People of the Echols Scholars Program
Director of the Echols Scholars Program
The Director of the Echols Scholars Program is Richard Handler, Associate Dean for Academic Programs in the College of Arts & Sciences and Professor of Anthropology. He was educated at Columbia University (B.A., 1972) and at the University of Chicago (M.A., 1976, Ph.D., 1979).
Prof. Handler is an interdisciplinary scholar whose work explores the borders between literature, history, and the social sciences. Within anthropology, he specializes in contemporary North American culture, history of anthropology, and culture theory. He is the author of Nationalism and the Politics of Culture in Quebec (1988), Jane Austen and the Fiction of Culture (1990, co-authored with Daniel Segal), The New History in an Old Museum: Creating the Past at Colonial Williamsburg (1997, co-authored with Eric Gable), and Critics Against Culture: Anthropological Observers of Mass Society (2005).
Prof. Handler teaches several courses regularly for undergraduates, including ANTH 101 (Introduction to Anthropology), ANTH 225 (Nationalism, Racism, Multiculturalism), and ANTH 268 (Reading the New York Times). He is co-director of the Anthropology Department’s minor in Global Culture and Commerce and President of the University chapter of Phi Beta Kappa.
Secretary of the Echols Scholars Program
Sherry Bullock has been the secretary for the Echols Scholars program for over 11 years. She keeps in contact with the students through her famous weekly emails. Many students come to her for academic information and support, or to just relax. As secretary of the Echols Scholars, her job is to make sure that the students are on track with their majors and course schedules, that they keep in contact with their dean if there are any situations or problems, and that prospective students, their parents and guidance counselors are provided current information on the Echols Scholars Program.
As the mother of 4 boys, Sherry is definitely a mother-figure to the Echols Scholars. She enjoys meeting them, talking about their dreams and aspirations, and she "requires" that they keep in contact with her after they graduate and go on to make their mark on society.
Those interested in the Echols Scholars Program, please contact Mrs. Bullock anytime at (434) 924-3350.