DURHAM, N.C. - Duke professor Cathy N. Davidson has been nominated to the National Council on the Humanities.

Davidson is the Ruth F. DeVarney Professor of English and John Hope Franklin Humanities Institute Professor of Interdisciplinary Studies at Duke. She was also Duke's first vice provost for interdisciplinary studies.

Davidson specializes in the social and cultural history of technology. She focuses on the impact of mass printing during the founding years of the U.S. nation, on the changing industrial landscape of the 20th century, and on the role of digital media in the 21st century. Among other books, she is author of "The Future of Learning Institutions in a Digital Age" and "Revolution and the Word: The Rise of the Novel in America."

She is co-founder of HASTAC ("Haystack"), the Humanities, Arts, Sciences, and Technology Advanced Collaboratory, a network of educators dedicated to new modes of learning for the digital age. She is also past president of the American Studies Association and former editor of the journal American Literature.

The National Council on the Humanities is a board of 26 private citizens who advise the chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). NEH is an independent federal agency that is one of the largest funders of humanities programs in the United States. Council members are nominated by the president and require confirmation by the U.S. Senate. If confirmed, they serve six-year terms.

For information about all members currently serving on the National Council on the Humanities, visit www.neh.gov/whoweare/council.html.