Lauren Highsmith is an English PhD student at Emory University and an alumna of Hampton University.
Her research explores issues, concepts, and phenomena of (Black) (popular) American culture; intersections between literature and music; ethics; and anachronistic readings of (African) American literature.
Ms. Highsmith is interested in understanding and teaching music as a type of text. She is also intrigued by the ideas of deconstructing popular music; analyzing modern and postmodern spaces of communication; trauma and its effects on the Black community, as well as double-consciousness and its presence in music, performance, and media.
In My White Tee: The Freshman Review came to Ms. Highsmith as a way to help students reading their environments and perform introspection. The first year of college is the first taste of independence for some students. It is also a time that can inspire the development of independent consciousness. This class sought to help the first-year students ease out of the Emory Bubble to discover different cultures and spaces, practice reading and writing about their experiences, and learn about themselves and their writing styles in the process.
Feel free to connect with and learn more about Lauren Highsmith via LinkedIn