By Caitlin Antonios
While Scripps’ faculty are dedicated educators, their impact extends far beyond the classroom. Through groundbreaking research, influential publications, and creative works, they continue to advance knowledge and push innovation.
Recent faculty works include:
First Contact by Professor of English and Associate Dean of Faculty Warren Liu
First Contact is a funny, polyphonic poem that narrates the first encounter of a shipwrecked crew of would-be colonizers and a coastal town. Told through three distinct voices, the poems tackle topics like the West’s mythologizing of the East and moral culpability.
History’s “Nevermade” by Professor of Art Ken Gonzales-Day
An accompaniment to the exhibition by the same name at the USC Fisher Museum of Art, this book explores the life work of Gonzales-Day. Known for how his photography, art, and films confront race and power and those who are unseen, History’s “Nevermade” examines his process and journey as an artist.
Decolonizing Medicine: Indigenous Politics and the Practice of Care in Bolivia by Associate Professor of Anthropology Gabriela Morales
Decolonizing Medicine looks at state-led efforts to decolonize health services under Bolivia’s first Indigenous president, Evo Morales. The book tracks how care practice is a microcosm for broader projects of decolonization.
The Meaning of It All: Ultimate Meaning, Everyday Meaning, Cosmic Meaning, Death, and Time by Professor of Philosophy Rivka Weinberg
The Meaning of It All explains why some types of meaning are achievable, while others are impossible. She clarifies the roles that death and time play in the meaning of our lives, and considers how we might orient our lives toward meaning in light of these bittersweet truths.
Bounce: Balls, Walls, and Bodies in Games and Play by Associate Professor of Media Studies Carlin Wing
Bounce traces the history of bouncing balls across both physical and digital games, showing how bounce has shaped sports, play, animation, computing, and more. Organized into three sections, the book explores the material, virtual, and cultural dimensions of bounce through examples ranging from the ancient Mesoamerican game, ulama, to modern video games like FIFA.
Why Read Pascal Today? by Professor of Philosophy Yuval Avnur
Dive into mathematician and scientist Blaise Pascal’s philosophy and how it applies to today’s challenges. A mathematical genius, and deeply religious man, this book will challenge anyone interested in the heart’s role in rationality, human nature, the individual and collective purpose, and more.
Voices of the Pearl, Volume 5 featuring Professor of Music Anne Harley
This latest volume of Voices of the Pearl features Harley as the soprano for eight tracks. The project commissions and performs works from global artists, with the goal of presenting “musical portraits of female mystics, traversing time and geography.”
Blue by Professor of Dance Kevin Williamson, featuring Professor of Music Hao Huang
Blue, a solo work choreographed and performed by Williamson, was performed in Los Angeles in 2025, accompanied by Huang. “In this more intimate work, I spiral through a mirage of complex characters, big movements, and rough tasks, grappling with personal and collective despair,” Williamson writes.
A Tlaculio Joint! and Let the City Speak: The Sonic Journey of Quetzal by Associate Professor of Chicanx-Latinx Studies Martha Gonzalez
Launched by Gonzalez, A Tlaculio Joint! is a hub for music lovers, educators, and those curious to know more. Tlaculio’s first project is a collector’s vinyl of Memory and Return, produced by Grammy-winning producer and musician Quetzal Flores.
“As a songwriter and music nerd turned academic, I often wonder how to instigate more lifeform, space and depth of dialogue when it comes to an album. The resurgence of vinyl has been a hopeful turn and quite inspirational to watch,” Gonzalez writes about the project.
Let the City Speak: The Sonic Journey of Quetzal is a feature-length documentary that follows Quetzal, a Chicano rock band from East Los Angeles, and provides an intimate portrait into its leaders Quetzal Flores and Martha Gonzalez.