Reflections on a Party — For me, one of the pleasures of hosting the department spring party yesterday was seeing all of the young children using the playground setup in our backyard. When our son was little, we hired a carpenter to build a custom play structure complete with a curvy yellow slide. Our son and his friends spent many hours playing on this structure, but then he grew up and the play set went for years without being used. However, now that our backyard has become the site for our department parties, the play set in coming back to life. I like knowing that the English Department is producing a new generation of young children, full of energy and a zeal for play. It makes me feel hopeful for the future.
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:
Traci Cruey, one of our graduate students, has been accepted into a Ph.D. program at Middle Tennessee State University with full funding where she plans to study children’s literature.
Toynia Edmonds, one of our undergraduate students, took first place in English for a paper she presented last week at the Undergraduate Research Conference. She wrote her paper on the mother-daughter voice in Thylias Moss’ Slave Moth.
Sarah Minslow published an article titled “Considering the Common Core: Literary Fiction Is the Heart of the Matter” in the debut issue of RISE: A Children’s Literacy Journal.
Anita Moss published an article titled “Remembering E. L. Konigsburg” in the debut issue of RISE: A Children’s Literacy Journal.
Paul Redd, one of our undergraduate students, took second place in the sustainability category for his poster presentation at last week’s Undergraduate Research Conference. His presentation was titled “Sustainability Programs for African Children and the Power of Exposure through Children’s Literature.”
Upcoming Events and Deadlines— Here are some dates to keep in mind:
April 30 — The English Department Student Awards Ceremony will take place in the Dale Halton Room in the Library from 12:30-2:00.
Quirky Quiz Question — As we look forward to this year’s English Department Awards Ceremony, I am pleased that we will be giving two new awards that recognize outstanding students in the area of technical/professional writing. One award will go to a graduate student, and one will go to an undergraduate student. These awards are named for two retired faculty members who taught technical/professional writing courses. Who are these faculty members?