Ashley Valanzola
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ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
Ashley Valanzola
@ashleyvalanzola.bsky.social
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.
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
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
Just learned that this was listed as a "notable" by Best American Essays. This pleases me quite a lot.
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...
November 21, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Supreme Court Denies Request to Revisit Same-Sex Marriage Decision
www.nytimes.com
November 10, 2025 at 6:24 PM
So thankful to have been a part of the 25th Nashville Jewish Film Festival.
#Nashville #Tennessee
November 7, 2025 at 2:42 PM
My article with Jonathan Zisook is online in the fall issue of Jewish Social Studies. Enjoy!
October 28, 2025 at 5:56 PM
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
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...
October 20, 2025 at 9:12 PM
I'm so inspired by the turnout today! Bravo to everyone who showed up.
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
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
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.
October 16, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Celebrating pumpkins at Cheekwood Gardens.

#Nashville
October 10, 2025 at 1:58 AM
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
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
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
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
"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
We made it to 5pm on Friday.
September 12, 2025 at 10:05 PM
A beautiful night to try some Tuscan wines 🍷
September 8, 2025 at 4:25 AM
Reposted by Ashley Valanzola
“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
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
The world might be falling apart, but this chocolate fig cake makes life a bit more bearable.
August 27, 2025 at 1:03 AM
Almond poppyseed cake for the win.
August 16, 2025 at 3:57 PM