Keisha N. Blain

The Center for Engaged Scholarship (CES) has officially announced the selection of Keisha N. Blain as its next President, succeeding founder Fred Block. A full professor of history and Africana Studies at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, Blain will officially begin her term in Fall 2026. The CES board expressed immense confidence in her leadership, citing her distinguished scholarship, her proven track record of launching and funding new initiatives, and her deep roots within the African American scholarly community. Her appointment aligns perfectly with the organization’s mission: supporting social science scholars and emerging graduate students whose community-engaged work aims to foster a more democratic, egalitarian, and environmentally sustainable society.

As a nationally recognized historian of the twentieth-century United States, Blain brings profound academic depth to this role. Her research focuses heavily on African American history, the modern African diaspora, and women’s and gender studies. She is the author of three highly acclaimed books that have shaped contemporary historical discourse: Without Fear: Black Women and the Making of Human Rights (2025), Until I am Free: Fannie Lou Hamer’s Enduring Message to America (2021), and Set the World on Fire: Black Nationalist Women and the Global Struggle for Freedom (2018).

Beyond her monographs, she has edited five scholarly volumes and serves as the editor-in-chief of Global Black Thought.

Dr. Blain’s institutional leadership is firmly established. She is a founder and former president of the African American Intellectual History Society and maintains a strong commitment to mentoring the next generation of scholars. At Brown University, where she joined the faculty in 2022 after teaching at the Universities of Iowa and Pittsburgh, she holds affiliate appointments in American Studies and the Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Studies. Her stellar educational background includes a magna cum laude bachelor’s degree from Binghamton University and both a master’s and Ph.D. in history from Princeton University.

Crucially, Blain bridges the gap between rigorous academia and public life. Her extensive public engagement includes a three-year tenure as an MSNBC columnist and serving as an editor for the Washington Post’s “Made by History” section. In accepting the presidency, Blain framed the current political climate—marked by rising racism, white supremacy, transphobia, and anti-DEI sentiments—as an urgent call to action. The CES board eagerly anticipates working alongside her to meet these societal challenges through impactful, public-facing scholarship.