceballo	2024–present	incumbent	Psychology[31]

Source:^[32]

Residential College

The Residential College (RC) is a division of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. Catherine Badgley is the current director of the RC.^[33]

Founded in 1967,^[34] the Residential College was designed to create a smaller liberal arts program with the resources of a larger university. The college was developed by a planning committee of faculty that included Theodore Newcomb, Carl Cohen, and Bradford Perkins.^[35]

Students in the RC take classes in LSA as well as specially designed RC courses, many of which are seminar courses with fewer than fifteen students each. All RC students are required to live in the same residence hall, East Quadrangle, for at least one year. Since the RC is a part of the LSA, all LSA academic requirements apply to its students. In addition to the usual concentrations in LSA, RC students may choose to pursue five additional concentrations (RC website): "Arts and Ideas in the Humanities," "Creative Writing and Literature," "Drama," "Social Theory and Practice," and an option for an "Individualized Major."

A major requirement for RC participation is intensive language training, which consists of two eight-credit courses similar to language immersion, and one four-credit readings course. Intensive Japanese at the RC has no reading courses, and the semi-immersion curriculum consists of two ten-credit courses. The other languages offered are Spanish, French, German, and Russian.

Notable alumni

• Sam Apple, non-fiction writer^[36]
• Rebecca Blumenstein, former New York Times Deputy Managing Editor^[37]
• Carmen Bugan, poet and writer^[38]
• Nandi Comer, Poet Laureate of Michigan^[39]
• Dennis Foon, playright and screenwriter^[40]
• Matt Forbeck, author and game designer^[40]
• Wendy Goldberg, theatre director^[41]
• Dhani Jones, former football linebacker^[42]
• Laura Kasischke, author and poet^[43]
• Kathy Kozachenko, the first openly LGBT candidate to successfully run for political office in the United States^[40]
• Francis Lam, journalist and cook^[40]
• Jenifer Levin, writer^[40]
• Damian Rogers, poet and journalist^[44]
• Matthew Rohrer, poet^[40]
• Michelle Segar, scientist and author^[45]
• Sue Shink, state senator
• Pauline Nalova Lyonga, Cameroonian politician
• Mazi Smith, Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle
• James Tobin, author and historian^[40]
• David Turnley, Pulitzer Prize-winning photographer^[46]

Notable faculty

• Naomi André, music scholar^[47]
• Carl Cohen, philosopher^[35]
• Angela D. Dillard, scholar and author, RC director 2011-2014^[48]
• Elizabeth Douvan, psychologist, RC director 1985-1988^[49]
• Zelda Gamson, sociologist^[50]
• Laura Kasischke, author and poet^[51]
• Theodore Newcomb, social psychologist^[35]
• Bradford Perkins, historian^[35]
• Aisha Sabatini Sloan, writer^[52]
• Barbara Sloat, biologist^[53]
• Heather Ann Thompson, historian and author of Blood in the Water^[54]