Monday Missive – April 29, 2019

April 29, 2019 by Mark West
Categories: Monday Missive

Party Favors — Most people think of party favors as small gifts that are given to the guests at a party.  After the party is over, they can take these party favors home with them as mementos of the occasion.  I remember purchasing inexpensive toys that my wife and I gave away as party favors to the children who came to our son’s birthday parties during his early childhood years.  Nowadays, however, I like to think of party favors in a less materialistic way.  In a sense, the memories of our experiences at a party are similar to party favors.  Like conventional party favors, these memories are the takeaways that we bring home with us after going to a party, but unlike most conventional party favors, these memories can last for years.
 
During my thirty-five years as a member of our English Department, I have many lasting memories from the dozens of department parties that I have attended over the course of my career.  I remember dancing with Kay Horne at one of my first department parties back when Fred Smith was the chair.  I remember talking about Judy Blume’s novels with Ron Lunsford’s son, Christopher, back when Ron was the chair and Christopher was still a boy.  I remember having a long conversation with Blair Rudes about his experiences as a consultant on the film The New World back when Cy Knoblauch was the chair. I remember talking with Ernest Pereira about our mutual love of Greek food back when Malin Pereira was the chair.
 

Now that my wife and I host most of the department parties, I pay more attention to the experiences of the attendees of the department parties.  Like any party host, I want everyone at the party to have an enjoyable experience.  This past weekend, nearly fifty people came to the English Department’s spring party, which took place in our backyard.  During the the party, I took pleasure in seeing lots of people laughing and talking, but I was especially pleased to see Deje McGavran and Matt Rowney engaged in a long conversation.  As Jim McGavran’s wife, Deje has attended many English Department parties over the years, but prior to Saturday’s party, she and Matt had never met.  Matt, as many of you know, now teaches the courses on British Romanticism that Jim had taught for decades.  After the party, Deje told me how meaningful it was to her to get to know Matt.  I am sure that for both Deje and Matt their conversation  provided them with a sense of continuity and community.  There can be no better party favor.

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

Alan Rauch received a one-month research fellowship at the Library Company of Philadelphia (founded by Benjamin Franklin) and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.  Also, Alan recently presented a paper titled  “Knowledge, Assertion, and Contestation: Children and the Making of Expertise” at the British Women Writers Conference in Auburn, Alabama.

Thomas Simonson, one of our former undergraduate honors students in literature, will be entering the doctoral program in English at UNC Chapel Hill in the fall with a full-funding package.

Sophie Yates, one of our current graduate students, recently presented a paper titled “Moving between Space and Time: Mary Wollstonecraft’s A Short Residence in Sweden as Travelogue and Speculative Document” at the British Women Writers Conference in Auburn, Alabama.

Upcoming Events and Deadlines — Here is information about upcoming events and deadlines:

May 8 — Paula Martinac will launch her new novel, Clio Rising, at Park Road Books on Wednesday,  May 8, 2019, at 7:00 p.m.

May 11 — The Commencement for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences will take place on Saturday, May 11, 2019, at 3:00 p.m.

May 13 — Final grades for the Spring 2019 term must be submitted by Monday, May 13, 2019, at noon.

Quirky Quiz Question —  Deje McGavran taught as a lecturer in our English Department for several years before joining the faculty in the English Department at a sister institution of higher education.  What is the name of this sister institution?

Last week’s answer: Malin Pereira, Becky Roeder, and Liz Miller

I am not the only member of the English Department who has connections to Madison, Wisconsin.  Three members of our faculty earned graduate degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison although only two of them earned their doctoral degrees from there.  Interestingly, two of these three faculty members started out in the same cohort of MA students.  What are the names of these three faculty members?