Adrian Burgos, Jr., Ph.D.
Manhattanville University’s Sport Studies Program announced its first Speaker in Residence for its National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) funded project “Sport Studies in the 21st Century: Amplifying the Latinx Experience in Curricula, Conversation, and Community,” Adrian Burgos, Jr., Ph.D., He will be in residence in October 2024, with his marquee public lecture taking place on October 21 at 6pm.
Dr. Burgos, Professor of History and Chair of the Department of History at the University of Illinois, specializes in U.S. Latino history, sport history, and urban history. His teaching, writings, and public engagement focus on Latino migrations in terms of racialization, urbanization, and labor in the United States. He is the author of the award-winning “Playing America’s Game: Baseball, Latinos, and the Color Line” (2007) as well as “Cuban Star: How One Negro League Owner Changed the Face of Baseball” (2011).
He co-authored with Margaret Salazar-Porzio, “Pleibol! In the Barrios and Big Leagues” (2020). He was the founding editor-in-chief of “La Vida Baseball,” a multi-platform digital brand focused on Latinos and baseball from a cultural lifestyle perspective. He has written for MLB.com, “Memories and Dreams,” and “Baseball Prospectus,” and was a contributor to sportingnews.com. The subject of a 2016 Big Ten Network documentary “Playing America’s Game,” Dr. Burgos has appeared on ESPN, MLB Network, and NPR, as well as national and local programs discussing Latinos, baseball, and race. He served as a consultant on the Smithsonian’s “Pleibol!” exhibit and the National Baseball Hall of Fame’s “Viva Baseball” exhibit, and as a program advisor for numerous documentaries, including Bernardo Ruiz’s “Roberto Clemente” and Ken Burns’ “The Tenth Inning” and “Jackie Robinson.”
Dr. Burgos’s residency is the first in this groundbreaking three-year project that aims to explore the multifaceted social, political, historical, and cultural aspects of sport within Latinx communities. This award is one of five given as part of the NEH’s 2023 Humanities Initiatives at Hispanic-Serving Institutions competition. The university earned a designation as a Hispanic Serving Institution by the U.S. Department of Education, which recognizes the campus’ significant Hispanic population.
Manhattanville’s Sport Studies faculty — Amy Bass, Ph.D., Seth Tannenbaum, Ph.D., and Samantha White, Ph.D. — conceived the award-winning project and serve as project directors. Founded in 2013, Manhattanville’s unique interdisciplinary Sport Studies program is the fastest growing major (and one of the largest) in the School of Arts and Sciences, with courses that range from “Sport Communication and Media” to “Sport and Social Change” to “Fundamentals of Team Sports.” The NEH-funded project seeks to address gaps in the field of Sport Studies, making stronger connections with the broader fields of Latinx and American Studies. By focusing on the impact of Latinx athletes and the role of sport in Latinx communities, the project aims to rectify the underrepresentation in this vital area of study.
The speaker-in-residence series, featuring renowned scholars in sport and Latinx studies, is the core of this initiative. The speakers will be in short residencies at Manhattanville over the course of the next three years, working with students, faculty, and members of the wider community through a series of lectures and interdisciplinary learning clusters, building upon the strong collaborative nature of the Sport Studies major. The university’s archivist, Lauren Ziarko, will preserve the proceedings both online and in the university’s library, available for broad future use.
Dr. Bass, Professor of Sport Studies and Chair of the Division of Social Science and Communication, expressed her excitement to be hosting Dr. Burgos, “I am thrilled to be hosting someone of Dr. Burgos’s stature at Manhattanville, enabling students, faculty, and staff a chance to learn from his expertise. We welcome the broader community to take part, particularly in his public lecture.”
“Manhattanville University offers a high-quality liberal arts education to students in the heart of the Hudson Valley,” said Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. “I’m a proud advocate for the National Endowment for the Humanities, and I commend Manhattanville University for its agility in implementing this resource to bring Dr. Adrian Burgos to campus. I look forward to seeing the speaker-in-residence project flourish, and hope it may serve as a model for future projects to come.”
Visit https://www.mville.edu for more information.
