Reaching Beyond Academia
We advance academic scholarship and teaching by guiding it toward specific impact in the world.
The Program in Public Scholarship works to establish Arts & Sciences at Washington University as a leader in translating our work and its importance to a broader audience. We develop new platforms to share our scholarship and increase our impact in the public and private sectors. To this end, we explore the translation and promotion of our scholarship in all forms and formats; partnerships with local institutions and organizations; and the development of innovative courses, internships, certificates, and degrees.
We work one-on-one with scholars, collaborate with departments and other units on campus, and run regular workshops to increase the impact of Arts & Sciences research.
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Colin Burnett in The Conversation: What Amazon MGM’s creative control over the James Bond film franchise means for the future of 007
James Bond was front and center at the 2025 Academy Awards – and in a somewhat curious way. In a musical number, Lisa of Blackpink, Doja Cat and Raye sang the Bond theme songs “Live and Let Die,” “Diamonds Are Forever” and “Skyfall,” respectively. No Bond films had been nominated for an award, and none of these singers has a connection to the Bond franchise, though they did all recently collaborate on the single “Born Again.”
Oren Reshef in The Conversation: Identifying brands as Black-owned can pay off for businesses
Labeling businesses as Black-owned can significantly boost their sales, we found in a recent study. In June 2020, the business-review website Yelp introduced a feature allowing consumers to search for Black-owned restaurants. As professors who study digitization, inequality and the economics of technology, we were interested in understanding its effect. So we analyzed more than two years of data from Yelp.
A Theory of Public Scholarly Impact
What scholars do in their research and teaching can benefit audiences beyond the academy. Whether we think about books that get widely read, essays that go viral, radio interviews shared between friends, or illuminating video appearances, scholarly work has many ways to make an impact with ripple effects that spread out farther than the campus or one’s discipline. This type of work can happen accidentally or spontaneously; but it can also become part of a scholar’s practice. And public scholarly work is increasingly recognized by institutions, professional associations, and funding agencies: For example, the National Science Foundation rewards projects that show broader impacts on society; the National Endowment for the Humanities dedicates extensive grant opportunities to public humanities projects; the American Sociological Association includes public engagement and communication in their organizational mission. Across disciplines, scholars can become versed and skilled in the arts of public impact, by learning how to focus and frame their expertise in ways that that can reach—and help—broad audiences.
A Signature Initiative
The Program in Public Scholarship is a signature initiative of the Arts & Sciences strategic plan.
Learn more about the plan