Humanities Gateway

The Humanities Gateway Program is a highly selective, interdisciplinary program for outstanding students with a demonstrated interest in the humanities tradition. It is designed for students who wish to deepen their knowledge of the key concepts and ideas in the fields of humanistic study such as literature and languages, philosophy, history and religion.

“My experience in the Humanities Gateway program was a highlight of my time at Trinity and has been invaluable to my work after graduation. Its interdisciplinary structure exposed me to readings and discussions I wouldn’t have encountered otherwise, and the small cohort fostered a genuine sense of community during those first crucial months. The program helped me connect my interest in both STEM and the humanities, finding an intersection between philosophy and computer science—a focus that helped me secure a Fulbright grant and continues to shape my graduate studies. The devoted professors offered exceptional mentorship, and I highly recommend this program to students across all disciplines, from the humanities to STEM alike.” Sarah Durkee (’24) PhD candidate BU

In a world of increasingly rapid change and evolving challenges, the Humanities Gateway Program provides students with the critical skills necessary to engage in independent thinking and knowledge production. The Program, which consists of four courses over the students’ first two semesters at helps students develop a knowledge base in core areas of humanistic inquiry (religious studies, philosophy, literature, history), and introduces students to key approaches and methodologies that span across the humanities, preparing students to thrive in an unpredictable world in informed, creative ways.  To achieve these goals, the Program identifies a series of through-lines that connect the four courses. These points of connection change from year to year, and previous iterations of the Program have centered around chronological investigations of western thought, classical Islamic studies and modern Middle Eastern literature, and creative responses to the present climate crisis.

In addition to such classroom pursuits, the Humanities Gateway Program also involves a series of off-campus events, such as trips to the Metropolitan Museum in New York City, dinners at local restaurants with faculty members, and plays at the Hartford Stage Theater. Through these diverse experiences, the Humanities Gateway offers its students the unique opportunity to think deliberately through a set of distinct but related ideas, work particularly closely with four different faculty members, and create a sense of community with both their cohort and the other Humanities Gateway classes.

For information on courses for the upcoming academic year (2026–27), please see the curriculum tab.

Congratulations to Prof. Sean Cocco and the students of his Fall 2023 Humanities Gateway Course, “The Powers of Observation,” for winning the Giovanna and Antonio Morra Award given by the Societa’ dei Naturalisti in Napoli for their story map project, “Searching on Land and Sea”: Searching on Land and Sea

We invite all who are interested to reach out to the faculty co-directors, Professors Julia Assaiante  P’06 ([email protected]) and Gabriel Hornung ’07 ([email protected]) with any questions.  There are two Zoom information sessions in the coming days:

Sunday, March 29^th at 7:15 pm:  https://trincoll.zoom.us/j/98947541224

Monday, March 30^th at 7:15 pm: https://trincoll.zoom.us/j/94568580464