25 Years of the Leslie Center at Dartmouth

The Leslie Center for the Humanities celebrates 25 years of advancing the study of meaning, purpose, and creativity in the human experience. We support humanities research and projects that engage students, faculty, staff, and visitors at Dartmouth College and beyond.

The Center was founded in 1999 with initial grant funding from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. A gift from Alan and Fannie Leslie, established a permanent endowment for it, and the Leslie Center was launched with a 2000 conference on “The Future of the Humanities.” Since then, the Leslie Center has hosted many colloquia, seminars, symposia, courses, conferences, and informal gatherings that connect people with ideas. The Spring 2025 Institute on “Humanities Work” honors the original 2000 conference by marking both continuities and advancements in our understanding the task of the Humanities.

Directors of the Leslie Center at Dartmouth:

1999-2009 Jonathan Crewe (Professor of English)

2009-2011 Adrian Randolph (Professor of Art History)

2011-2015 Colleen Boggs (Professor of English)

2015-2019 Graziella Parati (Professor of Italian)

2019-2025 Rebecca Biron (Professor of Spanish)