English

When you take a literature class with Professor Jeff Berry, it's hard not to notice his enthusiasm. Whether you're creating a reader's theatre version of a nineteenth-century novel, or discussing a film adaptation of a classic work, his passion for teaching shows through. So does his experience. His knowledge of African literature, for example, has been enriched by a year living and teaching in East Africa and a summer fellowship studying with other experts in the field at the University of London.

The Department offers the full traditional curriculum of British and American literature, as well as courses in Hawaiian literature and African and Caribbean literature. Special courses taught recently have included Mystery and Detective Fiction, Literature of the Harlem Renaissance, and a course in environmental literature.

Writing is another focus of the English Department. Because many of the professors are writers themselves, they have a deep understanding of the writing process. Professor Dick Koch, who has published a scholarly book and several articles about teaching writing, has recently finished writing his first novel. Journalism profesor Rene Collins has more than twenty years' experience writing for local and regional newspapers. Members of the department direct the College's Writing Center and the Writing Across the Curriculum program.

As a student in the English Department, you'll extend your education with special opportunities. You'll have the option to take your required Shakespeare course at Oxford University in England. You can get involved as a writer or editor for The College World, the student newspaper, or Oxcart, the College's literary magazine, or enter the annual writing contest. You can join the Pen and Ink Society, a student writers' group, or the Sigma Tau Delta honor society. And you'll have the chance to hear and meet professional writers who visit the campus each year. Recent guests include English Department graduate Kevin Hile, who won an award for his first science-fiction novel, Iowa Poetry Prize winner Gary Gildner, and Pulitzer Prize winner Yusef Komunyakaa.

Many English majors and minors have found satisfying careers in teaching or in journalism. But the English Department will prepare you for graduate school, law school, or virtually any professional field that values the skills of reading, writing and thinking.