Michael Brumbaugh

As Associate Dean for College Curriculum and Policy, Michael works to ensure that undergraduate students in Newcomb-Tulane College have access to an exceptional academic experience. This begins with supporting the faculty in their development and delivery of transformative curricular offerings. College programs such as the Duren Professorship, CURE Research Courses, and the Maymester initiative are designed to support curricular innovation as are the establishment of new Interdisciplinary programs that draw on academic expertise from more than one of the College’s five Schools. Likewise, we manage a robust and dynamic Core Curriculum, designed to activate students’ intellectual curiosity while guiding them through a structured exploration of the College’s impressive array of academic offerings. Along the way, students not only learn more about the curricular pathways they might pursue, but they also have opportunities to participate in co-curricular programming, engage in research, connect with mentors, and study abroad.

These efforts rely on the dedication of hundreds of faculty and staff who push themselves to devise new and better ways of engaging students in rigorous intellectual pursuits both in and out of the classroom. It is an honor to support this work, and I am always on the lookout for ways to help our academic community thrive. Students and Faculty are encouraged to reach out to me or one of my colleagues to discuss:

• The Newcomb-Tulane Core Curriculum – everything from developing and proposing new courses for the Curriculum Committee to the new Core Caucuses, faculty study committees dedicated to individual aspects of the Core.
• Undergraduate opportunities for Research and Fellowships,
• College programs designed to support curricular innovation such as Duren Dream Courses, CURE Research Courses, and innovative Maymester experiences,
• Interdisciplinary Programs that draw on academic expertise found in more than one School,
• Faculty Governance Committees including the Curriculum Committee, the Committee on Academic Requirements, and the Committee on Academic Integrity,
• The College’s Academic Policies, the Code of Academic Conduct, the Honor Board and 
• Existing or New Collaborations with the University Senate, Office of Assessment and Institutional Research (OAIR), Center for Public Service (CPS), Center for Engaged Learning & Teaching (CELT), College Advising, Office of the Registrar, University Libraries, Innovation Institute, Taylor Center for Social Innovation and Design Thinking, the College’s five member Schools, as well as the other Tulane Schools that work alongside the College.

Michael grew up in Oregon and was among the first in his extended family to earn a bachelor’s degree directly after High School. He is an Associate Professor in Classical Studies and a member of the Core Faculty in the Stone Center for Latin American Studies. In addition to language courses in ancient Greek and Latin, seminars on Greek Egypt, the Ancient Mediterranean Legacies in Colonial Latin America, and Ancient Greek Poetry in the 20^th/21^st Century World, he has taught First-Year Seminars on restorative justice practices in ancient Athens and modern New Orleans as well as a Service-Learning course on ancient Greek drama as a form of storytelling, communal therapy, and reintegration for combat veterans. He is the author of two books and prior to coming to Tulane in 2013 he taught at Princeton, Reed College, and UCLA. Read more about his teaching and research on his Faculty Page.