In March 1925, the seed of Wilfrid Laurier University's Faculty of Arts was planted when an agreement was signed between Western University and Laurier's precursor, the Evangelical Lutheran Seminary of Canada, constituting a College of Arts.
Today, Laurier’s Faculty of Arts offers over 20 undergraduate and nine graduate programs spanning the humanities and social sciences. It’s one of the largest Faculties at Laurier with average enrolment of nearly 5,000 students per year and close to 50,000 alumni.
Throughout 2025, we’re sharing our stories: researchers who are making a difference at home and around the globe; students who are challenging themselves with experiential learning, co-op programs, international experiences and more; and alumni whose Laurier Arts experience paved the way for lives of leadership and purpose.
Each June, Pride Month recognizes the experiences and history of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities and celebrates their positive impacts around the world. Learn more about Pride at Laurier.
Learn about incredible Indigenous students, thoughtful researchers and supportive staff members as Laurier marks Indigenous History Month this June.
Presented by Laurier's Associate Vice-President of Indigenous Initiatives, Darren Thomas, in March 2024.
As we celebrate 100 years of Laurier's Faculty of Arts, we recognize this means 100 years on the Haldimand Tract on the traditional territories of the Neutral, Anishnaabe and Haudenosaunee peoples. Read Laurier's land acknowledgement.
Laurier's pathway program with Vancouver Film School (VFS) enables students to earn an Honours BA in Film Studies and a diploma from VFS in four years. Designed for students interested in working in film production, the pathway combines comprehensive education in Film Studies or English at Laurier with direct experience in production, writing, acting, animation or digital design.
Learn more about students' experiences in the Vancouver Film School Pathway program.
English and Film Studies Professor Mariam Pirbhai has won the 2024 Sarton Women’s Book Award Gold Medal for Nonfiction for her book Garden Inventories: Reflections on Land, Place and Belonging.
This prestigious international award honours May Sarton, who is remembered for her contributions to women's literature as a memoirist, novelist, and poet. Read more about Pirbhai's award-winning book.
Pirbhai is also the author of two works of fiction: Isolated Incident and Outside People and Other Stories, both of which received the IPPY Gold Medal for Multicultural Fiction.
Offered through the Faculty of Arts, the Laurier-City Hub internship invites students to take part in changemaking initiatives and shape policy innovations through the university's partnerships with cities and municipalities. The internship is open to students who have completed Social Innovation in the City, a third-year course offered by the Department of Global Studies that provides students hands-on opportunities to research, design and test social and policy innovations working with the City of Waterloo. Read more about student Paige Mignotte's internship.
Information about artificial intelligence (AI) is everywhere, but the knowledge to navigate the AI revolution is less plentiful. Just as it holds great promise, there are ethical dilemmas, threats to jobs and privacy concerns, among many other issues. How do we make sense of it all? Three experts from Wilfrid Laurier University's Faculty of Arts share their insights:
Mark Humphries, professor, History
Jason Shim, chief digital officer, Canadian Centre for Nonprofit Digital Resilience
Byron Williston, professor, Philosophy
Their conversation was moderated by Patricia Goff and recorded on April 11, 2025.
ISOW is a multi-faceted initiative that brings Laurier students, staff and faculty together to enable students from war-torn countries to study in safety and security in Canada. Since its formation in 2013, ISOW has supported 43 scholars to study at Laurier from nine different countries including Syria, Gaza, Lebanon, Egypt, Myanmar, Türkiye, Somalia and Afghanistan. The initiative is student-led and primarily funded through a student levy.
"Though I graduated from Laurier in 2013, it feels like just yesterday—those semesters filled with late-night study sessions and a variety of club and committee events. From travelling with the Model United Nations Delegation and exploring world politics for The Cord, to representing students on the Students' Union Board, Laurier was my launchpad to a world beyond the classroom. It sparked my curiosity about the world, which ultimately took me from Canada to California, and now to The Netherlands, where I live and work today.
"After earning my degree in Global Studies and Sociology, I ventured into the tech world by pursuing a Master’s in Digital Experience Innovation. However, it was at Laurier where my passion for research truly took root—an interest that has shaped my career ever since. The critical thinking and research skills I developed at Laurier didn’t just aid me in academia; they laid the foundation for my current work. I’m deeply grateful to the Sociology department for introducing me to the transformative power of quality research! Today, I help tech companies foster cultures of data-driven decision-making, making an impact in ways I never imagined during those late-night study sessions."
"I graduated in 2022 with an Honours BA in Film Studies. I transferred to Laurier in my second year and it was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I loved every minute and learned so much from my professors. During my years at Laurier, I was the VP of Marketing for the WLU Film Society, presented a paper at the Film Symposium, and served as a student rep on the Film Studies Advisory Group.
"After completing my MA in Cinema Studies at the University of Toronto and an internship at the Toronto International Film Festival, where I helped to coordinate a conversation series with industry members like Cate Blanchett, I started my current position as a Programming Assistant at the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television, where I support the planning and execution of the 2025 Canadian Screen Awards. My Laurier Arts degree in Film Studies gave me the confidence and skills necessary to jumpstart my career in my field of study."
HI288 provides students with an immersive journey into Poland, exploring Jewish life and death before, during and after the Holocaust. Eva Plach leads students through Jewish cultural site visits in and around Lublin, Kraków and Warsaw, including Holocaust death camp memorials and museums, to deepen their understanding of how history is experienced, preserved and memorialized. Students don’t just visit historical sites; they engage with them, learning how to navigate these spaces with respect and awareness, using daily reflection journals to connect their experiences to broader questions about history, humanity, and their own roles in shaping the future.
Plach also integrates a Community Service-Learning experience centred on cemetery restoration that allows students to give back while reflecting on the responsibility of state and local communities’ role in historical preservation and commemoration. This course challenges students to think critically, engage deeply, and open themselves to the world in ways that will stay with them long after the journey ends.
FR288 blends literature, urban exploration, and collaborative learning for an immersive student experience. Set in the vibrant and historic city of Montréal, Marc Olivier Reid invites students to engage directly with the city, using works of fiction as a lens to examine real-world issues like gentrification, LGBTQ2S+ experiences, and Indigenous perspectives. Students move beyond tourist destinations and explore overlooked, underrepresented corners of Montréal, such as the neighbourhood of Hochelaga-Maisonneuve, reflecting on how literature both (mis)represents and shapes urban reality. A key element of the course is daily group reflection: students share their insights, unexpected discoveries, and lived experiences with each other as they unpack and deepen their learning together. Reid’s dynamic approach fosters critical thinking, bilingual awareness, and a deeper connection to place. By prioritizing listening, adaptation, and student-led exploration, the course models inclusive, participatory education where learning is built together in real time.
Associate Professor, Philosophy
What can philosophy teach us about modern love? Philosophers have opined about romantic love for centuries, seeking to understand this intangible, intoxicating facet of the human experience. Gary Foster shares reflections on the philosophy of love and identity as captured in his latest book, Alienation and Identity in Romantic Love.
Professor, Philosophy
How does a historian of seventeenth century philosophy become a climate ethicist? Why is philosophy important to understanding climate change? Read an interview with Byron Williston that considers these questions and more.
Associate Professor, History
Leddy, an associate professor of History, was awarded the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Histories and Historical Practice in Canada. As an Anishinaabekwe member of Serpent River First Nation, she has dedicated her career to the decolonization of Canadian history.
Meelad Moaphi, an assistant professor in Laurier's Department of English and Film Studies, premiered his first feature film at the Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival.
His Father's Son, a family story set within Toronto’s Iranian community, won the Audience Choice Award and Moaphi won the Directors Guild of Canada’s Best Direction prize.
