The Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies program at UVA's School of Continuing and Professional Studies has welcomed three exceptional faculty members to new roles on the general faculty this semester. Richard Floyd, Seth Horton, and Marie Wallace each bring a remarkable depth of scholarship, creative achievement, and real-world experience to the classroom and to the students they advise and mentor every day.
Richard Floyd: Historian, Advisor and Champion of the British World
Richard Floyd has been a familiar presence in the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies program since 2009, teaching courses in research methods and history and culture, with a particular focus on Britain, its empire and the people and movements that shaped it. His courses range widely, from literary history and religious dissent to slavery, colonization and the legacies of empire. He has also served as an academic advisor since 2021, making him a go-to voice for students navigating the program.
A proud William and Mary alum, Floyd earned a Bachelor's Degree in History before heading to Washington University in St. Louis, where he completed both his master's and Ph.D. in history and religious studies. He has also continued teaching at Washington University over the years as an adjunct instructor.
Floyd’s scholarly work has taken shape in two published books: Islands and Empire: A History of Modern Britain (2021) and Church, Chapel and Party: Religious Dissent and Political Modernization in 19th-Century England. For students drawn to history, culture and the wide sweep of the British world, Floyd’s courses offer something genuinely rare.
Seth Horton: Writer, Editor, and Literary Explorer of the American Southwest
Seth Horton joined the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies program in 2014 and has since become one of the program's most versatile instructors. He teaches literature and research methods, mentors’ students through the Capstone process and serves as the primary instructor for ISLS 3000: Transformations: Reading, Thinking and Communicating in the Liberal Arts, the course that welcomes students into the bachelor’s degree completion experience.
Horton’s own academic path reflects the kind of curiosity the program celebrates. Horton earned his Bachelor's Degree in Philosophy and Religious Studies from Virginia Commonwealth University, then a Master's Degree in Religious Studies from University of Virginia before pivoting toward creative writing and literature — earning a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Arizona and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Maryland. Horton’s dissertation explored modernist literature in the American Southwest, a region that continues to fuel his creative work.
Horton most recently published On a NASA Flight to Heaven (Texas Christian University Press, 2024), a collection of short stories set throughout the U.S.-México borderlands. He has also co-edited several acclaimed anthologies of Southwestern fiction, with titles published by the University of New Mexico Press, the University of Texas Press and Ohio University Press. Horton’s work has been recognized as a notable book of the year by New West, and several of his short stories have been nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
Marie Wallace: Applied Anthropologist, Social Worker, and Lifelong Learner
Marie Wallace has been teaching in the Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies and Bachelor of Professional Studies in Health Sciences Management programs since 2023, offering courses in psychology, anthropology, research methods and wellness. Her scholarly life spans multiple disciplines, continents and fields, all connected by a deep commitment to understand how people experience the world and how institutions can better serve them.
Wallace holds a Ph.D. in Applied Anthropology from American University, a Master of Anthropology from the University of Tennessee, and a Master of Social Work from Arizona State University. Her research centers on global mental health, aging, social service delivery, and the intersecting roles of technology and social change. Most recently, she has been studying aging clients, ecotherapy, and sense of place — work she has presented at global conferences and caucuses.
Wallace’s international reach is remarkable. She has been actively involved with the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences for over two decades, presenting at IUAES Congresses in Cape Town, Kunming, Chiba and Florianópolis. She has also presented with an international group of scholars at the European Association of Social Anthropologists at Queen's University in Belfast, where their work focused on knowledge and knowledge control.
True to her belief in lifelong learning, Wallace recently completed a Master of Educational Technology from Boise State University, informing her research into effective teaching practices for undergraduates. She also earned a certificate in the use of Artificial Intelligence in mental health from New York University. Wallace’s students benefit not just from her expertise, but from watching someone model exactly what it means to keep growing.
We are proud to have Richard Floyd, Seth Horton and Marie Wallace as part of our Bachelor of Interdisciplinary Studies community. Their dedication to students, their remarkable scholarly lives and their commitment to interdisciplinary thinking make them wonderful additions to the program and a reminder of our mission to make education transformational.