Allison Butler, Senior Lecturer & Associate Chair of the Department of Communication, has been named one of six UMass Amherst Chancellor’s Leadership Fellows for 2024-25 by the Office of Faculty Development. In her fellowship, Butler will focus on re-imagining the undergraduate general education curriculum and exploring more opportunities for experiential learning for students. She will be working closely with Farshid Hajir, Senior Vice Provost and Dean of Undergraduate Education.
Butler's research centers on critical media literacy, collaborating with students and educators to integrate media studies into classrooms. Her current work includes examining the role of surveillance technologies in education, the portrayal of gender in popular culture and its impact on women, and the potential of critical media literacy to challenge these issues.
“I am thrilled to work with Senior Vice Provost and Dean of Undergraduate Education Hajir on this project,” Butler says. “Experiential learning is a transformative experience for students, one that provides students with practical skills, invaluable contributions to their resumes, and the opportunity to see in real-time how their work matters. Further, a robust general education curriculum invites students to think both broadly and deeply about the complexities of the world and their own roles. I admire Hajir’s respect for, and thoughtful approach to, undergraduate teaching and learning and am honored to be on his team.”