Monthly Archives: January 2014

The Story of a Book — About a week ago I took several bags full of books to a used bookstore on Central Avenue called Book Buyers, which is a bit of a misnomer since they no longer buy books. However, they still give store credit. The woman behind the counter checked the books I brought in and gave me $50 in credit that I could use to purchase books in the store. I started browsing the classics section, and I immediately noticed a copy of Thomas Bailey Aldrich’s The Story of a Bad Boy. I know this book well because it played a key role in the history of American children’s literature. It originally came out in 1869, and it set the stage for boys’ adventure stories. It is often seen as the precursor to Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.

I took the book down from the shelf and opened it to the title page. On the inside back cover, written in a child’s careful handwriting, is the following inscription: “Grade VI Horace Mann School. Elbert K. Fretwell. 1933-34.” I quickly realized that this very copy of The Story of a Bad Boy had been owned by the former Chancellor of UNC Charlotte, the person after whom our building is named. My guess is that he kept this book his entire life, and when he died in October 2012, the book was packed up and delivered to the used bookstore. Needless to say, I bought the book, and it has now found a home in the building named after its former owner. I feel a connection to Chancellor Fretwell when I hold this book. I guess that is part of the magic of books.

English Graduate Student Association Conference —The 14th Annual English Graduate Student Association Conference took place last Friday at UNC Charlotte Center City, and the conference was a great success. Our graduate students did an excellent job of organizing this conference, and the quality of the papers presented impressed all of us who attended. This year’s conference attracted graduate students from many universities. In fact, of the twenty-three papers presented, twelve were by students from other universities. Among the other universities represented were Clemson University, Duke University, Johns Hopkins University, and Virginia Tech. The conference ended with the EGSA’s Professor of the Year Presentation. This year the award went to Lara Vetter. Please join me in congratulating Lara on winning this important award.

English Learning Community — The English Learning Community is pleased to announce that eight members of the ELC were honored yesterday at the Learning Community Honor Roll Reception. The reception honored all Learning Community students who made the Dean’s List and Chancellor’s List in the Fall Semester. Each student was recognized on stage and given a certificate to honor his or her achievement. Congratulations to Chelsea Moore, Miranda Tyson, Morgan Helton, Elizabeth Moss, Kimberly Faiai, Haley Russel, Carter Wenger, and Lauren Price!

English Actresses — Angie Williams and Janaka Lewis will be participating in the UNC Charlotte Faculty and Staff reading of Eve Ensler’s The Vagina Monologues to benefit Safe Alliance on this Friday, Jan. 31, 8 pm at McKnight Auditorium in Cone. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased at www.women.uncc.edu. There will also be a combined student/faculty/ staff performance on Saturday 2/1 at 1 pm, in which Angie is also participating.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Aaron Gwyn’s forthcoming novel, Wynne’s War, received a starred and boxed advance review from Publishers Weekly. Here is the link to the review: http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-544-23027-9

Alan Rauch recently published a column in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Here is the link:
https://chroniclevitae.com/news/285-ecce-emendator-the-cost-of-knowledge-for-scholarly-editors?cid=chesectionpromo

Quirky Quiz Question — This year’s EGSA Conference took place at UNC Charlotte Center City. This comparatively new facility is located just a few blocks from Charlotte’s newest park, which is named after a famous artist with Charlotte connections. What is the name of this park?

Today we celebrate the life, accomplishments, and vision of Martin Luther King, Jr., but I think we should also celebrate his wife, Coretta Scott King. Not only did she work alongside her husband throughout his civil rights campaign, but she continued and expanded this campaign for decades after her husband’s assassination in 1968.  She established the King Center for Nonviolent Social Change, spoke out on behalf of gay rights, and played a leadership role in the struggle to end apartheid.  She also led the successful efforts to make her husband’s birthday and national holiday.  

I feel connected to Coretta Scott King.  She began her college career at Antioch College in Yellow Springs, Ohio, where she studied music.  I, too, began my college career at Antioch College, where I studied musical composition among other subjects.  She transferred out of Antioch and moved to New England to study at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston.  I transferred out of Antioch and moved to New England to study at Franconia College in New Hampshire.  While at the New England Conservatory of Music, she met a young minister named Martin Luther King, Jr., and as they say, the rest is history.  While at Franconia College, I met a radical minister named William Briggs, who knew Martin Luther King, Jr., and he encouraged my efforts in the area of political activism.  When I started an underground magazine called the North Country Union Reader, I printed it on Rev. Briggs’ mimeograph machine in his church basement. 

Coretta Scott King has special associations for those of us who take a particular interest in children’s literature.  In 1969 a group of librarians with affiliations with the American Library Association established the Coretta Scott King Award to recognize outstanding children’s books created by African Americans.  They named the award after her in part because of her long-standing interest in the welfare and education of children.  In 1970 they announced the first winner of this award, which went to Lillie Patterson for her biography Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.:  Man of Peace.  As some of you know, every summer I teach a seminar called Children’s Literature Award Winners in which I cover the most recent winners of the major awards in children’s literature, including the Coretta Scott King Award.  Through teaching this seminar, I regularly touch base with Coretta Scott King’s legacy.  I never met her, but I know people who did, and they assure me that she highly valued children’s literature.  

As we honor Martin Luther King, Jr., let us also remember to honor Coretta Scott King.  Perhaps one way to do this is to read a book that has won the Coretta Scott King Award.  Here is a link to a list of past winners of this award:  http://www.ala.org/emiert/coretta-scott-king-book-awards-all-recipients-1970-present.

Award-Winning Lil — Lil Brannon and our former colleague Tony Scott recently  learned that they received the 2014 Braddock Award for their article titled “Democracy, Struggle, and the Praxis of Assessment,” which appeared in the December 2013 issue of College Composition and Communication.  The award was started in l975 and is given to the best essay published during the preceding year in College Composition and Communication, which is widely regarded as the top journal in rhetoric and composition.  Please join me in congratulating Lil (and Tony) for winning this prestigious award.

 Upcoming Events and Deadlines—  Here are some dates to keep in mind:

January 24 — The English Graduate Association Conference will take place on January 24 from from 8:30 to 5:30 at Center City.  Here is a link to more information about the conference:  https://english.uncc.edu/node/141

Quirky Quiz Question — Martin Luther King was a giant in the civil rights movement, but Charlotte also has its giants associated with the civil rights movement.  What is the name of the recently deceased Charlotte lawyer who played a central role in desegregating the Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools through his litigation of the case known as Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education?

Last Week’s Quirky Quiz Question — Last week I asked, “What is the name of the famous Chicago poet who retired to the mountains of North Carolina and lived there for many years?”  The answer is Carl Sandburg.

Our Students — The official enrollment numbers for spring 2014 are not yet in, but the preliminary numbers for our undergraduate English courses are encouraging. As of today, the combined enrollment for all of our undergraduate courses, including the General Education LBST courses taught by English faculty, comes to a total of 2,014. This figure is a significant increase over last spring’s total of 1,824. It is also an increase over the fall 2013 semester total of 1,919. The enrollment figures for our undergraduate courses are clearly increasing. Here are our undergraduate spring enrollment numbers over the last five years:

Spring 2014: 2014 undergraduate seats
Spring 2013: 1824 undergraduate seats
Spring 2012: 1679 undergraduate seats
Spring 2011: 1768 undergraduate seats
Spring 2010: 1766 undergraduate seats

As these figures show, the student demand for our courses is growing, and that is a very hopeful sign. However, these numbers only tell part of the story. Our students are not numbers; they are real people with unique personalities, diverse backgrounds, and varying ambitions. In my view, one of the strengths of our English Department is that we do not treat our students as interchangeable units. This strength was brought home to me this past weekend when I attended Eric Linne’s book-release party. Eric recently graduated from our MA program, and he just published a YA novel titled Reversal. At one point during the party, Eric talked about the evolution of his book, and he gratefully acknowledged the help he received from many of the faculty members in our department. I came away from the party feeling not only proud of Eric but also proud of our dedicated faculty.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Jim McGavran published an article titled “Felicia Hemans’s Feminist Poetry of the Mid-1820s” in the December 2013 issue of Women’s Writings.

Juan Meneses recently presented a paper titled “‘Because Our Fathers Lied’: National Allegiances and the Great War in Sebastian Barry’s A Long Long Way” at the MLA Conference held in Chicago. His paper was included in a session titled “Secrets and the Silences of Memory: The Great War in Modern Fiction.”

Sarah Minslow recently presented a paper titled “The Value of Literary Fiction” at the MLA Conference held in Chicago. Her paper was included in a session titled “Children’s Literature and the Common Core.”

Malin Pereira was on two panels at the MLA Conference held in Chicago. She presided on the panel titled “Myth-busting the Job Search” and was a panelist for the “Pre-convention Workshop for Job Seekers in English.” She also worked for the job counseling center for ADE.

Alan Rauch recently presented a paper titled “Scholarly Journals: Academic and Commercial and Independent Perspectives” at the MLA Conference held in Chicago.

Upcoming Events and Deadlines— Here are some dates to keep in mind:

January 17 — Last day to add classes and drop with no grade.

January 24 — The English Graduate Association Conference will take place on January 24 from from 8:30 to 5:30 at Center City. Here is a link to more information about the conference: https://english.uncc.edu/node/141

Quirky Quiz Question — As my Kudos section indicates, the UNC Charlotte was well represented at the MLA Conference in Chicago. This got me thinking about the connections between North Carolina and Chicago. What is the name of the famous Chicago poet who retired to the mountains of North Carolina and lived there for many years?

The Spring 2014 semester is a milestone for me, for it is my 60th semester teaching in our English Department. This semester is also the 60th semester that I have taught a section of ENGL 3103 (Children’s Literature). For me, teaching this course is always a pleasure. I consider myself lucky to be able to teach regularly a course on a subject for which I have such a long-standing passion. I hope that you also are able to tap into your academic passions as you prepare for the first day of classes. Best wishes great semester.

Kudos— As you know, I like to use my Monday Missives to share news about recent accomplishments by members of our department. Here is the latest news:

Stan Patten, a former member of the English Department, recently published a poetry collection titled Betrayals. Stan taught in the department for many years, and he founded our Writing Resources Center. Unfortunately, he had to take medical-based retirement because he has Myasthenia Gravis. Stan still lives in Charlotte.

Maya Socolovsky’s book titled Troubling Nationhood in U.S. Latina Literature: Exploration of Place and Belonging recently received a very positive review from Choice. Here is a link to the review: http://www.cro3.org/lookup/doi/10.5860/CHOICE.51-1958

Upcoming Events and Deadlines– Here are some dates to keep in mind:

January 8 — First day of classes.

January 17 — Last day to add classes and drop with no grade.

Quirky Quiz Question — Now that I am completing my 30th year at UNC Charlotte, I am reminded of the of the time when I was hired, which occurred during the spring of 1984. The person who was then chair of the English Department stepped down as chair just a few weeks after hiring me. What is the name of this former chair?