News: Introducing James Kincaid, new chair of the MLS Program Board
 Meet James Kincaid, Aerol Arnold Chair in English. As the new chair of the MLS Program Board, Professor Kincaid is working with Associate Dean Susan Kamei and fellow Program Board members to develop new courses, identify new faculty, and build awareness of the MLS Program. “I truly believe in the purpose of the MLS degree – to extend liberal arts education into new territories and populations,” said Professor Kincaid.
USC College awarded Professor Kincaid with the Raubenheimer Outstanding Senior Faculty Award for teaching and scholarship in 2000. His research specialties include Victorian literature and culture, sexuality studies, and political and cultural studies.
News: USC presenting “Courtesans” and “Chandler” at the Second Annual GLS Symposium
Join MLS student Shannon McHugh for her presentation on “The Seductive Courtesan: The ‘Chick Flick’ Feminist Dilemma” at the 9:00 a.m. Saturday, June 28th session of the upcoming Second Annual Graduate Liberal Studies Joint Student and Alumni Symposium hosted by Stanford University. Stay for Karen Holden’s presentation on “Raymond Chandler’s Use of Color in The Big Sleep” at the 10:00 a.m. Sunday, June 29th session. Time’s running out to register. The free symposium opens on Friday, June 27 with a welcome dinner and closes with a no-host picnic lunch on Sunday, June 29.
This annual symposium offers a great way to get summative project ideas from the students, faculty, and alumni of other graduate liberal studies programs. Joining USC as co-sponsoring programs are Dominican University, Maastricht University, Marylhurst University, Reed College, San Diego State University, Simon Fraser University, and Stanford University. See you on the Stanford Farm!
Save the date: September 18th “Preparing For Your Summative Project” Workshop
Plan now to attend the workshop “Preparing For Your Summative Project” on Thursday, September 18, 6:00 – 7:00 p.m., presented by Professor Kincaid in the Taper Hall conference room, THH 371. Talk with faculty on the Program Board at a reception from 5:30 – 6:00 p.m. preceding the workshop.
News: Beyond LA’s “mythic narratives” with D.J. Waldie in “Ideas of Nature”
For the students in Jenny Price’s spring semester “Ideas of Nature” course, the writing of award-winning author D.J. Waldie came alive when Waldie came to class. Said Professor Price, “D. J. Waldie talked with us about the un-remarked ordinariness of living in Los Angeles. The ‘mythic narratives’ about the City of Angels – LA is the American Eden! It's the destruction of Eden! It's about to be destroyed, as it deserves to be, by an earthquake! – have obscured the rhythms and connections of everyday life, and have prevented us from talking about how to create good landscapes and communities.”
Said MLS student Kinette Cager, “D.J. Waldie has his finger on the pulse of Los Angeles and he is able to encapsulate the issues and subtleties of life in Southern California and relate them in a historical context.” For MLS student Lee Crystal, Waldie’s comments on how his Los Angeles roots provided insight into his writings and his thought process were especially enlightening. “Discussing the ideas of nature with Waldie and getting his unedited feedback was a special treat,” said class member Young Miller. Waldie’s book Holy Land: A Suburban Memoir (1996 and 2005) received the California Book Award for nonfiction in 1996. His book Where We Are Now: Notes from Los Angeles was named one of the best books of the year by the Los Angeles Times Book Review in 2004. Waldie also is the author of Real City: Downtown Los Angeles Inside/Out (2001) and Close to Home: An American Album (2004). He is a contributing writer at Los Angeles Magazine. His book reviews and commentary have appeared in the Los Angeles Times and the New York Times.
News: Celebrating the year at the MLS Lunch
MLS students shared summative project ideas and questions at the year-end lunch on April 18th.
Profile: MLS Student Chris Wittenberg
 By day, Chris Wittenberg is MIS Director for the USC School of Cinematic Arts; by night (and weekends), he is an MLS student. “The Owl in the Olive Tree” recently talked with Chris about his experiences in the MLS Program.
OOT: What’s it like balancing graduate school with work and the rest of your life?
CW: You have to get used to a new way of living your life, and I think the beginning is the hardest. It’s a state of shock for the first few weeks! But then I settled into my new life and things get easier after that. I now actually am enjoying some of the content I’m absorbing instead of feeling my mind is in a state of chaos. Being back in school impacts my wife the most, but I'm lucky that she understands that program is important to me. We rearrange our schedules to make things work. Other than that, it's nothing more than giving up a few TV shows.
OOT: What have you been learning?
CW: The most interesting class I’ve had so was “Language in a Globalizing World.” I found linguistics to be a topic far more interesting than I expected. I thought the research was enjoyable because each student chose an area of geographic interest, so I got to chose the subject in which I was the most interested. I also learned that while I was looking for differences between those geographic areas, I was surprised to find many similarities, as well.
OOT: Have you been surprised by anything you’ve learned or anything that has come out of being in the MLS Program?
CW: Every class has brought its own surprises, too many to recount here. However, one that sticks out in my mind is an assignment in which we had to read about the cuisine of India. I sat down to read this article and thought, “Why am I reading this!?" As it turned out, that article stuck with me as one of the more surprising and interesting things I’ve been presented with.
This experience illustrated to me how I would approach a reading thinking I “know” the answer, or that I am comfortable with my preconceived notion, but instead I came out of it realizing there was a lot more to it than I thought. It can be humbling to realize that you were somewhat close-minded just an hour before.
OOT: What would you like to get out of being in the Program? What goals have you achieved?
CW: To quote my classmate Matthew Bates, I am pursuing this program as pure selfish indulgence. It has meaning for me alone, and I’m not sure if I could convey what I'm getting out of it to someone else. It’s very personal.
I’ve always admired people who are willing to step out of what’s comfortable in their life and take on a new challenge. There is a saying that I believe in: “It’s not the summit that’s important; it’s the journey.” I think everyone in this program is able to look back on what they’ve already achieved and could genuinely feel proud of himself or herself.
Another way I look at it is this: After three years, I can look back and realize I’ve achieved nothing important - just lived my life easily. Or, I can look back and be proud of what I’ve struggled through, expanded my experience of the world, and earned a degree that I can be proud of.
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