Kendra Calhoun, Ph.D. (she/her)
Assistant Professor of Linguistic Anthropology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
I’m a linguistic anthropologist and qualitative sociolinguist who critically analyzes the intersections of language, identity, and power in face-to-face and mediated contexts. I examine race, gender, humor, social media discourse, and institutional discourses in higher education with a focus on the language, culture, and experiences of Black Americans. As an interdisciplinary scholar, my work spans linguistics, anthropology, communication studies, media studies, science & technology studies, ethnic studies, gender & feminist studies, and performance studies. I’m passionate about teaching, mentorship, and equity in higher education, and I’ve integrated them into my research throughout my academic career.
Recent news and highlights
I have been named an assistant editor for the the Journal of Black Language and Culture (JBLAC), a new interdisciplinary journal from the Linguistic Society of American & Cambridge University Press. Publishing will begin in 2027, and more information can be found on the LSA website and JBLAC’s Cambridge page.
Lifting as We Climb: How Black Faculty Make Professional and Linguistic Choices to Thrive in Higher Education (co-authored with Aris Clemons, Joy Peltier, Kahdeidra Martin, and Anne Charity Hudley) will be published with Teacher’s College Press in Spring 2026.
I was interviewed about my research on linguistic self-censorship on TikTok on NPR’s Code Switch podcast (July 2025)
Upcoming talks
“ ‘Say___, but Black’: African American English memes on Black TikTok.” Linguistic Society of America, January 2026
“Multimodality and digital affordances in representations of Blackness on TikTok.” Society for Cinema & Media Studies, March 2026
Recent talks
“Linguistic diversity and ideologies of ‘Black language’ on TikTok: Black discursive practice, digital representation, and raciolinguistic ideologies.” Linguistics Seminar Series, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
“Algorithmic influences on everyday digital discourse: Linguistic (self)censorship and innovation on TikTok.” Human-Computer Interaction Seminar, Siebel School of Computing and Data Science, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
“Researching African American language and culture as an African American scholar.” Society for Linguistic Anthropology
“Race-making and identity construction on Black TikTok.” AGUA Distinguished Lecture, Department of Anthropology, University of Arizona
Kendra Calhoun, Ph.D. 