News Archive - Erika Johnson

Associate Professor of Literature Brandon Som Wins Pulitzer Prize in Poetry

Love and respect anchor the words written by Associate Professor of Literature Brandon Som in his latest work, “Tripas: Poems,” which garnered the 2024 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry. Department of Music alumna Mary Kouyoumdjian's multimedia work “Paper Pianos," which melds music and audio documentary with first-person stories of refugees, was also named a Pulitzer Prize finalist in Music this year.

Composer Anna Thorvaldsdottir Allures Listeners with Otherworldly Orchestras

UC San Diego music alumna Anna Thorvaldsdottir has been described by NPR as “one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary music.” She recently won the 2024 CHANEL Next Prize and just premiered her newest orchestra METAXIS.

UC San Diego Student Selected for National Public Service Scholarship

Junior John Paculdo Koenigshofer is one of 20 students selected from 700 applicants across the nation to become a Key into Public Service Scholar by The Phi Beta Kappa Society, a national academic honor society that advocates for the value of a liberal arts and sciences education.

A Showcase to Celebrate Cinematic Ingenuity

More than two dozen UC San Diego student, staff and faculty filmmakers have received fellowship funding from the Suraj Israni Center for Cinematic Arts to pursue their unique film ambitions. On May 25, the campus and local community are invited to attend the inaugural Suraj Israni Center Fellowship Forum to discover and celebrate their diverse cinematic visions.

Four Alumni Capture Coveted Tony Nods

Four of UC San Diego’s Department of Theatre and Dance alumni are among the talented directors, actors and scenic designers to be nominated for a 2024 Tony Award. And one of their works—a new musical by singer Alicia Keys called “Hell’s Kitchen”—crowns the list as the musical with the most Tony Award nominations.

High School Program Offers Free College Credits at UC San Diego

In June 2023, hundreds of San Diego high school students participated in Discover UC San Diego, an innovative pilot program that offers free, online college courses delivered by the university’s faculty.

UC San Diego’s “Divine Nine” Plaza Is a First in California

Unveiled in October 2023, the National Pan-Hellenic Council Plaza is a gathering space that honors the legacy of historically Black fraternities and sororities.

Acting Student and Bioengineering Alumna Awarded Soros Fellowship for New Americans

A University of California San Diego current graduate student in the Department of Theatre and Dance and an undergraduate alumna from the Department of Bioengineering are are among 30 recipients of the 2024 Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowship for New Americans.

2024 Wagner New Play Festival World Premieres Five Works

UC San Diego’s Department of Theatre and Dance graduate student playwrights present five bold stories that will world premiere from Apr. 26 to May 18 at the Wagner New Play Festival.

Creating AI That Helps, Not Harms

There are plenty of reasons to love artificial intelligence (AI). But what happens when helpfulness turns into harm? This is one of the big questions that occupies David Danks, a professor in UC San Diego’s Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute and Department of Philosophy.