Emmylou Harris is among a select group of leaders in the sciences, the humanities and the arts, business, public affairs, and the nonprofit sector to be elected to this year's class of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. Emmylou joins 209 other new Fellows and 19 Foreign Honorary Members in one of the nation’s most prestigious honorary societies and a center for independent policy research.

The scholars, scientists, jurists, writers, artists, civic, corporate and philanthropic leaders come from 28 states and 11 countries. They represent universities, museums, national laboratories, private research institutes, businesses, and foundations. This year’s group also includes Nobel laureates and recipients of the Pulitzer and Pritzker prizes, MacArthur Fellowships, Academy, Grammy, and Tony awards, and the National Medal of Arts.

In the humanities and arts, new members include, along with Emmylou, and among others, biographer Robert Caro, author Thomas Pynchon, choreographers Trisha Brown and Edward Villela, actors Dustin Hoffman and James Earl Jones, mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne, and jazz pianist Kenny Barron. The Academy elected 19 Foreign Honorary Members from Europe, Asia, Africa, Canada, and Israel, including Nelson Mandela, Bono, actress Dame Judi Dench, and Hong Kong-based filmmaker Wong Kar-Wai.

The new class will be inducted at a ceremony on October 10, at the Academy’s headquarters in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The American Academy of Arts & Sciences, established in 1780 by founders of the nation, undertakes studies of complex and emerging problems. Current projects focus on science, technology, and global security; social policy and American institutions; the humanities and culture; and education. The Academy’s membership of scholars and practitioners from many disciplines and professions gives it a unique capacity to conduct a wide range of interdisciplinary, long-term policy research.

Since its founding by John Adams, James Bowdoin, John Hancock, and other scholar-patriots, the Academy has elected as members the finest minds and most influential leaders from each generation, including George Washington and Benjamin Franklin in the 18th century, Daniel Webster and Ralph Waldo Emerson in the 19th, and Albert Einstein and Winston Churchill in the 20th. The current membership includes more than 250 Nobel laureates and more than 60 Pulitzer Prize winners.

For more information on the Academy and a complete list of fellows included in this year's class, visit amacad.org.