Richard Leppert

Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature, College of Liberal Arts, 2007-2018

Richard Leppert, Department of Cultural Studies and Comparative Literature, College of Liberal Arts, has engaged in interdisciplinary teaching and research on the history of modernity in Europe and North America with a focus on the study of music, visual culture, and aesthetics. He is considered to be "among the most significant intellectuals working at the intersections of disciplinary knowledge in the humanities today." Professor Leppert is credited with the co-creation of the Comparative Studies in Discourse & Society program, which is thought to be among the best of its kind in the nation, and subsequently giving Minnesota the recognition of being a national leader in interdisciplinary humanities inquiry. This success is one of many the department achieved under his fifteen-year tenure as department chair. In addition, for a number of years the Department held the highest concentration of Guggenheim Fellows in the University. He is the author and editor of ten books, which have been reviewed by sixty-three different academic journals in the fields of musicology, art history, philosophy, anthropology, sociology, cultural studies, critical theory, literary studies, film studies, and history. Professor Leppert's written work has been translated and used in graduate and undergraduate courses throughout North America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. He has published over forty-one sole-authored journal essays and book chapters and has delivered more than 160 papers on three continents. He has taught fourteen different graduate seminars, two postdoctoral seminars and more than twelve undergraduate courses. He has served on the graduate committees of students in two colleges and in thirteen departments. Currently, he serves as adviser to six doctoral students in three programs and his graduate committee assignments include ten additional students (two from another universities) from seven departments. His service to the University is remarkable. He has served on seventy-six committees within the University and many in the community, including the Minneapolis Institute of Art, the Minnesota Orchestra, the Guthrie Theater, and the Walker Art Center. His contributions to scholarship beyond the University and Twin Cities community include refereeing individual fellowship projects and peer-review panel service for the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Council of Learned Societies. He has also served as a member of the American Musicological Society's National Council, and several other standing national committees. Professor Leppert is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Award for Outstanding Contributions to Post-Baccalaureate, Graduate & Professional Education, the Morse Alumni Award for Undergraduate Teaching, Scholar of the College (CLA), McKnight Arts & Humanities Senior Research Award, Academy of Distinguished Teachers, Phi Beta Kappa National Scholar, to name a few. As a world-leader in the field of humanistic studies, a dedicated teacher, and University leader, Professor Leppert exemplifies the qualities of a Regents Professor.