News and Events
News and Events
March 5, 2026
2026 Providence Catholicism and Culture Symposium:
“After MacIntyre: Catholic Thought, Culture, and the Good Life”
Hosted by the University Club in downtown Providence and a collaboration between the Humanities Program and the Portsmouth Institute, the 2026 Providence Catholicism and Culture Symposium will consider the work and legacy of Alasdair MacIntyre. Panelists include Jonathan J. Reyes (Vice President for Strategic Partnerships at the Knights of Columbus), Michael Baxter (Associate Professor of the Practice, Faith Formation and Service at the McGrath Institute, University of Notre Dame), and Peter Wicks (Scholar-in-Residence at the Elm Institute). All members of the Providence College community are invited to attend; registration is free but space is limited.
January 15, 2026
Humanities Program Receives $1.1 Million Grant
from the National Endowment for the Humanities
The Providence College Humanities Program has received a $1.1 million award from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to establish the St. Dominic Fellows program. This three year award will support the development of a new fellowship program for undergraduate students at Providence College aimed at developing the next generation of intellectual and cultural leaders in the United States. Directed by Dr. Raymond Hain, Associate Director of the Humanities Program, students will combine interdisciplinary study with on-campus leadership and off-campus immersion experiences designed to foster growth in virtue and civic leadership.
September 25, 2025
Humanities Program Receives Independent Chairman’s Award
from the National Endowment for the Humanities
The Providence College Humanities Program has received an independent Chairman’s Award from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) for the 2025-2026 academic year. This award supports activities celebrating American principles and exceptionalism on the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and will make possible special Humanities Forum events, campus wide reading seminars, and off campus immersion experiences.
September 19-21, 2025
5th Annual Conference of the Catholic Studies Consortium:
“In Him All Things Hold Together: Catholic Studies and Integrated Education”
The Humanities Program is hosting the 5th Annual Conference of the Catholic Studies Consortium on the Providence College campus from September 19 – September 21, 2025. The conference theme is “In Him All Things Hold Together: Catholic Studies and Integrated Education.” Registration and conference schedule are available on the website of the Catholic Studies Consortium.
July 3, 2025
Humanities Program Faculty Member
Wins Teaching Award
Dr. Christopher Berard, a faculty member in the Humanities Program teaching courses on Arthurian legend and medieval studies, is the recipient of the 2025 Recognition for Teaching Excellence by Adjunct Faculty Award. A 2007 Providence College graduate, Dr. Berard earned his doctorate in medieval studies from the University of Toronto. He specializes in Arthurian literature, English political history, and Latin and vernacular chronicles from the High and Late Middle Ages (c.1100–1400).
June 14-15, 2025
16th Annual Humanitas Summer
Symposium at Portsmouth Abbey
The Humanities Program invites all members of the Providence College community to participate in the 16th Annual Humanitas Summer Symposium being held at Portsmouth Abbey (Portsmouth, RI) June 13-14, 2025. A collaboration between the Humanities Program and The Portsmouth Institute, the Summer Conference is an annual opportunity for sustained reflection on perennial human themes from the perspective of the Catholic and Benedictine intellectual tradition.
May 17, 2025
Humanities Majors Casey Burgess and Samuel Seda
Named 2025 Co-Valedictorians
Casey Burgess
Samuel Seda
Casey Burgess ’25 and Samuel Seda ’25 were named two of eight Providence College Valedictorians for the class of 2025. Casey Burgess, a Humanities and Philosophy double major, is a seminarian for the Diocese of Manchester in NH and will continue his studies in Rome this fall at the Pontifical North American College. Samuel Seda, a Humanities and Theology double major, was chosen to deliver the 2025 class oration and will begin graduate studies in theology this fall at the University of Notre Dame.
April 26, 2025
4th Annual Veritas Conference:
“Great Things Beyond Searching Out – Transcendence in the Modern World”
Each year the Veritas Conference, the annual conference of the Humanities Program, considers an important cultural theme from a variety of interdisciplinary perspectives and within the context of the Catholic and Dominican intellectual tradition. The conference is open to the public and includes a broad range of speakers from on and off campus. The 2025 conference will consider a Christian approach to transcendence in the modern world.
April 3, 2025
“Our Lady of Guadalupe and Pan-Mesoamerica: How the Americas Were Prepared for the Apparition of the Virgin of Guadalupe”
This special lecture, presented by Joseph and Monique González and hosted by the Humanities Program, explores the latest findings of the belief system and philosophy of Pan-Mesoamerican culture, specifically what is known as the World Flower Prophecy. The Virgin of Guadalupe revealed herself as the fulfillment of this prophecy, thereby bridging Christianity with the belief system of the indigenous peoples. The resulting mass conversion to Christianity was the largest in world history.
March 21, 2025
Call For Papers – 5th Annual Conference of the Catholic Studies Consortium:
“In Him All Things Hold Together: Catholic Studies and Integrated Education”
The Humanities Program will host the 5th Annual Conference of the Catholic Studies Consortium on the Providence College campus from September 19 – September 21, 2025. The conference theme is “In Him All Things Hold Together: Catholic Studies and Integrated Education” and paper proposals are due July 15, 2025. More information is available on the website of the Catholic Studies Consortium.
