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Classical studies is not just ancient history. It’s linguistics and poetics. Gender and women’s studies. Drama and theatre. Art history and architecture. Philosophy and religion. And more. In fact, a classical degree intersects with 90 percent of a modern liberal arts program’s academic disciplines. It’s both a vibrant field in its own right and a rich complement to any other major.

Courses in Greek and Roman art, history, and literature in translation teach the responsible use of primary evidence to form sound critical judgments about the ancient world. The survey courses in Ancient Art provide a multicultural view of the ancient world, integrating a synchronous study of ancient Egypt and the ancient Near East into the student’s work on Greece and Rome. The Classical Studies program guides students through these paths of inquiry by strengthening critical thinking, writing, and oral communication skills, while developing an understanding of the premodern perspective.

Meet our Classical Studies Faculty

Katelin McCullough

Assistant Professor

Art History , Classical Studies , Gender and Women's Studies

Turner | mcculloughkd@���Ĵ�ý.edu

James Patrick Downey

Associate Professor and Chair

Classical Studies , Philosophy

Turner | 540-362-6264 jdowney@���Ĵ�ý.edu

George Fredric Franko

Professor

Classical Studies

Turner | 540-362-6391 gfranko@���Ĵ�ý.edu

“I really found my voice and I’ve not been afraid to use it, whether it’s in class discussions, serving as a Student Success Leader, or working as a Greek tutor. Hollins has been a place that has helped me flourish into the person I am today and the person I want to be.”

Marie's story

Marie Gruver '24

Gruver will enter a post-baccalaureate program in classical studies at the College of William and Mary in Fall 2024.

"I’m not doing just one field. I get to study art, literature, music, history, math, architecture, religion, and even botany. I get to look at everything."

Christina Salowey

Professor of Classical Studies

As a group, we would like to give a huge thank you to Professors Richter and Salowey….Each of us had an incredible experience that we will keep with us for the rest of our lives; we are so grateful for the priceless knowledge and wonderful memories we created together. We thank you — Ευχαριστούμε!

Students from the Short Term study abroad trip to Greece, January 2013

After graduation, Hayley Chambers ’06 earned a master’s degree in public history with a concentration in museum studies from UNC-Greensboro. Since then, she has worked at museums in Iowa, South Dakota, and Alaska. She is now senior curator of collections at Alaska’s Ketchikan Museum Department, which operates the Tongass Historical Museum and the Totem Heritage Center.

Hayley Chambers

Classics Symposium

Since 1975, the department has sponsored a one- or two-day event focusing on a single theme of current interest in classical studies. Renowned scholars deliver public lectures and encourage dialogue about the ancient world.

Themes of Past Symposia:

• “Explorations of the Ancient Roman Garden,” April 2025
• “Echoes of Empire: New Approaches to Imperial Strategies in the Ancient Mediterranean,” April 2024
• “New Studies in Classical Reception: from the Dangerous to the Diverse,” April 2023
• “Divine Minds,” April 2021
• “Epic Profanations: Conjuring Homer in the 21st Century,” October 2019
• “Being There: Martial and Mythological Landscapes of Greece,” November 2018
• “Breathing New Life into Old Paintings,” November 2017
• “Engendering Dynasty: Female Bodies and Figural Traditions in Lycian Relief,” April 2017
• “Bodies of Stability/Faces of ‘Crisis,’” March 2017
• “Touching Distant Sands with Tales of Brave Ulysses,”* November 2015 (*Eric Clapton 1988, Crossroads)
• “Ancient Deer: Hunted, Sacred, and Sacrificed,” April 2015
• “Classics and Science Fiction,” October 2013
• “Climate, Cattle, and Culture: Environmental Histories of the Ancient Mediterranean,” November 2012
• “No Angel: Dido in Ancient Rome, Renaissance England, and Beyond,” April 2012
• “Roman Ritual,” April 2011
• “Renovating the School of Athens: Intertextual Encounters from Alexandria to Andalusia,” April 2010
• “Death and the Hero,” March 2009
• “Dangerous Liaisons: Women and Spectacle in Late Republican Rome,” March 2008
• “Interpretation of Greeks Who Bear Gifts,” March 2006
• “Caesar: The Man and the Myth,” March 2005
• “Oratory and Education: Classical Rhetoric and the Liberal Arts,” October 2002
• “What Goes on in the House Next Door? Panderers and Prostitutes in Plautus,” November 2001
• “Meeting at the Crossroads: the Intersection of Judaeo-Christian and Graeco-Roman Worlds,” November 2000
• “Women and the Classics,” March 2000