Congratulations to Jacob Kopcienski (Music), who was awarded a Global Arts + Humanities Discovery Theme Graduate Team Fellowship for the 2021-2022 academic year! This program brings together eight graduate students whose projects match with our focus areas and awards EACH student a yearlong fellowship. This Fellowship is an opportunity for you to gain valuable cross-disciplinary mentorship and will also help you identify and apply for additional sources of extramural support as your scholarship develops.

Jacob will work on his dissertation research project, “Sounding and Listening for Queer Communities in Appalachia.” His research focuses on how aural cultures and sonically mediated events—ranging from concerts, block parties, pride parades, protests, workshops, podcasts, and live streams—animate and maintain multiple kinds and scales of queer community in Appalachia. In addition to participating in the interdisciplinary cohort, Jacob will use the fellowship to conduct ethnographic research and interviews in north and central West Virginia necessary to complete his dissertation.