Dr. Dennis Laumann, professor in the Department of History, has been named a 2026-27 Fulbright U.S. Scholar for Granada where he will be teaching at T.A. Marryshow Community College (TAMCC) from January to July 2027 where he will teach classes, lead workshops for teachers and students, and deliver public lectures.
“The Fulbright Scholar award allows me the incredible opportunity to learn more about Grenada, help strengthen ties between our nations, and proudly represent the University of Memphis,” Laumann said. “This is an especially opportune time for my Fulbright to Grenada as community and academic interest in the nation’s African connections has deepened in recent years. In fact, due to popular demand, my colleagues at T.A. Marryshow Community College have proposed I teach a course on historic links between Grenada and Africa that will be offered in the evenings and open to community members.”
Laumann has been a faculty member at the UofM for 25 years. He is a historian of Africa and the African diaspora and has been conducting research on the historic links between Grenada and Africa, particularly Ghana. His interest with Grenada began in 1983 as a teenager in New York when he read news reports about the U.S. military intervention in the Caribbean nation.
“I was intrigued by accounts of the unusual mix of western tourists, American medical students, Cuban construction workers, and U.S. Marines on the island, and the political events that made global headlines,” he said.
His interest deepened over the years through continued research and teaching.
This is not the first Fulbright award for Laumann. Thirty-years ago he was awarded his first as a graduate student at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) when he conducted his doctoral research in Ghana. The research culminated with the publication of his book titled, “Remembering the Germans in Ghana.”
“One of the goals of my Fulbright Scholar award is to establish linkages between T. A. Marryshow Community College and the University of Memphis,” Laumann said. “Possibilities include developing online courses that would enroll Grenadian students, establishing an education abroad program for Memphis students to study Caribbean history in Grenada, and recruiting Grenadian students to continue their education at the University of Memphis. Additionally, I will pursue possibilities to collaborate on research with scholars in Grenada, including my colleague Dr. Angus Martin, the country’s leading historian. In fact, one of my PhD students, Yaa Dunyo, is currently in Grenada conducting predissertation research on African-derived religions in Grenada.”
