Noah Cohan

Noah Cohan is the Assistant Director and Lecturer in American Culture Studies at Washington University in St. Louis. His research and teaching focus on the intersections of American sports, fan cultures, and issues of race and gender. He holds a PhD from Washington University in St. Louis. Cohan’s work includes his book We Average Unbeautiful Watchers: Fan Narratives and the Reading of American Sports (2019), co-editing the book series Power Plays: The New Sports Studies, and founding the Sports Studies Caucus of the American Studies Association. He is also a co-creator of Whereas Hoops, a project advocating for basketball courts in St. Louis’s Forest Park. His recent projects include a cultural history of the football helmet, presented at institutions like the University of Notre Dame.

• Education: PhD, Washington University in St. Louis

Research interests span sports studies, fan studies, narrative analysis, and the cultural implications of race and memory in sports. His writing appears in platforms like Slate, The Conversation, and The Common Reader. Cohan has been featured in media including The New York Times and Bleacher Report for his expertise on sports culture and policy.

He currently serves as co-editor of Sport in the University (a special issue of American Studies) and coordinates the Sports and Society program initiative at WashU. His community engagement includes activism around urban sports infrastructure and public scholarship.