Award Recognizes Excellence in Humanities and Social Sciences Research
The Department of History of Art & Architecture in the University of Pittsburgh’s Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences is proud to announce that Dr. Paula Kupfer has been awarded a 2026 ACLS Fellowship by the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS). The ACLS Fellowship Program is the organization’s longest running program and supports outstanding scholarship in the humanities and social sciences.
Kupfer is one of 63 scholars selected from a pool of over 2,000 applicants through a multi-stage peer review process. ACLS Fellowships provide up to $60,000 to support scholars for six to 12 months of full-time research and writing. Awardees who are independent scholars, adjunct faculty, or have teaching-intensive roles receive an additional stipend between $3,000 and $6,000.
Kupfer’s research explores how historical images, visual culture and contemporary art have shaped the memory of the Panama Canal and U.S. Canal Zone. The project critically examines visual records of the canal project, revealing photography’s role as a persuasive agent, placing these visual records in dialogue with the work of contemporary artists.
“We are proud to award ACLS Fellowships to 63 outstanding scholars across a range of fields,” said ACLS President Joy Connolly. “Deep understanding of humanity and human endeavor doesn’t come out of thin air: it rests on the work of generations of scholars who need time to do research and develop their arguments. We salute the new fellows’ contributions to knowledge and to society, and we celebrate their expertise and dedication.”
The ACLS Fellowship Program is funded primarily by the ACLS endowment, which has benefited from the generous support of esteemed funders, institutional members, and individual donors since the organization’s founding in 1919.
Read the full announce and list of fellows on the ACLS website: https://www.acls.org/news/american-council-of-learned-societies-awards-2026-acls-fellowships/
Read the announcement on the Pittwire: https://www.pittwire.pitt.edu/accolades-honors/2026/04/23/acls-fellows-kupfer-granshaw
Read Paula Kupfer's faculty profile: https://www.haa.pitt.edu/people/paula-kupfer