I currently live in Los Angeles, where I work to celebrate and co-create spaces of study and gathering.
Alongside writing on film, art, and collective experiments in education, I collaborate with artists, writers, and community organizers to host study groups, poetry readings, film screenings, residencies, and experimental spaces of learning within cities. I have a Ph.D. in American Studies from Harvard and have taught courses on literature, film, cultural history, and education at Harvard University, Deep Springs College, and Tidelines Institute. I am currently a Mellon Humanities and the University of the Future postdoctoral fellow at the University of Southern California.
I am always open to collaboration, conversations, or sharing resources. You can email me at lnelson0@usc.edu or lauraknels@gmail.com.