Professor of English Michael Saenger presented a paper at the Modern Language Association Convention in Philadelphia. His paper, “Double Tongue: Multiple Languages in Shakespeare,” examines the theoretical status of linguistic mixture in the early modern period. At the convention, Saenger also advocated for social justice and academic freedom at the Delegate Assembly of the Modern Language Association, and his activism was covered in the national press. Saenger published an op-ed on the struggles of the organization, which was presented as a Featured Post in the Times of Israel. He then presented an invited talk on Academic Engagement Network’s Short Course in Phoenix, “A Break in Discourse after October 7.”

Professor of English Michael Saenger co-authored with Professor of American Studies and Humanities Nancy Koppelman at The Evergreen State College an essay entitled “Before the War: Educators in Israel / Palestine” for the Times of Israel. Their essay relates their experiences leading a group of American university professionals through encounters with different perspectives in the Middle East.

Professor of English Michael Saenger delivered an invited keynote lecture at Waseda University in Tokyo at an international conference entitled “Translation of Shakespeare as Cultural Exchange.” Also presenting was Nick Baylor ’25, who traveled to Japan with Dr. Saenger.

Professor of English Michael Saenger represented Academic Engagement Network on a trip to Israel and the Palestinian Territories. The Signature Seminar Series participants – senior and mid-level DEI and Student Affairs administrators from U.S. universities and colleges – traveled to West and East Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, and Ramallah between June 6 and June 14 for an experiential learning opportunity. They engaged with prominent figures at Israeli and Palestinian universities and NGOs to see how people from various perspectives, including Druze, Jewish, Muslim, and secular backgrounds, are working to build bridges of understanding and how that can be relevant to improving campus climate in the US.

Professor of English Michael Saenger completed a three-week residency at the department of European, American, and Intercultural Studies, Sapienza Università di Roma. He led seminars, gave lectures, and collaborated with Iolanda Plescia, Associate Professor of English in that department, as well as Laetitia Sansonetti, Senior Lecturer in English at Université Paris Nanterre, both of whom are leading figures in the study of Shakespeare’s use of multiple languages and the question of translation. His final lecture was entitled “Accidental Multilingualism in Shakespeare.”