Shelley Haley facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Shelley Haley
Haley in 2019
Nationality	American
Alma mater	Syracuse University University of Michigan
Scientific career
Institutions	Hamilton College, New York
Thesis	The Role of Amicitia in the Life of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus

Shelley P. Haley is a highly respected professor who studies ancient history and cultures, known as Classics. She teaches at Hamilton College in New York. In 2021, she was the President of the Society for Classical Studies, which is a big deal in her field. Professor Haley uses special ways of looking at Classics, called Black feminist and critical race approaches. This means she explores how race and gender are shown in ancient stories and how they connect to today's world.

Learning and School

Shelley Haley earned her first degree, a Bachelor of Arts (BA), from Syracuse University in 1972. She then received a special scholarship called a Danforth Fellowship. This helped her continue her studies at the University of Michigan. There, she earned her Master's degree (MA) in 1975 and her Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) in 1977. Her Ph.D. paper was about the role of friendship, or Amicitia, in the life of a famous Roman general named Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus.

Her Career Journey

After finishing her studies, Professor Haley began teaching. She taught at Luther College from 1977 to 1978. Then, she taught at Howard University from 1979 to 1985. In 1989, she joined the faculty at Hamilton College, where she still teaches today.

She has also been a special visiting scholar at other universities. These include Washington University in St. Louis in 2002 and Hobart and William Smith Colleges in 2013.

Professor Haley uses Black feminist and critical race ideas to study Classics. She has explored many interesting topics. These include how gender was seen in the ancient world and how race is taught in classical studies. She also researches the role of African-American women, like Fanny Jackson Coppin, in the study of Classics. She has shared how she became interested in these topics. For example, she learned more about race in the ancient world by teaching students about Cleopatra. She also researched African-American classicists from the 1800s.

In 2003, Professor Haley took part in the Oxford Round Table, a meeting for experts. She also spent four years as the main grader for the AP Latin Exam. She even led the committee that creates this important exam.

Professor Haley has appeared on TV as an expert on Roman history and Cleopatra. She was on TLC's Rome: Power and Glory in 1999. She also appeared on Timewatch in an episode called In Search of Cleopatra. More recently, she was featured in Netflix's African Queens season 2 episode about Cleopatra. In the documentary, she mentioned that her grandmother believed Cleopatra was Black. However, she also said, "We don't know her exact racial heritage." Most historians agree that Cleopatra was of Macedonian Greek background. Debates about her ethnicity are often found in popular magazines, not usually in academic studies.

Professor Haley helped start several important groups. These include The Kirkland Project for the Study of Gender, Culture, and Society. She also helped create the Institute for Global African Studies (IGAS). Another group she co-founded is the Multiculturalism, Race, and Ethnicity in Classics Consortium (MRECC). In September 2019, she was chosen to be the President of the Society for Classical Studies for 2021. This made her the first African-American President of the Society.

Awards and Honors

Professor Haley has received many awards for her excellent teaching and research. Some of these include:

• Excellence in Teaching of the Classics at College Level Award from the Society for Classical Studies, 2017
• The Samuel and Helen Long Prize for Excellence in Teaching from Hamilton College, 2015
• Merit Award from the American Classical League, 2007
• Certificate of Recognition from The College Board, 2007
• Outstanding Woman of the Year Award in the Field of Education from the YWCA of the Mohawk Valley, 1999
• The Pentagon Outstanding Service Award from Hamilton College, 1997

In 2020, a journal called The Haley Classical Journal was started in her honor.

Important Writings and Talks

Professor Haley has written many articles and given many talks. Her work often focuses on Cleopatra, Black Feminist teaching methods, and how a classical education has impacted African-American women. Here are some examples of her work:

• "When I Enter: Disrupting the White, Heteronormative Narrative of Librarianship". This was written with Caitlin Pollock in 2018.
• "Re-presenting Reality: Provincial Women As Tools of Roman Social Reproduction". This was a talk she gave in Chicago in 2014.
• "Scientific Racism". She wrote this with Dr. Michele Paludi for an encyclopedia in 2012.
• "Be Not Afraid of the Dark: Critical Race Theory and Classical Studies". This was published in a book in 2009.
• "Fanny Jackson Coppin's Reminiscences of a School Life and Hints on Teaching". This was part of a book series in 1995.
• "Self-definition, community and resistance: Euripides' Medea and Toni Morrison's Beloved". This article was published in 1995.
• "Black Feminist Thought and Classics: Re-membering, Re-claiming, Re-empowering". This was in a book published in 1993.
• "Livy, passion, and cultural stereotypes". This article was published in 1990.
• "The Five Wives of Pompey the Great". This article was published in 1985.
• "Archias, Theophanes, and Cicero: The Politics of the Pro Archia". This article was published in 1983.