USM Professor Elected to Membership in The American Antiquarian Society
Mon, 06/03/2024 - 09:24am | By: Ivonne Kawas
Dr. Sherita L. Johnson, director of the Center for Black Studies and associate professor of English at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM), is among the 29 new members elected to the American Antiquarian Society (AAS), a 212-year-old national research library and community of learners dedicated to discovering and sharing a deeper understanding of the American past.
Dr. Johnson joins a distinguished roster of more than 1,100 AAS members from 48 states, the District of Columbia, and seven other countries. Elected for their achievement in academic or public life, members range from scholars, collectors, and librarians to artists, writers, and history enthusiasts. Since the Society’s founding in 1812, 14 United States presidents, more than 75 Pulitzer Prize winners, scores of Bancroft Prize winners, many Guggenheim fellows, and several MacArthur Award winners have been elected to membership.
"The AAS is a prestigious repository of rare books and documents that scholars from around the world have relied on to produce important academic works,” said Dr. Matthew Casey, director of the School of Humanities at USM. “For Dr. Johnson to be recognized by AAS places her among a select group or researchers and speaks to her stature in the field of nineteenth century African American studies."
Dr. Johnson reflected on the significance of becoming a member of the AAS. Her journey with the AAS began in the summer of 2022, when she participated in the “Black Print, Black Activism, Black Study" research seminar held in Worchester, Mass. She later received the prestigious 2022-2023 Diana Korzenik Virtual Research Fellowship, which supported her research on Frances Harper, the most prolific African American writer of the nineteenth century.
“Becoming an AAS member is an unexpected career affirmation,” said Dr. Johnson. “I was introduced to the AAS in the summer of 2022 when I participated in a research seminar. Collaborating with scholars and archivists at AAS led to other opportunities, including being a Diana Korzenik Virtual Research Fellow. This fellowship supported my research on Frances Harper through archival recovery of the Reconstruction years. Having the AAS support now as a member will propel me further in completing a manuscript on Harper, featuring her among other African American writers during the Reconstruction era (1865-1877).”
Located in Worcester, Mass., the American Antiquarian Society holds the world’s largest and most accessible collection of original printed, handwritten, and visual sources from before 1900 in what is now the United States. The library of over 4 million items includes books, pamphlets , broadsides, newspapers, periodicals , children's literature , music, and graphic arts material.
AAS connects people across the globe with these collections through its digital catalog and resources, online exhibitions, and virtual learning experiences. In addition, it supports dozens of researchers, artists, and writers each year with a variety of fellowship programs. In 2013, President Obama presented the Society with the National Humanities Medal in a White House ceremony.
The American Antiquarian Society is located at 185 Salisbury Street in Worcester, MA. The library is open Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Tuesdays from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
The library is free and open to anyone with projects or interests related to the collections. All are welcome to join its free public programs held throughout the year. Learn more about the American Antiquarian Society.