03/17/08 –
Political science professor honored
with fellowship to study immigrant identity
Diego von Vacano has
received a fellowship from the
Institute for Advanced Study.
Diego A. von Vacano, assistant professor of
political science, has accepted a fellowship to be
a member of the School of Social Science at the
Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, N.J.,
for 2008-2009.
The fellowship encourages social scientific work
with a historical and humanistic bent in multiple
areas of research. The theme for the 2008-2009
fellowship is Social Norms and Cooperation, with
all accepted members studying an area within the
theme.
The fellowship is for von Vacano’s project,
“Immigrant Identity in a Cosmopolitan World,”
which explores the incorporation of immigrants
into society in the 21st century.
The project asserts that immigrants can
potentially develop a lasting identity as
immigrants, rather than become assimilated to
the new country easily. Von Vacano’s project
provides a theory of this development using
modern German political philosophy.
“The project argues that Samuel Huntington is
correct that immigrants can indeed pose a
challenge to national identity, but he is wrong to
think that these challenges are not positive for
the host state,” said von Vacano.
“Immigrants can bring cultural repertoires that
may invigorate domestic institutions such as
marriage and education, as well as to make the
local society more open to international
dialogue,” von Vacano said.
Von Vacano received his Ph.D. from Princeton
University in 2003. He has been the recipient of
an NEH faculty grant in Latin American
philosophy; the University Center for Human
Values Graduate Fellowship at Princeton
University; and grants from the Spencer
Foundation, Tinker Foundation and Mellon
Foundation. Von Vacano is the author of The Art
of Power: Machiavelli, Nietzsche and the Making
of Aesthetic Political Theory.
The School of Social Science was founded in
1973 as a place for invited scholars to examine—
for a one- year period—historical and
contemporary problems, providing a space for
intellectual debate and cross-fertilization to
flourish.
03/17/08 -
Von Vacano receives Career Enhancement
Fellowship from Woodrow Wilson Foundation
Diego von Vacano has received
a Career Enhancement Fellowship.
Diego A. von Vacano, associate professor of political
science, has received a Career Enhancement
Fellowship from the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship
Foundation based in Princeton, N.J., for 2008-2009. The
fellowship is for von Vacano’s project “The Color of
Citizenship: Racial Identity in Latin American Political
Thought.”
The project focuses on the problem of racial identity in
relation to citizenship in the Hispanic tradition, focusing
on the themes of empire, nation and cosmopolis in
various thinkers.
“The ancillary aim of ‘The Color of Citizenship: Racial
Identity in Latin American Political Thought’ is to develop
a normative conceptualization of race for modern
multicultural societies,” von Vacano said.
During his time in Princeton, von Vacano will work
closely with Professor Stephen Macedo of Princeton
University’s Center for Human Values, in hope of
producing a manuscript—ultimately leading to a book
within the next several years.
Von Vacano received his Ph.D. from Princeton
University in 2003. His research interests include
political philosophy and the history of political thought.
Von Vacano is the author of The Art of Power:
Machiavelli, Nietzsche and the Making of Aesthetic
Political Theory.
The Career Enhancement Fellowship provides pre-
tenure assistance and mentoring for junior faculty from
underrepresented groups, as well as those committed to
promoting cross-racial understanding.