photo by: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP

Taylor Swift arrives at the 66th annual Grammy Awards on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024, in Los Angeles.

A Harvard professor will be on the KU campus later this month for a new speaker series about a worldwide cultural phenomenon who in some ways has become Lawrence’s next door neighbor — Taylor Swift.

Stephanie Burt, a Harvard English professor who teaches the class “Taylor Swift and Her World,” will give a keynote address at 3:30 p.m. on Sept. 30 in the Watson Library on the University of Kansas’ Lawrence campus.

Swift, of course, is widely regarded as one of the most successful music artists of all time, and now is frequently in Kansas City as she is dating Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

KU faculty members, though, view Swift as far more than just a popular musician or even a pop icon. They also believe her popularity and her actions — this week she made a consequential presidential endorsement — can be a meaningful way to engage students in a variety of academic areas.

“Taylor Swift offers an opportunity to engage students in intellectual content across disciplines that will hopefully inspire them to explore fields they otherwise would not have considered,” said Misty Heggeness, associate professor of economics and public affairs and a member of the faculty group organizing the series.

KU this semester has five other Swift-themed lectures planned, in addition to Burt’s Sept. 30 lecture that is entitled “Hits Different: Why Taylor Swift Writes Such Strong Songs.” Other scheduled lectures are:

• “Watching from the Stands: Addressing Media Stereotypes With the Taylor Swift-Sports Ecosystem” by Steve Bien-Aimé, an assistant professor at the William Allen White School of Journalism and Mass Communications. 4:30 p.m Sept. 18, Stauffer-Flint Hall.

• “Parasocial Affordances and the Taylor Swift Fandom,” by Brian Donovan, KU professor of sociology. 4:30 p.m., Oct. 17, Stauffer-Flint Hall.

• “SWIFTYNOMICS: Women in Today’s Economy,” by Misty Heggeness, KU associate professor of economics and public affairs. 4:30 p.m., Oct. 30, Stauffer-Flint Hall.

• “What Are You Hearing? Focused Music Analysis for Non-Musicians,” by Kerry Marsh, director of Jazz Singers and Vocal Jazz Lab at KU’s School of Music. 4:30 p.m. Nov. 13, Stauffer-Flint.

• “Sexy Baby, Monster on a Hill, or Something Else? Using the Eras Tour to Understand the Effects of Culture on Public Opinion,” by Clayton Webb, KU associate professor of political science. 4:30 p.m. Dec. 12, Stauffer-Flint.

All events in the series are open to the public and free to attend. All events, other than Burt’s Sept. 30 lecture, will be in room 100 of Stauffer-Flint Hall, which is home to KU’s journalism school at 1435 Jayhawk Boulevard.