Russell Berman, a Hoover Institution senior fellow and the Walter A. Haas Professor in the Humanities at Stanford University, has been elected second vice president of the Modern Language Association.
He will serve as second vice president beginning January 1, 2009; as vice president on January 1, 2010; and president of the organization on January 1, 2011.
Berman specializes in the study of German literary history and cultural politics. He is a member of both the Department of German Studies and the Department of Comparative Literature at Stanford. From 1992 through 2000 he served as director of the Stanford Overseas Studies Program. He is currently chair of the Department of Comparative Literature.
The Modern Language Association of America and its 30,000 members in 100 countries work to strengthen the study and teaching of languages and literature. Founded in 1883, the MLA is a leader in the national higher-education and humanities communities, engages in critical debates on matters of public policy, from academic freedom to human rights, and advocates for the crucial importance of language learning in an increasingly global community.
