McDowell named Woodson director

A longtime University of Virginia English professor has been named director of the Carter G. Woodson Institute for African-American and African Studies at UVa.
Deborah E. McDowell, the Alice Griffin Professor of Literacy Studies at UVa, was named to her new post after serving as the institute’s interim director during the past year. She has been a member of UVa’s English department since 1987.
The interdisciplinary institute oversees undergraduate majors and minors in African-American and African studies. It also sponsors pre-doctoral and post-doctoral fellowships and a visiting scholars program.
McDowell, 57, said she intends to double the number of fellowships per term from five to 10 next year. The following year, she hopes to raise that number to a dozen.
McDowell is a prolific writer, scholar and editor of African-American literature for academic and general audiences. Her books include “The Changing Same: Studies in Fiction by African-American Women” and “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass.”