Maria Stehle (PhD 2005) is Lindsay Young Associate Professor of German at the University of Tennessee Knoxville. In addition to her monograph Ghetto Voices in Contemporary Germany: Textscapes, Fimscapes and Soundscapes (2012) she is the author of numerous articles and book chapters. Her work is located at the intersection of German and European Cultural Studies, Gender and Media Studies and Cultural History. Professor Stehle is further interested in interdisciplinary and creative strategies for teaching for social justice, practices of critical pedagogy, and student centered learning. In 2015 she was awarded the University of Knoxville’s Jefferson Prize for her outstanding scholarship.
Currently on research leave she is collaborating with Beverly Weber (also a UMass alumna) on a monograph on the politics of intimacy in contemporary European cinema. On her time at UMass she reflects as follows: “Everything I do now, my collaborative research, the courses I teach (including courses on DEFA films), my perspective on advising, as well as my involvement with interdisciplinary programs in film and gender studies has been influenced by my experiences at UMass.”