New Programs: Social Media, ASL, Letters, Philosophy, Geospatial Information Sciences

• American University is starting the Center for Social Media, in September. The center will conduct research and hold conferences on "public media."
• Dutchess Community College, in New York, has started an American Sign Language program with a special trilingual option for Spanish speakers.
• The University of the South is creating the School for Letters, starting in the summer of 2006, which will offer master's degrees in English and American literature, and an MFA in creative writing. Students -- many of whom are expected to be school teachers -- will take two courses each summer.
• The University of Texas at Arlington and the University of North Texas are starting a joint Ph.D. program in philosophy, beginning in the fall.
• The University of Texas at Dallas will start a new Ph.D. program in the fall in geospacial information sciences, a field that combines data collection, map making and spatial analysis.

Submissions of new programs are welcome for future lists.