For Students

Greetings from the chair:

Welcome to the Department of Literature and Language! In past years, we’ve published a newsletter every semester called Footnotes. This semester we’ll be rolling that information into our new departmental website, so plan to look around this site to get details on course listings, upcoming events, faculty news, and other items you were used to finding in Footnotes.

This fall we are pleased to welcome two new faculty members onboard: Assistant Professor Amanda Wray from the University of Arizona and Visiting Assistant Professor Kirk Boyle from Frances Marion College. Dr. Wray has a specialty in composition and rhetoric, while Dr. Boyle brings a background in cultural studies to our department. If you haven’t had a chance to meet them, please do introduce yourself. We are delighted to have them on board!

We’ve been busy the past couple of years developing a newly revised curriculum for our majors. Many of these changes, such as the addition of a theory course and an increased focus on world literature, are changes that students petitioned. The new requirements and courses will go into effect in Fall 2012, but those of you who are currently enrolled majors will need to be aware of the changes. Students who declared a major in Literature and Language prior to Fall 2012 will still be under the old requirements, but you may find that you will need to complete those requirements by taking one of the new courses. For example, we’ll be offering a new set of 4-hour genre courses in fiction, drama and poetry that will replace the old 3-hour LIT 354 or LIT 356 requirement. If you have not yet taken LIT 354 or LIT 356 by Fall 2012, you will fulfill the requirement by taking a new 4-hour genre class. Obviously these changes could have a big impact on your schedule, so do take time to review our Overview of the New Curriculum and talk with your advisor about how you can best proceed.

One of our most exciting upcoming events will be author Sandra Cisneros, who will be on campus Friday March 2nd. Please check out other events and guest speakers on the website. We are pleased with our class schedule for Spring 2012 and the range of offerings it provides. Some of our most popular courses will be available, including Blake Hobby’s Native American Literature and Gwen Ashburn’s Seminar on William Faulkner. Holly Iglesias will be teaching Poetics of Perception and Identity. We’ll also be offering some new courses. Check out Amanda Wray’s Readings in Sex and Gender with its focus on women’s memoir as well as my Introduction to Literature. This latter course, intended primarily for our new students who will be declaring their majors in Fall 2012, will eventually replace our current Introduction to Poetry, and can also count for current students who may have already taken LIT 241 but are seeking to fulfill elective requirements under the current curriculum.

Please know my door is always open, and I invite your comments on courses, speakers, and any other ideas you might have for building and improving our program. It’s a continuing delight for me to have the opportunity to work with such a great group of students and colleagues, and my best wishes for each of you as we move towards Spring 2012.

 Sincerely,

Want to know what you can do with a major in Literature and Language, how toapply for the Creative Writing program or prepare for the comprehensive exams?Thinking about graduate school? You've come to the right place! Information about and additional resources for the Department of Literature and Language are available here for the benefit of interested students and majors. For specific information not found here, consult the Department Assistant, Dawn McCann, in 223 Karpen Hall or call her at 828.251.6411.