Evelyn Adkins, associate professor in the Department of Classics, was named the new department chair effective July 1.
She first joined Case Western Reserve University in 2018 from Kenyon College where she had been a visiting assistant professor of Classics. Prior, she was an assistant professor at the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome and taught ancient Mediterranean studies at Pennsylvania State University.
Since coming to CWRU, Adkins has taught Latin and courses in translation on topics such as Roman civilization, ancient Mediterranean warfare, and depictions of ancient Greece, Rome, and other Mediterranean cultures in film. She’s the author of Discourse, Knowledge, and Power in Apuleius’ Metamorphoses (University of Michigan, 2022), and has been widely published.
Her research focuses on the literature of the High Roman Empire (second century AD), with particular interests in the ancient novel, language and power, discourse analysis, gender and sexuality, and Roman social and cultural history. This summer, Adkins is returning to archaeological fieldwork to join the international archaeological collaboration “The Metamorphosis of Faith in Philia, Thessaly (Greece),” funded in part by an Expanding Horizons Initiative Grant.
Upon her return, she looks forward to picking up where outgoing department chair Paul Iversen left off.
“After seven years at CWRU focusing on teaching and advising students, I am excited to continue serving my department in my new role,” Adkins said. “I look forward to getting to know the other chairs as well as gaining a better understanding of the college’s administration and the university.”
“When Evelyn joined the department, I had hoped that one day she would become chair,” Paul Iversen said. “I have learned that Evelyn combines amazing organizational skills with collegiality that will make her a natural fit. The department could not be in better hands.”
Dean David Gerdes looks forward to working with Adkins in her new role.
“As a recently tenured and dynamic scholar, Evelyn will bring an exciting new perspective to the leadership of the Classics department,” Gerdes said. “I’m looking forward to her partnership in helping the department flourish. Audentes Fortuna iuvat!”
Join us in congratulating Adkins on her appointment.