In the second of a two-part series to mark last week’s global climate strike and the U.N. Emergency Climate Summit in New York, K-State English department faculty and alumni explore literature’s engagement with the natural world. Through quotations and short, reflective essays we reflect on how literature can help us understand humanity’s historic relationship with … Continue reading Literature and Climate — Part II
In the first of a two-part series to mark last week’s global climate strike and the U.N. Emergency Climate Summit in New York, K-State English department faculty and alumni explore literature’s engagement with the natural world. Through quotations and short, reflective essays, we reflect on how literature can help us understand humanity’s historic relationship with … Continue reading Literature and Climate — Part I
When do you think of censorship, what do you think of? Where do you think it takes place? According to the American Library Association (ALA), 483 books were challenged or banned in the U.S. in 2018 alone, and most of the challenges and bans came from public libraries. And those are just the ones … Continue reading Standing Up to Censorship: Banned Books Week 2019
Results from our most recent survey of English undergraduate alumni confirm what we've long known: that the English major accommodates itself to an extraordinarily wide range of fields. We heard from 176 alumni who graduated between the 1940s and the 2010s. We are proud of all of our graduates, but some occupations definitely piqued our … Continue reading What Can You Do with an English Major?: The 2017 Undergraduate Alumni Survey
"When Words Don’t Look as They Should: Learning to Read and Transcribe English Secretary Hand" During my Arts & Sciences Undergraduate Research Project this summer, I learned to read a new language: English — English Secretary Hand, that is. Specifically, I transcribed under the mentorship of Steffi Dippold a letter written and copied in the … Continue reading Undergrad Student Spotlight: Krista Everhart
On Monday September 16, we had the good fortune to hear from several of our alumni who are pursuing careers in higher education administration. The catalyst: a site visit by Shaute Montgomery (MA '08) and her team from Central Missouri State University. Shaunte serves as the Title III Coordinator and Director of First Year Programs … Continue reading Alumni Spotlight: Career Paths in Higher Education
2019 marks the 10th year of the K-State Book Network (KSBN) and our department's co-sponsorship of the program. Earlier this evening, we had the pleasure of hearing this year's author, Adib Khorram, speak about his book, Darius the Great Is Not Okay, and how it developed from his own experiences. Below are a few photos … Continue reading Lecture by Adib Khorram
Each month during the academic year, we assemble a newsletter of the department's recent publications, presentations, announcements, and awards. The September issue always provides an impressive range of research, scholarship, and creative activity that our faculty and students have shared beyond Kansas State, given that it covers the summer months of May, June, July, and … Continue reading Summer 2019 Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activity
"Bernard Malamud's heritage has created a problem for the literary critic," begins an M.A. thesis from 1975, titled The Theme of Intimacy in Three Works by Bernard Malamud: "Intimacy is not always comfortable; it is often unexpected, undeserved, and tumultuous. However, for Malamud, it is always necessary." Today, we celebrate an alumna whom we … Continue reading Alumni Spotlight: Nan Johnson
— Karin Westman, Associate Professor and Department Head
K-State English 