AAACC High School Panel Event: APIDA in Classics
Flyer for AAACC APIDA High School Event
Please join the Asian and Asian American Classical Caucus for an online panel and Q&A discussion: APIDA in Classics
Saturday, August 28
11am PT/ 2pm ET
We invite high school students who identify as APIDA (Asian, Asian American, Pacific Islander, and/or Desi American) interested in studying Classics to register for this free event.
Panelists (see bios below) will share their experiences and answer questions about studying Classics, being an APIDA Classicist, and any other questions you might have!
This is a space to ask questions and be in community. We would love to see you there!
Register here: https://forms.gle/VfRHZDTju2TVG39E6
Panelist Bios:
Panelist photo for Frances Lin
Frances Lin
Hi! My name is Frances and I am a rising sophomore at Amherst college. I plan on declaring a double major in neuroscience and Classics with a focus in the Latin language. One of my favorite things about Classics is how interdisciplinary it is as it feels like a philosophy, history, language, and drama major all in one!
Q: "If you could travel back in time and show your younger self one thing from the ancient world, what would it be?"
A: If I could go back in time, I would want to show myself a food stall or a food cart from Ancient Rome or Ancient China. As a huge food enthusiast, I would love to see (and taste, of course) what sort of food was considered "trendy" and commonly on the market. And as an Asian person, it would be cool to see if I can recognize any of the dishes and discover new ones that perhaps have been lost or have evolved through time. Roman food would definitely feel foreign to me but my younger self would enjoy the adventure and thrill of inspecting the mystery foods. You can gather a lot from someone's food, such as their daily diet, lifestyle, general ideas about their culture, and clues as to what their living environment is like. Examining food to better understand an ancient civilization is an amazing and fun way of learning. And it would be super fascinating to see how merchants and sellers decorated and designed their stalls and counters to attract customers, highlight cultural customs, or maximize practicality.
Kiran Pizarro Mansukhani
Kiran Pizarro Mansukhani (he/him/his) is a PhD student in Classics at The Graduate Center, CUNY. His research interests include ancient philosophy and its relationship with Greek literature, as well as classical reception. You can reach him at kmansukhani@gradcenter.cuny.edu or @phaedotimaeus on Twitter.
Q: "If you could travel back in time and show your younger self one thing from the ancient world, what would it be?"
A: If I could travel back in time, I'd like to watch the premiere of Aristophanes' Clouds with my younger self (and bring a translation along, if younger me hasn't learned Greek yet).
Panelist photo for Kiran Pizarro Mansukhani
Panelist photo for Kelly Nguyen
Kelly Nguyen
Kelly Nguyen is currently a Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Rhetoric at the University of California - Berkeley and in the Fall, she will join the Department of Classics at Stanford University as an inaugural IDEAL postdoctoral fellow. She is currently working on her book project on the racialization of classical antiquity by Western empires and its subsequent reappropriation by Vietnamese communities to counter (neo)imperialism from the mid-19th century to the present.
Q: "If you could travel back in time and show your younger self one thing from the ancient world, what would it be?"
A: If I could travel back in time, I would show my younger self the Vietnamese Boat People monument in Brisbane, Australia, and point out the quotation from Euripides' Medea that was inscribed on it in honor of the Vietnamese refugees who did not survive their harrowing journey at sea. I would tell her to hold this monument close when she feels out of place in this field and to remember that Classics belongs to us, too.
Nandini Pandey
Nandini Pandey is an associate professor of classics specializing in Latin literature. She has taught for seven years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and will soon begin a new position at Johns Hopkins University. Dr Pandey's first book, The Poetics of Power in Augustan Rome, explores her favorite authors Vergil and Ovid in their complex, often critical relationship with Augustan authority. Professor Pandey also enjoys speaking and writing for broader audiences, and is very glad to speak with you at this AAACC event!
Q: "If you could travel back in time and show your younger self one thing from the ancient world, what would it be?"
A: If I could travel back in time and show my younger self one thing from the classical past, I'd choose this roof tile from Piettrabondante, Italy signed and stamped with footprints by two enslaved women, one Latin, the other Oscan. In an SCS blog post I did last summer, Amy Richlin nominated it as the one thing she'd preserve from Greco-Roman antiquity, and I can see why. Given that classical texts and histories are dominated by elite men, it's refreshing to glimpse the many others who didn't get to tell their own stories. This tile speaks of a real friendship between two women at the bottom of the social ladder, a friendship that spanned cultures and now centuries.
Panelist photo for Nandini Pandey