Ashley Valanzola
LightNews LightNews
banner
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
Ashley Valanzola
@ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
91 followers 100 following 61 posts
Historian, Navy veteran, Asst Professor @ MTSU working on Modern France, Jewish women's history, Holocaust memory, and museum spaces. Cat lover, group fitness addict, and pastry enthusiast.
Posts Replies Media Videos
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
Another great AJS. Thank you to @kschul.bsky.social for chairing our panel and to everyone who came out.
#AJS
December 16, 2025 at 7:20 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
So proud of what my students have done! Come take a guided tour of the Nashville Holocaust Memorial with us Sunday, Dec. 7 from 11-1230pm.

#Nashville #MTSU

mtsunews.com/mtsu-history...
MTSU history students help enhance Nashville Holocaust Memorial tour experience
A dedicated group of history students from Middle Tennessee State University has undertaken a meaningful project to study and revise the public tour experience at the Nashville Holocaust Memorial.
mtsunews.com
December 3, 2025 at 10:04 PM
Reposted by Ashley Valanzola
markdoyle.bsky.social
Just learned that this was listed as a "notable" by Best American Essays. This pleases me quite a lot.
markdoyle.bsky.social Mark Doyle @markdoyle.bsky.social · Oct 19
This is an essay I wrote about music and grief and sunsets and water and grief and brothers and grief. It’d mean a hell of a lot if you set aside a little time to read it.

The Consolations of Waterloo Sunsets
mcblogs.montgomerycollege.edu/potomacrevie...
Claude Monet, Effect of Sunlight on Waterloo Bridge, 1903
November 21, 2025 at 1:42 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
A major relief
www.nytimes.com/2025/11/10/u...
Supreme Court Denies Request to Revisit Same-Sex Marriage Decision
www.nytimes.com
November 10, 2025 at 6:24 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
So thankful to have been a part of the 25th Nashville Jewish Film Festival.
#Nashville #Tennessee
November 7, 2025 at 2:42 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
My article with Jonathan Zisook is online in the fall issue of Jewish Social Studies. Enjoy!
October 28, 2025 at 5:56 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
Community and music at the East Nashville Ghoul Fest is just what we need right now.
October 25, 2025 at 10:21 PM
Reposted by Ashley Valanzola
dangaristo.bsky.social
University of Arizona now also rejects, albeit in a very conciliatory manner. No comments about academic freedom, just concern that preferential treatment by the government would be anti-merit.

7 out of the 9 initially contacted universities have now said no.

president.arizona.edu/sites/defaul...
We have much common ground with the ideas your administration is advancing on changes that would benefit American higher education and our nation at large. At the same time, a federal research funding system based on anything other than merit would weaken the world’s preeminent engine for innovation, advancement of technology, and solutions to many of our nation’s most profound challenges. We seek no special treatment and believe in our ability to compete for federally funded research strictly on merit. As a demonstration of our commitment to collaboration with the federal government, I have included below the University of Arizona’s Statement of Principles. These principles are not just an expression of philosophy; they are a commitment to strengthen or continue reforms that benefit our students, advance our shared national interests, and protect the taxpayers. Our principles affirm that our university community remains rooted in the pursuit of excellence with clear standards, transparency, and accountability. We welcome the opportunity to engage other universities, higher education associations, members of Congress, and your administration to advance and implement our principles in alignment with the national interest. I look forward to further discussion and a continued partnership with the federal government, which has helped to produce the strongest and most competitive higher education system in the world.
October 20, 2025 at 9:12 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
I'm so inspired by the turnout today! Bravo to everyone who showed up.
karlykingsley.bsky.social Karly Kingsley @karlykingsley.bsky.social · Oct 18
More than 7M people took part in No Kings rallies across the nation today, making it the largest single-day protest in U.S. history and surpassing the June demonstration, which drew just over 5M. In only 4 months, millions more Americans have decided that they’ve had enough.
October 19, 2025 at 1:10 AM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
He's stepping down because these strikes are unethical. Often the people driving these drug boats were forced to do so under threat to their lives or the lives of their families (based on my experiences on a counter drug deployment in South America).

www.navytimes.com/news/your-na...
US Navy commander overseeing Venezuelan boat strikes steps down
The announcement of Adm. Alvin Holsey's departure comes less than one year after he took over as commander of U.S. Southern Command.
www.navytimes.com
October 17, 2025 at 2:12 PM
Reposted by Ashley Valanzola
georgetakei.bsky.social
This is shameful and un-American. The people have a right to ask what their military is doing, and we shouldn’t have to buy just the official line.
A screenshot of an X.com post by @phildstewart , Phil Stewart, stating, "As of today, America no longer has a resident press corps at the Pentagon. Here is the statement from the Pentagon Press Association. Please read and share," with a profile picture of a man wearing sunglasses outdoors. A statement from the Pentagon Press Association (PPA) dated October 15, 2025, featuring the PPA logo with a pentagon and red background. The statement reads: "Today, the Defense Department confiscated the badges of the Pentagon reporters from virtually every major media organization in America. It did this because reporters would not sign onto a new media policy over its implicit threat of criminalizing national security reporting and exposing those who sign it to potential prosecution. The Pentagon Press Association's members are still committed to reporting on the U.S. military. But make no mistake, today, Oct. 15, 2025 is a dark day for press freedom that raises concerns about a weakening U.S. commitment to transparency in governance, to public accountability at the Pentagon and to free speech for all."
October 16, 2025 at 3:45 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
Celebrating pumpkins at Cheekwood Gardens.

#Nashville
October 10, 2025 at 1:58 AM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
My book cover is finalized. I took this photo on a lunch break at the Maison d'Izieu.

Stay tuned, the book is scheduled to come out in June 2026!
iupress.org/978025307582...

#France #FrenchStudies @iupress.bsky.social
October 7, 2025 at 7:09 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
It's nice to see the article I wrote with Jonathan Zisook in print. Check it out in the fall issue of Jewish Social Studies.
October 7, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Reposted by Ashley Valanzola
chadgibbs101.bsky.social
I have a book cover! After years of work, "Survival at Treblinka: Geography, Gender, and Social Networks in Jewish Resistance" is available for pre-order. It will ship in March and the official release date is set for April 2026. I can't wait to share this important history and hear from readers!
October 2, 2025 at 12:20 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
An incredible win for women everywhere, but especially in places with restricted access.
www.nytimes.com/2025/10/02/h...
F.D.A. Approves a New Generic Abortion Pill
www.nytimes.com
October 2, 2025 at 9:25 PM
Reposted by Ashley Valanzola
achatenetc.bsky.social
"En tant que femmes, la société incite les doctorantes et jeunes docteures à être performantes à tous les niveaux. Elles doivent être des « femmes totales », à savoir des professionnelles efficaces, des conjointes attentives et des mères dévouées."
September 28, 2025 at 9:11 AM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
We made it to 5pm on Friday.
September 12, 2025 at 10:05 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
A beautiful night to try some Tuscan wines 🍷
September 8, 2025 at 4:25 AM
Reposted by Ashley Valanzola
wendylrouse.bsky.social
“When you start erasing or sanitizing our history so that it is not offensive, so that all the bad bits are taken out to make people feel comfortable, we lose the ability to think critically,” said Alan Spears, of the National Parks Conservation Association.

🗃️
thehill.com
September 4, 2025 at 1:26 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
I'm thrilled to be helping out with the Nashville Jewish Film Festival this year. I'll be leading a discussion on Elie Wiesel: Soul on Fire.
September 4, 2025 at 7:27 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
And...the semester is off to a great start. 🥳
mtsunews.com/2025-mtsu-fa...
‘There’s no greater honor’: MTSU Honors associate dean receives Career Achievement Award
Although Middle Tennessee State University Honors College Associate Dean Philip E. Phillips was presented with the highest faculty honor, he was quick to spotlight a long list of those who helped s…
mtsunews.com
August 28, 2025 at 5:48 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
Such a cool project, check it out :

mtsunews.com/fialka-carma...
MTSU professor, artist team up on Civil War graphic novel to show ‘what war really looks like’
Instead of a conventional textbook, Middle Tennessee State University associate professor of history Andrew Fialka has taken an innovative approach to recounting Civil War violence through a grippi…
mtsunews.com
August 28, 2025 at 1:51 PM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
The world might be falling apart, but this chocolate fig cake makes life a bit more bearable.
August 27, 2025 at 1:03 AM
ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
Almond poppyseed cake for the win.
August 16, 2025 at 3:57 PM