Trevin Garcia presenting his work at the McNair Heartland Conference, September 2017. Latinx English in the Heartland: An Analysis of /l/ Variation in Liberal, Kansas. I'm a senior in English Literature and a post-research scholar of the McNair Scholars program. This summer, I conducted research with Dr. Mary Kohn on linguistic changes in Liberal, … Continue reading Undergrad Student Spotlight: Trevin Garcia
Below is an open letter of support from 31 faculty members in the Department of English at Kansas State University. For more information about the events prompting this letter, see the reporting provided by Inside Higher Ed and the Chronicle of Higher Education. December 1, 2017 To the Members of the Nebraska Board of … Continue reading In Support of Academic Freedom at the University of Nebraska Lincoln
“Words are weapons, sharper than knives.” – INXS Recently, there has been much in the news about Russian interference during the last presidential election. Of particular interest to both the intelligence community and Congress is the way in which Russia purchased advertising and conducted hundreds of millions of interactions with Americans on social media platforms. … Continue reading Weapon of Choice
On March 11, 1818, Mary Shelley published Frankenstein, and the English Department's Graduate Track in British and American Literature decided to dedicate the 2017-18 academic year to celebrating this singular accomplishment. Often credited with inventing the genre of science fiction, Shelley’s novel is both of its time and timeless, a representative example of romantic literature … Continue reading Happy Birthday, Dear Frankenstein
When students come to my office, they often scan my bookshelves while I read through their drafts. I wonder what impression they’re forming from the titles they read? What words repeat? Gender. Feminist. Rhetoric. Language. Teaching. Composition. Body and Bodies. Students in my “Advanced Expository Writing for Prospective Teachers” classes would recognize the books on … Continue reading Shelfie Thursday: Abby Knoblauch
Here at the Kansas State English Department — Fine Purveyor of Literary Listicles for All of Your Holiday Needs — we're thankful for the holiday break next week, for our families, for our students, for our colleagues, for our friends, for those who fight for the rights of others, and for books — don't forget … Continue reading Five Books to Help You Give Thanks
The 8-foot replica of the Ad Astra statue in McPherson, Kansas. Photo by the author. What do you think of when you imagine the Topeka skyline? Can you easily call to mind the figure that commands the sky? That figure is a 22 foot-tall sculpture of a Native American holding a bow and shooting an … Continue reading Undergrad Student Spotlight: Cheyenne White
Jaime DeTour and her major professor, Associate Professor Carol Franko The success of The Hunger Games and the Divergent series has led to the publication of many other young adult dystopian novels. While fictional dystopian societies can inspire movements for political change, such as the use of the iconic red handmaid’s uniform from The Handmaid’s … Continue reading Grad Student Spotlight: Jaime DeTour
Office discoveries, as Dr. Michael Donnelly, Emeritus Associate Professor, cleaned out his office after 45 years of service to K-State. (Photo: August 7, 2017) Can you identify all of the technologies in the photo above? Have you taught with one or more of them? While assisting Emeritus Associate Professor Michael Donnelly this summer, as he … Continue reading Teaching with Technology through the Years
It's the spookiest time of year: You know, when undergraduates are trying to decide whether or not they should pursue graduate studies. At Kansas State, we have an M.A. program, and we've done a lot to make sure that our grad students receive financial support (most of our graduate students are also GTAs), opportunities for intellectual growth … Continue reading No, This Skeleton Did Not Prep for the GRE: On Applying to Grad School in English
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