About the DHI

Overview

For over ten years, the DHI has worked to build a vibrant interdisciplinary community and promote innovation in research and teaching. The DHI began in the fall of 2015 as the Digital Humanities Initiative, an informal association of faculty, staff and students from across campus. In the spring of 2018, the Initiative applied successfully to establish itself as a formal institute, housed within the Division of Academic and Student Affairs. 

Over the years, a series of directors from various disciplines has led the development of programming, curriculum, and resources. Since 2016, the DHI has hosted an annual Digital Projects Showcase, maintained a portfolio of projects, awarded funding to support faculty and student research, and established relationships with community organizations. The DHI offers a minor in digital humanities and a DH graduate certificate. In recent years, the DHI has developed a Media Lab for faculty and students and has piloted a Tech Fellows program in partnership with the Hicks Honors College. Since 2023, the DHI has supported the annual Latin American and Caribbean Digital Humanities Symposium, an international event which grew from a conversation between faculty from UNF and the University at the 2022 DHI Digital Projects Showcase. In 2025-2026, the DHI was a partner in the Archivist in Training program, through which five UNF undergraduates received training in archival methods and carried out internships with local archives.

The DHI is active in the statewide digital humanities community. In 2019, the DHI hosted the inaugural conference of the Florida Digital Humanities Consortium. UNF faculty, staff, and students have presented at subsequent FLDH conferences online (2021) and in St. Augustine (2022) and Orlando (2024).

Former directors

Josh Gellers, professor of political science, 2025-2026

James Beasley, professor of English, 2023-2025

Anne Pfister, associate professor of anthropology, 2021-2023

Laura Heffernan, professor of English, 2019-2021

Clayton McCarl, professor of Spanish and digital humanities, 2015-2019