Hermanns Lecture Series

Rudolph Hermanns was a travelling plant seed salesman who left a $2-3 million estate to UTA. In 1991, the Hermanns Endowment was established for the Department of English Lecture Series, an annual event that brings notable scholars to our campus for lectures, workshops, and panel discussions.

Hermanns Lecture Series 2026

Flyer titled “The Global Middle Ages” with a parchment-textured background and medieval-style typography. At the top left is the UTA logo with the text “UTA Department of English, College of Liberal Arts.” At the top right is the text “2026 Hermanns Lecture Series.” The flyer is divided into two columns with dotted horizontal dividers separating events. Left column: Heading: “Thursday, February 26th.” Subheading: “Maker Workshops.” Text below reads: “For UTA students. Central Library Room 109 and the Fab Lab. 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM.” Below that, a section titled “Keynote Address.” Title: “The Shipwreck that Shaped the World.” Speaker listed as “Dr. Geraldine Heng, UT Austin.” Location: “University Center, San Saba Room.” Time: “5:30 PM.” Additional text at the bottom of this section reads: “Opening remarks by Provost Tamara Brown. Heavy hors d’oeuvres and wine served.” Right column: Heading: “Friday, February 27th.” Location listed beneath: “Central Library, 6th Floor.” Event list includes: “Roundtable Discussion, 9:00 AM – 10:30 AM.” Speaker: “Dr. Cord Whitaker, Wellesley College.” Talk title: “Late Medieval Estates Anxiety and the Race Fix.” Time: “10:45 AM – 11:45 PM.” “Lunch, 12:00 PM – 12:30 PM.” Speaker: “Dr. Benjamin Liu, UC Riverside.” Talk title: “Between Two Spanish Sonnets.” Time: “12:30 PM – 1:30 PM.” Final event: “Pechakucha, 1:30 PM – 2:30 PM.” At the bottom of the flyer is a large semicircular medieval-style world map illustration framed in gold, showing landmasses and ships in muted blues, greens, and tan tones.

2026 Hermanns Lecture Series: The Global Middle Ages

February 26-27, 2026

Keynote Speaker: Dr. Geraldine Heng, University of Texas at Austin

Featured Speaker: Dr. Cord Whitaker, Wellesley College

Featured Speaker: Dr. Benjamin Liu, UC Riverside

Welcome to the Hermanns Lecture Series Archive

2025-2026: The Global Middle Ages

2024-2025: Rooted Narratives: Writing Family Histories

2023-2024: Sound Effects

2022-2023: Food and Environmental Justice

2022-2023: Rhetorics of Inquiry Design: Building Trust within Constraints in Human(e) Research

2021-2022: Real and Reel Latinx Lives Matter

2020-2021: Decentering Whiteness in Antiracism Initiatives

2020-2021: The Homesick Texan: A Conversation with Cookbook Author and Food Blogger

2019-2020: Making and Design Thinking as Interdisciplinary Problem-Solving Approaches

2018-2019: Contingencies: Higher Education in a Precarious Time

2017-2018: Homecoming

2017-2018: Women and Writing

2016-2017: Architecture, Sound, and Social Justice

2015-2016: Writing American Lives: From Diary and Memoir to Twitter and Graphic Non-Fiction

2014-2015: Philitechia: Philosophy, Literature, Technology

2013-2014: New Directions in African-American Literature

2012-2013: The Place of Memory

2011-2012: Animals

2010-2011: Food, Literature, and Culture

2009-2010: Greening English

2008-2009: Creative Writing in the Academy

 

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For more information about upcoming Hermanns Lecture Series event email this year's organizers

Email Kaci O'Donnell