Follow this link to vote in NeMLA's 2014 election:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/STSPXLQ
Thanks!
Monday, December 15, 2014
Sunday, November 16, 2014
Angela Fulk's Statement
Angela Fulk, Buffalo State College SUNY:
I am an adjunct faculty member at SUNY Buffalo State and
Canisius College, both located in Buffalo, NY, where I teach a variety of
courses in English, Classics, and writing.
My Ph.D., from Miami University in Ohio, is in medieval British literature,
with a secondary field in nineteenth-century British literature. In this Fall 2014 semester, which is a fairly
typical one for me, I am teaching five different courses that range from basic
writing to first-year Latin to a graduate seminar in medieval literature. I have presented twice at NeMLA, once in 2008
on Harry Potter and fan fiction, and most recently in 2013, when I received a
C.A.I.T.Y. travel award to present a paper entitled “Earthly and Heavenly Kings
as War Leaders in the Anglo-Saxon Genesis
Poem.”
At the
2008 NeMLA conference, I attended an academic employment workshop. When I explained my status as the spouse of a
tenured faculty member seeking a tenure-track or at least full-time academic
position that would not require me to live in a separate city from my husband, the
workshop leader told me, “You don’t need job counseling—you need crisis
counseling!” Well, the crisis continues for many of us, but I am hoping that by
volunteering to serve on the NeMLA board, I can help alleviate the crisis for
others like me.
Regional
conferences like NeMLA are especially important venues for contingent and
adjunct faculty who do not receive travel funds from their employers, and whose
salaries rarely allow them to travel far from home for professional activities. I am eager to help NeMLA in a Professional
Development capacity to do all I can to help these scholars, who may only have the resources to
attend one professional conference every two or three years, to benefit as much
as possible from coming to NeMLA.
Christopher Varlack's Statement
Christopher Varlack, Morgan State University:
For the past two academic years,
I, Christopher Allen Varlack, have served as a lecturer in the Department of
English and Language Arts at Morgan State University in Baltimore, MD, where I
have taught courses in Freshman Composition and Humanities. While pursuing my
doctoral degree in American Literature at Morgan State University, I have been
an avid scholar in the areas of African-American literature and culture (with
an emphasis on works of the early Harlem Renaissance) while focusing more
recently on professional development and trends in both pedagogical and
institutional change. For instance, I presented alongside two colleagues at the
17th annual regional HBCU Summit on Retention in March 2014 on the
increased role of composition instructors in addressing student retention
issues. I have also organized a panel for the October 2014 Two-Year College
English Association Conference on establishing ongoing collaborative
partnerships between two-year and four-year institutions as a means of
facilitating student success. In addition to forthcoming chapters in several
collections such as Baby Boomers and Popular
Culture: An Inquiry into America’s Most Powerful Generation (2014), I have
an article under consideration with the Journal
of Pan African Studies on reimagining pedagogical and institutional
practices for humanities education in urban learning environments. This focus
on pedagogy and professional life are part of the reason I am eager to serve as
Member-At-Large for Professional Development with NeMLA.
In large part, the core focus of
the Northeast Modern Language Association remains the promotion of innovation
in teaching and scholarship across the areas of language and literature.
Through both its cultural conversation and intense pedagogical exchange (in a
tradition spanning forty-five past conventions), NeMLA strives to remain at the
precipice of new research that will increase our understanding of the texts,
languages, and cultures we engage. In the 45th annual convention located in
Harrisburg, PA, for instance, I participated in a panel on literary tales of
identity (re)construction, presenting a paper on racial indeterminacy and the
politics of passing in James Weldon Johnson’s The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. The panel, filled with four
dynamic speakers and stimulating papers, embodied that mission to the core,
bringing increased attention to under-represented texts while offering new
perspectives for further research. I also had the opportunity to present on a
roundtable on ethnic relations, identities, and social equality in diasporic
Afro-literature, presenting on the rise of the New Negro artist and themes of
social equality in the works of Jessie Redmon Fauset and Langston Hughes.
Though relatively new to NeMLA, I am eager to continue surrounding myself with
the types of engaged critical discussion that each NeMLA panel, roundtable, and
creative session evokes. I am also eager to participate in the strengthening of
NeMLA’s professional development programs as Member-at-Large.
In that regard, the areas of pedagogy and professional life
are topics of increased debate and necessity at conventions such as NeMLA given
the mounting issues of higher education in the twenty-first century. Perusing
the list of planned panels for the 46th annual convention, we are
set to engage in critical conversation regarding key topics from writing across
the disciplines to current issues in grammar instruction to engaging the online
sector and digital Humanities. Still, the area of professional development could
be much stronger. Increased attention should be given to bridging the gap
between two-year and four-year institutions given the presidential push for
eight million new college graduates by the year 2020. Similarly, more
conversation should surround the growing role of adjunct faculty in higher
education, methods toward approaching a more interdisciplinary pedagogy, and
facilitating the professional growth of graduate students pursuing a Humanities
PhD. As Member-at-Large, I intend to advocate for expansion in these areas and
more in order to continue the tradition of promoting sessions and initiatives
that will address the very real issues of a changing academic world. After all,
the continued growth of the higher education system nationwide and the challenges
this will bring on NeMLA as a center for facilitating such vital discussions
demand a vocal and dedicated Member-at-Large. I strive to be that voice of
sustained progress and change.
Lisa Perdigao's Statement
Lisa
K. Perdigao is an Associate Professor of English at the Florida Institute of
Technology. Her research and teaching interests are in the areas of American
literature, young adult literature, television, film, and Florida culture. In
cultural studies, she has published articles on Florida/Disney studies and the
television series Buffy the Vampire
Slayer, Dollhouse, and Community. She has pieces forthcoming
this year on several films and series, including Nolan’s Memento and Inception,
Burton’s Big Fish, Whedon’s Firefly and Serenity, ABC’s Once Upon a
Time, and NBC’s Grimm. She has
developed a curriculum in cultural studies at Florida Tech, designing courses
in television, film, and film/television adaptation that she teaches each
semester.
Perdigao
first joined NeMLA in 2003 while in the Ph.D. program at Northeastern
University, and, despite a migration south, she has attended every NeMLA
convention for the past twelve years. In addition to chairing sessions and
presenting papers, she has worked with NeMLA’s Board in a variety of roles,
starting as the elected representative from the Women’s and Gender Studies
Caucus (2006-2009), working with the WGSC officers and Board members to promote
the Caucus’ membership and activities. She later served as the caucus liaison
to the Executive Board (2010-2011), promoting the interests of all the
caucuses—WGSC, Graduate Student, LGBTQ, and CAITY. Most recently, Perdigao
served as the Special Programs Coordinator (2012-2013), planning, advertising,
and overseeing special events for the 2013 convention.
The Culture and New Media Studies area is a
particularly dynamic one. In all the years of her work with NeMLA, Perdigao has
focused both on programming and on the vitality of the individual communities
within the whole organization, and she will bring that experience and
commitment to the area director’s position. She plans to work with board
members, for example, to promote workshops in the digital humanities, grant
opportunities involving new media, and special sessions/guest speakers in
adaptation, graphic novels, and visual culture, in addition to helping NeMLA
continue to grow with new media.
Lindsay Bryde's Statement
Lindsay Bryde, Suffolk County Community College:
My name is Lindsay Bryde, and I am a writer
and teacher with a myriad of degrees from Fredonia State University (English,
Theatre, Film Studies, and American Studies if you really are curious). I
finished my Master of Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing, specializing in
Dramatic Writing, at Adelphi University. My film and book reviews can be found
on The Examiner.com and FlashlightWorthy.com. I have contributed a chapter to
the collection, Torchwood: Declassified, that was published last year by
I.B. Taurus. My produced work as a playwright includes: “Killing Cupid, Ok,”
“Isobel, I Wish You Well,” "The Naked Man," and “Music for the Pain.”
Currently I am an adjunct faculty member of Suffolk County Community College,
Mandl School, Southern New Hampshire University, and Ashford University. I have
presented at conferences held by the Popular Culture Association of the South
(thrice), Fordham University, and the New England American Studies Association
(four times) in addition to my work with NEMLA.
I have chaired four (soon to be five) panels,
seminars, and roundtables on pop culture studies and pedagogy for NEMLA. This
is why I am campaigning for the position of Director of Cultural and Media
Studies; it is my passion as an academic discipline and I believe that my
interdisciplinary approach will serve the organization well. I am a firm
believer in cross-disciplinary work when the opportunity arises, as evidenced
by each panel I’ve chaired being cross-listed with at least one other field
(and could have been listed with others if the system would have allowed). It
allows for a wider pool of inquiry and diversity to the panelists themselves
(in terms of discipline and career). I also make a concerted effort to open
opportunities for first-time panelists, grad students, early career (adjunct or
full-time) faculty, and encourage others to do the same. I want to work with
the caucuses and other academic areas to develop programming that can appeal to
as broad a range as possible.
In any panel (seminar, roundtable, etc…) that
I coordinate, I believe in a personalized approach to communicating with
everyone that I encounter. We can only grow as an organization if every
applicant for a panel feels like their efforts are being recognized and
encouraged. The information and development of communication with our chairs is
a vital step to the process. The guidance and support of the director stood out
when I chaired my first panel, it’s key to staying on track and ensuring a
positive experience for everyone. This is why I’m eager to take on the role and
pass on what I’ve learned. These are my priorities: interdisciplinary work when
applicable, opening opportunities to members across the board, and support to
chairs.
Richard Schumaker's Statement
Richard Schumaker, University of Maryland University College:
Richard Schumaker brings considerable national and
international experience, a solid academic background and accomplishments, and
very considerable administrative success to his candidacy for the position of
NeMLA Director of Comparative Literature and Languages.
Professor Schumaker was originally educated at the
University of California and the University of Paris-IV (Sorbonne), from which
he holds three graduate degrees. In
Paris, he worked directly with Michel Haar, Henri, Birault, and Emmanuel
Levinas. His main area of interest was
the reflection of Nietzsche and Heidegger on modern literature.
For over twenty years, Richard taught a wide-range of
humanities courses for the University of Maryland University College in Italy
and Germany. During his time in Europe,
he edited and co-edited Focus on Robert
Graves and His Contemporaries and helped organize many conferences on
Graves, as well as conferences and colloquia on the culture of the Great War
and global cinema. He also taught
American political culture and aspects of the research process in the
University of Trier’s “Fachspezifische Fremdsprachenausbildung” program.
Starting in the mid-1990’s, Richard Schumaker played a
leading role in developing the teaching of online writing and humanities
courses for the University of Maryland in Europe. In 2004, he returned to Metropolitan
Washington, D.C. to work as a UMUC administrator and subsequent senior fellow
in preparing faculty to teach online classes rigorously and effectively. From 2004 through 2014 he continued to teach
and write, concentrating on the teaching of advanced Shakespeare classes. In the last two years, he has presented at
the International Comparative Literature Conference in Paris (AILC 2013) and at
the International Zola Conference in New Orleans (AIZEN 2014), as well as the
latest NeMLA conferences at Boston and Harrisburg.
Richard has received many awards and held many national
positions over the years: Maryland
Distance Learning Association President, Maryland Administrator of the Year,
University of Maryland University College Presidential Award, UMUC
representative to the state academic senate (CUSF), and others.
As director of this NeMLA program, Richard will focus on the
following goals:
·
Presenting avenues of scholarship that reflect
current global academic trends and practices
·
Developing areas such as distance learning,
accessibility, and working-adult themes and practices
·
Integrating contemporary social media into our
programs and offerings
·
Developing approaches to literatures and
cultures that might ordinarily be neglected
John Casey's Statement
John Casey is Lecturer in English
at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
His research focuses on the legacy of the United States Civil War and representations
of veterans in American culture. He has
published essays on these topics in American
Literary Realism and Civil War
History and has a book forthcoming in the spring of 2015 titled New Men: Reconstructing the Image of the
Veteran in Late Nineteenth-Century American Literature and Culture (Fordham
University Press).
Scholars in the fields of
American and British literature are experiencing significant changes to the
ways in which they research and teach their subject areas. My own research would have been substantially
more difficult were it not for the growing digital archive of newspapers and
other periodicals from the nineteenth-century United States that helped open a
window onto the cultural moment examined in my book. These same digital resources have begun to
alter the way I teach students in the classroom. Increasingly our text is a hypertext with
interactive components that not only explain the words on the page but bring
the text to life. Writing assignments
have also begun to migrate online, forcing me to consider the next phase in the
life of the college literature essay.
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