Misty Anderson, professor and head of the UT Department of English, received the academic outreach award for teaching from the College of Arts and Sciences during the 2023 Faculty Convocation.
Since joining UT in 1996, Anderson has sought to make an impact not only in scholarship about the 18th century, but through her active collaborations with the Clarence Brown Theatre, directly impacting our cultural landscape.
This award acknowledges her work with the Institute for American Civics to produce Joseph Addison’s 1713 play Cato on campus last September. The play, which was performed by George Washington’s troops at Valley Forge, presents the story of Cato, a Roman general who resisted the tyranny of Julius Caesar, pitting virtuous citizenship in conflict with authoritarianism.
Following each performance, Anderson facilitated a conversation with selected actors and invited scholars about the implications of the play on our conceptions of human values, citizenship, and governance today.