Humanities Week

A weeklong celebration of the human adventure across time, history, culture and place.

Now entering its sixth year, Humanities Week opens the door to discovering how studying the humanities at Arizona State University can lead to a successful career, a good life and a more just world.

Students and the public are invited to engage with varied events throughout the week, from open houses to hands-on activities to panel discussions.

Humanities Week 2026 is October 26–30. View the schedule below for events on the calendar so far. Check back soon for updates, including details on our signature event, the Marshall Distinguished Lecture.

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Portrait of Jesmyn Ward against a gold circle.

Signature event

2025 Marshall Distinguished Lecture: An Evening with Jesmyn Ward

MacArthur “Genius Grant” recipient and two-time National Book Award-winner Jesmyn Ward has been hailed as the standout writer of her generation, proving her “fearless and toughly lyrical” voice in novels, memoir and nonfiction. In 2017, she became the first woman and the first person of color to win two National Book Awards for Fiction — joining the ranks of William Faulkner, Saul Bellow, John Cheever, Philip Roth and John Updike. In 2024, "Men We Reaped," "Salvage the Bones" and "Sing, Unburied, Sing" were named in the 100 Best Books of the 21st Century by The New York Times.

Ward is currently a professor at Tulane University in New Orleans, where she teaches creative writing.

Register to attend. 

2026 events

Monday, Oct. 26

Humanities Week Open House

10 a.m. | Durham Hall courtyard | Learn more.

Tuesday, Oct. 27

La Mia Italia Photo Contest

11 a.m. | Durham Hall exhibit lobby | Learn more.

Wednesday, Oct. 28

Scholarships, internships and careers: Get paid to learn languages

Noon | SILC Café at Durham Hall | Learn more.

Thursday, Oct. 29

Globalize your degree with SILC: Languages, cultures and study abroad

2:30 p.m. | Durham Hall room 240 | Learn more.

Explore concurrent degrees with SILC's new Global Citizenship major

3:30 p.m. | Durham Hall room 240 | Learn more.

Friday, Oct. 30

Water Workshop

9:30 a.m. | Ross-Blakley Hall RBH196 | Learn more.

2025 highlights

In 2025, ASU hosted over 35 events for Humanities Week. You can view recordings of a few highlights below.

Schedule of events 2024

Monday, Oct. 21

Humanities Week Open House

10 a.m. | Durham Hall courtyard | Learn more.

Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz: A New Light on a Literary Legend

Noon. | Virtual | Learn more.

Humanities Week SILC Café: Korean

1:30 p.m. | Durham Hall lobby | Learn more.

Crip Critique: Spoken Word Narratives on the Lived Pasts and Imagined Futures of Work

2 p.m. | Memorial Union Alumni Lounge (Hybrid) | Learn more.

Tuesday, Oct. 22

Spanish Heritage Events: Spanish Heritage Voices

11 a.m. | Durham Hall 240 | Learn more and RSVP.

Brazilian Dance and Music Workshop

Noon | Durham Hall 240 | Learn more and RSVP.

Designing Planetizenship: Manifestos, Constitutions, Declarations, and Art as Tools for Building Inclusive Futures!

Noon | Memorial Union Stage and Hayden Lawn | Learn more and RSVP.

Humanities Week SILC Café: German

1:30 p.m. | Durham Hall lobby | Learn more.

Traveling to Romania: History, Politics and Culture at the Heart of Europe

4:30 p.m. | Durham Hall lobby | Learn more.

CAIS Film Series: Lion of the Desert

6 p.m. | Virtual | Learn more and RSVP.

Marshall Distinguished Lecture: An Evening with Dan-El Padilla Peralta

7 p.m. | Armstrong Hall, Roskind Great Hall (ARM 101) | Learn more and RSVP.

Wednesday, Oct. 23

Film and Media Studies Student Showcase

10 a.m. | Ross-Blakley Hall (room 117) | Learn more and RSVP.

Spanish Heritage Events: Spanglish Open Mic

11 a.m. | Durham Hall 240 | Learn more and RSVP.

Gene Wilder, Jewishness and Me: A Personal Journey with My First Movie Star

Noon. | Ross-Blakley Hall | Learn more and RSVP.

Humanities Week SILC Café: Spanish and Portuguese

1:30 p.m. | Durham Hall lobby | Learn more and RSVP.

Visualizing Chicano/a/xs: Photography and Prints

1:30 p.m. | ASU Art Museum | Learn more and RSVP.

ASU History Program Poster Show

2 p.m. | Lattie F. Coor Hall, First Floor Breezeway | Learn more and RSVP.

Humanities Week "Her" Movie Night

5 p.m. | Ross-Blakley Hall 197 | Learn more and RSVP.

Thursday, Oct. 24

Spanish Heritage Events: Latinx Cultures in the United States

11 a.m. | Durham Hall 240 | Learn more and RSVP.

Scavenger hunt at the ASU Art Museum with Migration Related Themes

1 p.m. | ASU Art Museum | Learn more and RSVP.

Humanities Week SILC Café: Japanese

1:30 p.m. | Durham Hall lobby | Learn more and RSVP.

Onigiri Action 2024

1:30 p.m. | Durham Hall lobby | Learn more and RSVP.

Worldbuilding Fall 2024 Distinguished Lecturer: Author Nick Fuller Googins

1:30 p.m. | Memorial Union Cochise Room and online | Learn more and RSVP.

Zine-Making Workshop

1:30 p.m. | Ross-Blakley Hall (room 117) | Learn more and RSVP.

Curator IRL XP with the Hispanic Research Center

3 p.m. | Hispanic Research Center A202 | Learn more and RSVP.

The brush is mightier: One man's mission to rescue art from the Taliban

3 p.m. | West Hall (room 135) | Learn more and RSVP.

Diaspora and the Korean Wave

4:30 p.m. | Memorial Union, Pima Auditorium (room 230) | Learn more and RSVP.

Friday, Oct. 25

Civic Activism in South Korea: the Intertwining of Democracy and Neoliberalism

10:30 a.m. | Durham Hall 240 | Learn more and RSVP.

So, what are you going to do with that?: Humanities alumni panel

11:30 a.m. | Memorial Union 207 and virtual. | Learn more and RSVP.

Humanities Week SILC Café: Vietnamese

1:30 p.m. | Durham Hall lobby | Learn more and RSVP.

Stellar Alumni Reading Series: Katie Berta and David Martinez

6 p.m. | Ross-Blakley Hall (room 196) | Learn more and RSVP.

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