ISRAEL STUDIES AT UT

is a very niche area of study. In actuality, students receive a versatile liberal arts education that gives them the liberty to explore their intellectual curiosity in a wide variety of fields. I think there certainly should be more Jewish Studies programs at universities across the country because a JS program is an important element to a university that wants all of its students to have the opportunity to be intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually engaged with their coursework. It really is a unique option for Jewish students like me who have a strong affinity for their Jewish identity and want to explore their heritage, religion, and place in the world.

2020 PhD Recipient Lands Job at Macalester College

Dr. Dinorah M. Cossio earned her PhD from UT Austin in 2021. This fall, she will be a Visiting Professor in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese at Macalester College. We spoke to her about her research, graduate experience at SCJS, and what the future holds.

How did you first develop your interest in Spanish and Argentine film?

The topic of my dissertation project came out of the classes in the Departments of Spanish and Portuguese, History, and Middle Eastern Studies that I took during my first three years at UT. These courses inspired my decision to specialize in transatlantic cultural studies focusing on literary and filmic representations of gender in twenty-first-century Spain and Argentina. My dissertation explores different cultural constructions of non-normative mothers. The women portrayed in the narratives and films I analyze are often categorized as unfit and/or sick, as their experiences are nothing like the classical archetypes of motherhood. I ask what effects the pathologizing depictions of these mothers have on culture. Currently, I am developing a new project that addresses antisemitism and the stereotypical representation of Jews in Francoist-era Spanish films.

How important was it for you to have Dr. Naomi Lindstrom as your advisor, and what role did SCJS play in your graduate training?

Dr. Naomi Lindstrom’s guidance was invaluable to my academic career. During my first years, she introduced me to the possibilities of scholarships and classes at UT, while advising me on readings for my project. She has encouraged me to publish my research, and she has read my work many times, always giving me extensive feedback.

Movie poster for the Spanish version of the 1939 film The Hunchback of Notre Dame, entitled in Spanish Esmeralda La Zingara, that deploys racist imagery. While I was writing my dissertation and applying to jobs, she met with me numerous times to offer her advice and encouragement. During my time at UT, I received several grants from the Schusterman Center. These grants allowed me to attend academic conferences, purchase books for my project, attend a Hebrew summer course at Middlebury College, and travel to Buenos Aires to interview Jewish writers and work in the Yiddish Archive there. This benefited my research greatly and helped me acquire experience in language learning, public speaking, and fieldwork. During the winter I spent in Buenos Aires, I got to know many writers and scholars that helped me understand how both their Jewish and Argentinian identity shaped their experiences as writers.

Tell us about your new position at Macalester College. What experiences from both teaching and learning at UT will you take with you?

At Macalester College, I will teach classes related to gender, transatlantic studies, and Spanish grammar. I am very excited to be teaching a class developed from my dissertation topic. This course will focus on motherhood and family studies, gender studies, and ecological issues both in Latin American and Spanish twenty-firstcentury narratives and films.

My experience at UT has prepared me well to teach a variety of topics to a diverse student body. As a UT student, I have experienced many teaching styles and ways to approach scholarship that will help me shape the next phase in my academic career. The support of the Schusterman Center during my graduate years allowed me to take my first steps as a scholar.

New Research on Stuttering Among Israelis

Robyn Croft is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences at the Moody School of Communications. She earned her BS from the University of Texas at Austin, her MS in SpeechLanguage Pathology from Texas Christian University and is currently completing her clinical fellowship at the Lang Stuttering Institute to earn her certification as a speech-language pathologist. With the support of an Israel Studies Travel Fellowship, she conducted research in Israel.

What first brought you to the field of speech pathology and how did your academic journey bring you to UT?

I was first drawn to speechlanguage pathology because of its focus on advancing communication, a central component of the human experience that allows people to build meaningful relationships, to advocate for themselves and others, and to share their unique selves with the world. Speechlanguage pathology satisfies both my academic interests and personal values, making it an ideal career path for me.

As an undergraduate sophomore at UT, I emailed several professors in pursuit of a research opportunity. Little did I know that serving as a research assistant for Dr. Courtney Byrd, whose research focuses on stuttering, would profoundly change the trajectory of my personal and professional journey. During my first lab meeting, I listened to Dr. Byrd speak about her approach to stuttering research and treatment, including the holistic focus on each person’s communication effectiveness and attitudes, rather than their surface-level stuttering behaviors. This person-centered approach and emphasis on communicationrelated thoughts and feelings immediately appealed to me.

Do you have a background in Jewish Studies or speaking/reading Hebrew? How did you connect your research with stuttering and interests to a project in Israel?

My Jewish education and upbringing, including years of learning about Israel’s culture and language, laid the foundation for my connection to Israel as an adult. When I was 18, I visited Israel for the first time. Moving pieces from my upbringing came to life, and I formed meaningful relationships that humanized my textbook knowledge. Since then, a persistent, inner resolve has motivated me to deepen my understanding of and relationship to this country and its people, and to find ways to contribute. During college, I returned to Israel for a semester to study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where I took Hebrew and interdisciplinary courses, volunteered at a preschool, and completed an independent study with a speech-language pathologist. I witnessed first-hand how culture and language influence daily communication exchanges, as well as the assessment and treatment of individuals with communication disorders. By the time I started my PhD, I was specifically interested in learning about how perceptions and experiences of stuttering manifest in this multicultural, multilingual, religiously diverse, and politically complex region.

What stereotypes exist about those who stutter and what does self-disclosure mean in the context of stuttering? Can you briefly explain your research?

People who stutter are often stereotyped as being nervous, unintelligent, anxious, or shy, which leads to discrimination, social rejection, and feelings of shame and embarrassment. Self-disclosure of stuttering, a practice in which a person who stutters discloses to the listener that they stutter, has been used as a tool to combat negative stereotypes and improve perceptions of stuttering. However, these studies had focused primarily on English-speaking persons who stutter in the USA, limiting the application of this evidencebased practice to culturally and linguistically diverse populations, such as persons who stutter in Israel.

With the Israel Studies Travel Fellowship, we replicated a 2017 study by Dr. Byrd and her colleagues to investigate the influence of informative versus apologetic self-disclosure statements on listeners’ perceptions of Hebrew-speaking persons who stutter in Israel. Ninety-two adults in Israel viewed a video of a speaker who selfdisclosed stuttering informatively, apologetically, or not at all. Results indicated that speakers who self-disclosed in a neutral and informative manner were more likely to be viewed as a person who pursues and enjoys social relationships (i.e., “outgoing”), a valued trait in Israeli culture. Importantly, self-disclosing apologetically or not self-disclosing at all yielded no significant benefit. Clinically, this means that speechlanguage pathologists in Israel should encourage their clients who stutter to self-disclose informatively and not apologize for stuttering.