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From the Chair Recently, the city of New Orleans has been taking down its monuments to Confederate “heroes,” and the process has generated some controversy,

particularly among white supremacists. They argue that these statues celebrate Southern heritage, and only political correctness run amok demands that the city take this action. In an effort to combat this sort of nonsense, the mayor of New Orleans, Mitch Landrieu, gave a speech highlighting why these monuments had to go. “These statues are not just stone and metal,” the mayor said. “They are not just innocent remembrances of a benign history. These monuments purposefully celebrate a fictional, sanitized Confederacy; ignoring the death, ignoring the enslavement, and the terror that it actually stood for.” Our country has undergone a radical political revolution over the past year or so, a revolution that too often, as we are now finding out, has been undergirded by falsehoods and wishful thinking. It is time that citizens, following the lead of Mayor Landrieu, start scrubbing away the absurdity and face up to the reality of our circumstances. We can surely have political debates about the direction of our country, but these debates must be grounded in the world we inhabit, not the one we read about on the Internet or the one we might yearn for but that never really existed. English majors can play a vital role in this project of “scrubbing.” The critical thinking skills we have been taught can help us distinguish between “fake news” and considered facts. We can measure an opinion not just by how charismatically or loudly it is issued

News from Raub Hall Newsletter of the English Department Lock Haven University 2016-2017

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but by the evidence that sustains it. We can also more easily escape our “bubble” and consider and possibly accept ideas that run counter to what we currently believe. These skills are no longer abstract concepts or talking points: they are necessary equipment for engaged citizenry. As always, this newsletter tells you about what our faculty and students have accomplished during the 2016-17 academic year. We are very interested in hearing from you about your adventures in the world beyond Lock Haven University. But this newsletter also serves as a tribute to our continued devotion to rationality and its commendable siblings: civil discourse, continued investigation and discussion, and devotion to the meaningfulness of all human beings. Warmly Dr. David Russell

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Elizabeth Gruber, Renaissance Ecopolitics from Shakespeare to Bacon: Rethinking Cosmopolis, Routledge Studies in Shakespeare, 2017.

Although Dr. Gruber’s previous work largely focused on Shakespearean adaptation, within the last seven years she says she has found herself drawn to ecopolitics in literature, or, as Dr. Gruber defines it, the way that ideas about nature end up being institutionalized. Shakespeare serves to anchor the book, Dr. Gruber says, but the book itself covers multiple figures including Francis Bacon, Thomas Kidd, and John Ford. Dr. Gruber says that the Renaissance is “the hinge which turns us toward the modern”, and the world of ecocriticism, the study of literature and the environment, is no exception. The book serves to explicate the conversation between classical, renaissance, and modern perspectives of science and literature and how they come together under the applications of ecopolitics. For Dr. Gruber, ecocriticism and the study of ecopolitics in literature open an avenue for us to start recognizing “kinship but also difference between humans and nature” as well as “the literary value and its practical world impact” of ecocriticism.

Dr. Gruber’s book is on pre-order now on Amazon.com and will be available early this summer.

Faculty Spotlight By Tabitha Fisher , Megan Mckenna and Tyler Tallmadge

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Marjorie Maddox Hafer, Wives’ Tales. Seven Kitchens Press, 2017. Marjorie Maddox Hafer, What She Was Saying. Fomite, 2017. Marjorie Maddox Hafer, A Man Named Branch: The True Story of Baseball’s Great Experiment. Zing! Schoolwide, 2017. http://www.schoolwide.com/zing Marjorie Maddox Hafer, Inside Out: Poems on Writing and Reading Poems. Zing! Schoolwide, 2017. http://www.schoolwide.com/zing Marjorie Maddox Hafer, True, False, None of the Above. Cascade Books Poiema Poetry, 2016.

From her first publication in Campfire Magazine at eight years old, Professor Marjorie Maddox Hafer has published over 500 poems, stories, and essays in a variety of journals and magazines. In the past year she has published five works: What She Was Saying; Wives’ Tales; True, False, None of the Above; Inside Out: Poems on Writing and Reading

Poems, and A Man Named Branch: The True Story of Baseball's Great Experiment.

In What She Was Saying¸ Maddox Hafer explores a variety of women’s issues through different perspectives and backgrounds of women nationwide and includes a compilation of short stories, flash fiction, and creative nonfiction. In Wives’ Tales, Maddox Hafer brings a new life to classic fairy tales. The first half is written in the style of a twisted fairytale. The second half, however, focuses on the wives of famous literary characters named Peter, including but not limited to: Peter Pan, Peter Cottontail, and Peter Piper.

In her poetry collection True, False, None of the Above (an Illumination Book Medalist in the category of Education), Maddox Hafer examines “how books mark and mirror our lives” and how literature sometimes portrays the struggle of the soul.

Maddox Hafer has also been working on children’s books. She has recently agreed to a partnership with Schoolwide. In Inside Out: Poems on Writing and Reading Poems for 4th - 8th grades, she writes poems about writing poems. This book is being

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distributed to schools nationwide, and has writing exercises focusing on poems and how to create them.

Maddox Hafer has also published this year A Man Named Branch: The True Story of Baseball’s Great Experiment. This is a more personal book for Maddox Hafer, as this middle-grade biography focuses on her great granduncle. Rickey is an important figure in American history, known as the man to help break the color barrier in baseball by signing Jackie Robinson.

Maddox Hafer offered this bit of advice for future writers: “read and write as much as possible.” She also encourages those pursuing a writing career to allow themselves to fail often and to develop a thick skin. “There is a lot of rejection in the publishing industry, and authors need to be willing to try multiple times before their work is finally accepted. Be persistent. There are endless opportunities for student authors.”

Robert Myers, Reconciling Nature: Literary Negotiations of the Natural, 1876-1945. University of Georgia Press, 2017.

In his book, Dr. Myers seeks to discuss how ecological concerns play out in classic American novels, an area fairly neglected by ecocritics. Dr. Myers discusses complicated views of nature amongst Americans during periods of greater environmental awareness, and outlines the conflict between those who saw nature as needing to be protected, and those who saw it as a threat, as well as the historical circumstances informing those views. Dr. Myers says that his interests in ecocriticism began around ten years ago, coinciding with his own growing interest in the outdoors. The focus on this period between 1876 and 1945, according to Dr. Myers, is “fascinating” as it is a period characterized by “the struggle to define and understand nature in a period of rapid industrialization,” where “we see the present being born in the past.”

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Dr. Myers’s book is anticipated for release towards the end of the year. This will be Dr. Myers second book.

Devi, Gayatri. Review of Religious Difference in a Secular Age: A Minority Report by Saba Mahmood, Hypatia: A Journal of Feminist Philosophy, 23 April 2017. http://hypatiaphilosophy.org/HRO/reviews/content/316 Devi, Gayatri. “A Sentence Within a Sentence: Solitary Confinement as Torture,” a review essay of Hell is a Very Small Place: Voices From Solitary Confinement, edited by Jean Casella, James Ridgeway and Sarah Shourd in North Dakota Quarterly 83.4, January 2017, pp. 128-135. Devi, Gayatri. “Misogyny, Gun Control, and Mental Illness: The Etiology of a Cultural Disease “ in Dangerous Discourses: Feminism, Gun Violence and Civic Life, ed. Catherine R. Squires, Peter Lang Publishing, 2016, pp. 157-176. Devi, Gayatri, Tara Mitchell, Nicole Burkholder-Mosco, Lisette Schillig, Katie Ely and Holle Canatella. “Analysis of Domestic Violence Services in Rural Pennsylvania.” Center for Rural Pennsylvania Publications, 2016. The research was grant funded by the Center for Rural Pennsylvania, a research office of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. Devi, Gayatri. “Old Enough to Drink: Women and Alcohol in College Drinking Party Films.” National PASSHE Women’s Consortium Conference, Kutztown University, 7-8 October 2016. Devi, Gayatri. “Mothering as an Imaginary of Political Peace: Mothers of the #BlackLivesMatter Movement and the Democratic Process.” 2017 International Symposium of the Association for the Study of Women and Mythology, Pendle Hill Quaker Center for Study and Contemplation, Wallingford, PA, 25 March 2017. Gayatri Devi and the Association for the Study of Women and Mythology (ASWM) were awarded 8000/- dollars in grant money from the Vaughan Family Foundation to

Faculty Kudos

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curate the work of indigenous and Native American feminist artists. Devi serves on the executive board of ASWM. Gruber, Elizabeth. Renaissance Ecopolitics from Shakespeare to Bacon: Rethinking Cosmopolis. Routledge, 2017. Gruber, Elizabeth. “‘To be new made when thou art old’: The Ecopolitics of Regeneration in Shakespeare’s Sonnets.” Paper at the Northeastern Modern Language Association Conference, 2017. Myers, Robert M. “Disciplinary Nature in Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle.” Paper at the Northeast Modern Language Association Conference (2017).

Myers, Robert M. “Progressive Water Development in Mary Austin’s The Ford.” Paper at the ASLE Symposium “The Heart of the Gila: Wilderness and Water in the West” (2016).

Dana Washington joined the editorial board of Impost, the journal of the English Association of Pennsylvania State Universities. Faculty and current students are encouraged to learn more about the publication and submit their best literary scholarship and creative writing for consideration at <http://eapsu.org/Impost>.

DIGITAL TOOLS IN THE CLASSROOM

On April 20, 2017, students in Dr. Baker’s Methods I course gave presentations and demonstrations about selected digital tools. On poster boards and handouts, students reported information such as purposes, features, general and English-specific classroom usages. Additionally, students located and shared video how-to’s or gave their own. Students also brought in tangible or electronic sample products/creations that they or others created.

Secondary Education English By Dr. Alyce Baker

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Far right: Yoo-Jin Choi, an international student from South Korea, listens as Sara Stringfellow presents to Brooke Nadolsky options offered by StoryBird™.

Kelsea Lange describes two interactives available on readwritethink.org to international Japanese student, Haruhi Tanaka.

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Jenah Dellinger-Eaton shows Sara Stringfellow the creations she made using ToonDoo™.

Brooke Nadolsky enthusiastically presents information to Seth Stoner about all of the possibilities MixedInk™ offers.

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From left: Grace Monroe talks to Viktoriia Roman, an international student from Ukraine, about features and applications of Nearpod™, and Jenah Dellinger-Eaton listens as Blair Brown (in pink) shows samples of quizzes and surveys she created using Kahoot!™

From left: Kelsea Lange listens intently as Ashley Hostrander shares her excitement about the discoveries of using Plickers™ in the classroom.

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Viktoriia Roman, an international student from the Ukraine, reveals features of Glogster™ to Ashley Hostrander.

On February 28, 2017, Kara Frantz, a spring 2016 secondary English graduate, met with current student teachers during their practicum session. Kara talked about hiring processes and life as a first-year teacher at State College High

On February 28, 2017, Kara Frantz, a spring 2016 secondary English graduate, met with current student teachers during their practicum session. Kara talked about hiring processes and life as a first-year teacher at State College High School. Student teachers from left to right: Samantha Nash, Tiffany

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School.

From left to right: Kara Frantz and Dr. Alyce Baker

Steppe, Kara Frantz (guest speaker), Kristin Davis, and Diosanny Rivera-Placido. Student teachers missing from photo: Trent Wisler and Morgan Bittner.

The Writing Center is part of Tutorial Services and is located on the second floor of Stevenson Library. It employs students with exceptional English skills to tutor students on a drop-in basis. The Writing Center associates help students with a variety of needs, including grammar, spelling, organization, and citations. Students are welcome to bring in essays from any class, as we do not limit our services to English classes.

In a typical semester, the Writing Center is open five days a week with tutor hours designed to serve maximum student needs.

Monday: 10am to 11am and 12pm to 6pm

Tuesday through Thursday: 10am to 6pm

Friday: 10am to 12pm

The Writing Center also offers online help by email, which is checked at 8 pm on weeknights. The online account may be accessed at lhuwriting@lhup.edu.

Getting to know the Writing Center Assistants

Breanna Balliet is a Freshman in the Secondary English Education program. She started working in the Writing Center in Spring of 2017. “I believe that working at the Writing Center would be great experience for a future teacher.” Breanna is thankful for her job at the Writing Center, as it has taught her how to communicate more effectively and it cemented her decision to study English.

LHU Writing Center: More than a Job By Kealy Wassil and Tabitha Fisher

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Tabitha Fisher is a Junior in the English Writing Concentration and has worked at the Writing Center since August 2015. She enjoys her work in the Writing Center: “I have an opportunity to uplift students' confidence in their own writing and to better understand the writing challenges that different students face.” Tabitha hopes that her experience in the Writing Center will allow her to help students as a future English professor.

Cailyn Leskovansky is a Senior completing her degree in Psychology. Cailyn joined the Writing Center in Spring of 2017 because she previously tutored at Clearfield Campus and missed the tutoring experience. “I enjoy overcoming the language barrier to help ESL students because it is so rewarding to see their improvement.”

Marissa Martin is a Sophomore in the Secondary English Education program and has worked at the Writing Center since August 2016. She enjoys being able to help other students, as well as the freedom and mobility that the Writing Center offers. “I am thankful for the challenges that come with working in the Writing Center because they prepare me for student teaching.”

Hendrika Masire is a Sophomore studying Accounting; she joined the Writing Center in 2016. She learned about the Writing Center at Freshman orientation and decided to apply because she has always been passionate about writing. Working at the Writing Center has impacted Hendrika: “It has helped me connect with others, improve myself professionally, and become a better listener.”

Lindsey Walsh joined the Writing Center in November 2016. She is majoring in History and minoring in Sociology. “My favorite parts of working in the Writing Center are seeing students improve upon their writing and helping the international students because they are so open to suggestions about their writing.” Lindsey also states that working in the Writing Center has helped further develop her skills as a writer.

Kealy Wassil is a Junior in the Secondary English Education program and has worked at the Writing Center since November 2016. Kealy values her work at the Writing Center: “While working in the Writing Center has its challenges, I enjoy my job here because it prepares me for teaching and allows me to work with students in all fields of study.”

We asked the tutors to tell us more about their experiences as a Writing Center tutor. For Lindsay Walsh, one of the favorite parts of working at the Writing Center was working with international students. “Working with international students is a favorite of mine because they are so open to learning. Whenever anyone comes into the

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center, regardless of their native language, the first thing most students ask tutors to look at is “grammar.” Because non-native speakers come to the Writing Center with the intent of learning and applying the material they’ve learned, they typically leave the center much more knowledgeable and empowered. “

For Breanna Balliet, tutoring has become a way of life. “This job has become a sort of “after class activity” for me.,” she said. “Most of my shifts line up right as my classes end so I go from learning to teaching, which cements what I am being taught in my classes. In terms of my college experience, this has really helped me get out of my comfort zone and I’m making friends through working here. I feel like I am more outgoing now because of the center than I was when I started.”

Breanna finds the need to adapt her “teaching style to fit each student” challenging and rewarding. “I am an English education major and I believe that this is great practice for working with students in my classroom in the future.”

Hendrika Masire has always “been passionate about writing.” Hendrika also uses French tutoring to improve her command of the French language. “ The Writing Center has helped me become a better listener and improve myself professionally,” Hendrika said.

For Cailyn the biggest challenge in her tutoring is “language barrier.” “Language barriers are always tough, but it is really rewarding when I help someone see English in a different way, and understand it just a little bit better than they did before they came to me.”

Lindsay’s words summed up what all tutors share: “When a familiar face walks into my cubicle and expresses how well they did on their last assignment or how much they have improved, it materializes the impact Tutorial Services has on students.”

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It is one of many days that I spend in my gray cubicle at the library. I am squinting in the shafts of sunlight glaring at me out of the thick-paned glass, my back to the light murmur of the nearly empty Tutorial Center. It is noon, and I haven’t seen a soul all day. I don’t expect to see one for the rest of my shift.

“Excuse me.” A voice immediately behind me, wavering like heat on a summer sidewalk. I jump and spin around in my seat.

In front of me is a young Chinese woman, standing at the threshold of a door that doesn’t exist, clutching a folder against her chest. Her skin is a smooth, shiny tan, dotted with subtle spots of red; her eyes are dark slashes in her face. She is not wearing any makeup, and when I ask her to come on in, I can see a print of characters, foreign to me, circling the logo of her backpack.

She sets her folder down on the table, wordlessly, her backpack occupying her seat. I sit, quiet, as she rifles through and pulls out more papers than five students would normally bring. I see rubrics, articles, drafts covered in bright-inked, carefully considered critiques.

She zips her backpack shut without a word and I, seated, look up at her face, her eyes never meeting mine as they scan the gray carpet.

“So what can I help you with today?” I ask, and, in a hush, she murmurs, “I need help with, uhm, grammar. My professor…”

I realize, as she begins to explain in choppy English the meeting that she had with her professor an hour ago, that, though she has lowered her backpack to the floor, her seat stands empty.

“Please, sit down!” I say, and she nods, wordlessly, and offers the table a small smile as she lowers herself.

“Thank you,” she says. I wave it off as no trouble, no problem, my pleasure, but something uncomfortable seats itself inside my chest and rustles with every timid

In Praise of the ESL Learner By Tabitha Fisher

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apology she makes over every not-quite-right word. When she departs in a rush of gratitude an hour later, I am left unsatisfied.

My dissatisfaction doesn’t have anything to do with the student, or her work. It really has everything to do with her English, but not in the way you might think.

The fact of it is that I’ve seen dozens of students like her enter my cubicle, all of them with a slight downturn to their shoulders, a tremble in their voices, and a well-practiced apology at the ready for the moment my pen circles a mistake. They jump to sacrifice themselves over a verb tense; they believe themselves to be inferior, stupid. I can see in their eyes that, despite my assurances to the contrary, they don’t believe a word I say.

And what I know, above all, is that this low self-esteem is taught, learned. It has been pressed into them over and over again with every sidelong glance, every muffled laugh, every racist joke or abysmal news story.

We live in a world that abuses the scholar, the student, the foreigner. We are quick to forget that Alexandria rose and burned in Egypt, that Japan gave birth to the novel.

We are sometimes deaf to the hymn that rises across the world to resonate within our individual hearts. We forget that the current of language carries us all, miniature fleets on different streams.

It is vitally important that, in today’s cultural and political climate, we take a moment to empathize and praise our international students as well as our native ESL learners.

The English language is a beautiful, complex melody whose art is equal parts rote memorization and glorious improvisation. It is a song many of us were fortunate enough to have sung to us as a lullaby, awash with it from our cribs. But it is folly to view those who do not know the words as wrongful additions to the program. Rather, they are the addition of a new layer we should respect.

If we open our minds to those who have opened theirs, we will find the song enriched beyond what we could ever dream.

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Sigma Tau Delta is an international honor society that promotes and fosters excellence in the study of the English. English majors who meet the organization’s standards of academic achievement are eligible to join one of the 875 local chapters. At the national level, membership in Sigma Tau Delta offers benefits such as scholarship opportunities, internship opportunities, and the chance to submit work for publication in the group’s various online and print publications.

English majors at Lock Haven University can apply for membership in the local Lambda Rho chapter once they meet the eligibility requirements. Once approved for membership, students are inducted into the local chapter. This academic year, the induction took place on Friday, December 9th. Three new members were inducted: Tabitha Fisher, Diosanny Rivera-Placido, and Trent Wisler. This year’s officers—Kristin Davis-President, Kimberly Bressler-VP, Meghan Mausteller-Secretary, Sierra Aichner-Treasurer, Nicholas Feidt-Active Member--led the induction ceremony which was augmented with an open reading performed by members of the English Club.

As a host of new members signed the green member forms at the first meeting last fall, Nicholas Feidt, club president, addressed the fresh faces with enthusiasm as he welcomed them to the student-run organization. Nicholas quickly explained the dynamics of the club, the trips he attended as a member and as an officer, the “submission” nights, and the ever-present debate over the club’s name.

LHU English Club: The Wordsmiths By Kaylee Myers

Sigma Tau Delta: English Honor Society By Dr. Tracey Cummings

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“This was, by far, the most successful year for the English Club.”

–Nicholas Feidt, the out-going club president

In the meetings that followed, the members discussed the idea of an official name-change, and thus the English Club is, now, affectionately known as The Wordsmiths. Jora Lam designed the club’s logo (pictured left). This logo now adorns various surfaces and has become a symbol that people recognize. This logo and name-change serve as a testament to the club’s acceptance of anyone, from any major who likes to write, edit, read, and discuss literature.

Fall 2016-Spring 2017 was the first year the English Club implemented English-related activities to alternate with the traditional submission nights, the first of which was the showing of Peter Weir’s film, Dead Poets Society. The activities since then have been the English version of Family Feud, group creative writing activities, and the

English version of Wheel of Fortune. Most recently, the club invited the English Department faculty members to participate in the English version of Jeopardy. The club also celebrated Halloween and Christmas together, by way of “Secret Santa.”

This year the club members decided to utilize an on-line prompt generator to construct short creative pieces to be shared with the group upon returning from Spring

Break. This was also the first year the English Club made an appearance in the 2016 Fall Homecoming Golf Cart parade.

Pictured from Left to Right: Nicholas Feidt, Kaylee

Myers, Hannah Thomas, Jared Bollinger, Jora Lam, and Blair Brown standing near the first-ever English-

themed golf cart.

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In the fall, the English Club took a day trip to see Poe Evermore in Mount Hope Estate in Pennsylvania as well as a trip to Harrisburg, Pa to walk around a bookstore, whose bookshelves never seemed to end. The place was filled, ceiling-to-floor, with books from every genre. In Spring, the club took an overnight trip to Washington, D.C. to visit the Library of Congress as well as the Folger Shakespeare Library. Day two was

spent visiting the various sites at the Battle of Gettysburg.

The Wordsmiths, pictured to the right, outside the Capitol Building. (Back Row Kaylee Myers, Jared

Bollinger, and Sami Osborn. Front Row L-R: Hannah Thomas, Nicholas Feidt, and Blair Brown.)

Club members Hannah Thomas, Nicholas Feidt, and

Jared Bollinger, pictured to the left, in Thomas Jefferson’s

Private Library.

The fresh face of the English Club provided, and continues to provide, a place for a close-knit group of like-minded people to come together for one hour every Thursday night. As the new group of officers—President Blair Brown, Vice-President Kaylee Myers, Treasurer Sami Osborn, and Secretary Jora Lam—take the reins, they hope to continue to improve as a club and strengthen the bonds fostered over the passing year.

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Tabitha Fisher, majoring in English Writing received the Outstanding English Major of the Year award for the 2015-16 and 2016-17 academic years. Tabitha works in Stevenson Library as a Writing Center and Help Desk assistant. Tabitha is looking forward to finishing up her degree at Lock Haven University this fall and moving on to graduate school. For her final semester, Tabitha will be working on multiple independent studies and continuing with her on-campus jobs.

Grace Monroe received the 2016-2017 Outstanding English Major of the Year

award for the B.S. Secondary Education track. Grace is active in the Honors program and served as the 2016-2017 Newsletter editor.

During the Fall 2016 semester,

Kristin Davis was awarded the Outstanding English Major of Year award for 2015-’16 academic year. Kristin won the award for an English major in the Secondary Education track. Kristin, a Spring 2017 graduate, will be teaching at Bellefonte high school next year.

Dr. Alyce Baker and Kristin Davis

Outstanding English Majors of the Year

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The 2016-2017 English scholarship winners received their awards at the April convocation event.

Here are this year’s winners: L R. and M. E. Gocella: Blair Brown and Evelyn Van Horn Clara M. Clendenen: Brenna Tripp Isabel Miller: Ashley Hostrander K. B. Rao: Kealy Wassil Frank and Dorothy Vaughn: Tabitha Fisher

Kudos to the winners!

Thanks to the scholarship committee: Dr. Nicole Burkholder-Mosco (chair), Dr. Lisette Schillig, Prof. Margie Maddox Hafer, Dr. Laurie Cannady, and Dr. Alyce Baker (who helped field questions!)

On March 30th, a sizeable group of people gathered together at Avenue 209, a quaint and popular coffee shop minutes from Main Campus to celebrate an LHU tradition: “Let Her Voice Be Heard,” an event dedicated to celebrating the voice of women writers.

Let Her Voice Be Heard: A Celebration of Women Writers

By Kaylee Myers

Kudos to Scholarship Winners!

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Readers from all backgrounds and ages either read works by their favorite women authors or their own original works. Audience members listened attentively while they grazed the humble selection of fruits and veggies, cheese and crackers, and refreshments provided by the event’s sponsors—the English Club, the HOPE Center, the President’s Commission on the Status of Women, Sigma Tau Delta, and the Women & Gender Studies Minor.

This event wouldn’t be the success it is every year if it weren’t for the collective effort of several professors in the English Department: Dr. Gayatri Devi, Dr. Nicole

Burkholder-Mosco, Dr. Lisette Schillig, and Dr. Tracey Cummings. Dean Susan Rimby, Professor Dana Washington, Dr. Erin Kennedy, Dr. Tara Mitchell, Dr. Julie Story, and Ms. Mary Jo Campana were among some of the friendly faces in the audience.

The English Department’s very own Dr. Gayatri Devi narrated the evening’s program. Interspersed throughout the various readings were the announcements of the recipients of the President’s Award for Distinguished Work in the Advancement of Women’s Issues and of the Virginia Martin Gender Issues Essay Contest.

The evening concluded with rounds of applause for the courageous bunch of readers, for the recipients’ hard work, and for the collective efforts of those responsible for the event’s success. Laughter and praise ensued as friends rejoined friends, creating a camaraderie among like-minded individuals.

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The English department would like to thank the 2016-2017 English major mentors for all of their work this academic year. All of the mentors did a great job welcoming the new majors to the LHU and to the English department, and they did so with enthusiasm and with great knowledge regarding all things LHU. The department thanks Sierra Aichner, Morgan Bittner, Kristin Davis, Tabitha Fisher, Nicholas Feidt, and Brittney Zeller for the service each offered to the English department during the 2016-2017 academic year.

September 29—30, 2016

On Thursday, September 29th, at 7:30 pm in the Multipurpose Room of the Parsons Union Building, Lock Haven University’s Pennsylvania Authors reading series hosted acclaimed poet James Brasfield and poet and fiction writer Charlotte Holmes. The authors, who are married and teach at Penn State University, discussed “living a life of the arts,” while balancing writing, teaching, and relationships. Free and open to the public, the evening reading and presentation included a book signing. While at LHU, the authors also visited approximately six classes and met with students.

Peer Mentoring By Dr. Tracey Cummings

Reading Series: Pennsylvania Authors

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James Brasfield's second collection of poems from LSU Press, Infinite Altars, was released on August 9, 2016. He teaches at Penn State, University Park. He also has published Ledger of Crossroads (LSU Press) and a book of translations, The Selected Poems of Oleh Lysheha (Harvard University Press). Twice a Senior Fulbright Fellow, he has received fellowships in poetry from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and is a recipient of the PEN Award for Poetry in Translation, the Association for Ukrainian Studies Prize in Translation, and a Pushcart Prize. His poems have appeared in many periodicals, including Agni, Black Warrior Review, Colorado Review, Crazyhorse, Iowa Review, The Literary Review, New Orleans Review, Poetry International, Poets.org: the Academy of American Poets Poem-a-Day Series, Prairie Schooner, Quarterly West, Shenandoah, The Southern Review and Stand. His work has been posted at Poetry Daily and Verse Daily and, with an interview, at How a Poem Happens. He earned his MFA in Creative Writing from Columbia University and lives in State College. For additional information about the author, please see https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/james-brasfield-0

Charlotte Holmes is a writer, a poet, and a teacher of creative writing. Her first book, Gifts and Other Stories, was published in 1994. Her new collection of stories, The Grass Labyrinth (BkMk Press), has been hailed as "a contemporary classic."

Charlotte received her MFA in poetry writing from Columbia University, and her BA in English from Louisiana State University. She has also been a Stegner Fellow in fiction at Stanford University. Since 1987, she has taught in the creative writing program at Penn State University's main campus, where she is Associate Professor of English and Women's Studies and Director of Creative Writing. For additional information about the author, please see http://www.charlotteholmes.net/

The bios for both poets were provided by the authors from their web sites and other sources.

November 9—10, 2016

On Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 7:30 pm in Ulmer Planetarium, Lock Haven University’s Pennsylvania Authors reading series hosted bestselling editor and fiction writer Tom Bailey. Free and open to the public, the evening reading and presentation included a

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book signing. While at LHU, the author also visited approximately six classes and met with students.

Tom Bailey is the author of a short story collection, Crow Man, and two novels, The Grace That Keeps This World and Cotton Song, as well as three books from Oxford University Press on the art and craft of writing, most recently a second edition of On Writing Short Stories. Bailey has received a National Endowment of the Arts Fellowship, a Pennsylvania Council for the Arts Award, a Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Award, and a Newhouse Award from the John Gardner Foundation. The Grace That Keeps This World has been optioned to be made into a major motion picture. He is a professor in the Department of English and

Creative Writing at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania, where he lives with his wife and three children.

March 7—8, 2017

On Tuesday, March 7 at 7:30 p.m. in the Parsons Union Building multipurpose room, award-winning playwright and screenwriter Michael Hollinger presented “Killing Trees: A Playwright’s Life.” As part of the evening presentation, student actors presented self-contained scenes from his play Hope and Gravity. Michael was in residence at Lock Haven University on March 7 and March 8, visiting literature, writing, and theatre classes (8 classes in total) and engaging students in casual lunchtime conversations.

LHU student actors Stuart Harsch, Marcus Bonaparte and Ajehiona Jones with Michael Hollinger

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Michael Hollinger’s full-length plays include Under the Skin, Ghost-Writer, Opus, Tooth and Claw, Red Herring, Tiny Island, Incorruptible, and An Empty Plate in the Café du Grand Boeuf, all of which premiered at Philadelphia’s Arden Theatre Company and have enjoyed subsequent productions around the country, in New York City, and abroad. Plays premiered elsewhere include Hope and Gravity at Pittsburgh’s City Theatre; a new translation of Cyrano (co-adapted with Aaron Posner) at the Folger Theatre in Washington, D.C.; and the musical A Wonderful Noise (co-authored with Vance Lehmkuhl) at Creede Repertory Theatre in Colorado. Two new works will premiere next season: TouchTones, a new musical co-authored with composer Robert Maggio, at the Arden in the fall of 2017, and Sing the Body Electric at Philadelphia’s Theatre Exile in the spring of 2018.

Michael’s awards include an ATCA/Steinberg New Play Citation, an L.A. Drama Critics Circle Award, a Mid-Atlantic Emmy, an Edgerton Foundation New American Plays Award, four Barrymore Awards (including the F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Theatre Artist), nominations for Lucille Lortel and John Gassner Awards, and fellowships from the Independence Foundation, Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, and Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. He is a Professor of Theatre at Villanova University and Artistic Director of Villanova Theatre, as well as a proud alumnus of Villanova, Oberlin Conservatory, and New Dramatists. Michael shares a life with actor/teacher/director Megan Bellwoar and their children Benjamin and Willa.

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•

• Joyland – Stephen King • Island: The Complete Stories – Alistair

Macleod • Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood –

Rebecca Wells • Wild – Cheryl Strayed • The Woman in Cabin 10 – Ruth Ware • The Girl on the Train – Paula Hawkins • Beloved – Toni Morrison • Lord of the Flies – William Golding • The Book Thief – Markus Zusak • The Secret History – Donna Tartt • Call Me by Your Name – André Aciman • Never Let Me Go – Kazuo Ishiguro • The Lunar Chronicles – Marissa Meyer • Me Talk Pretty One Day – David Sedaris • The Lord of the Rings Series – J.R.R.

Tolkien • Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen –

Serena Valentino • Poor Unfortunate Souls: A Tale of the Sea

Witch – Serena Valentino • The Beast Within: A Tale of Beauty’s Prince

– Serena Valentino • Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov • The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood • The Outsiders – S.E. Hilton • The Perks of Being a Wallflower – Stephen

Chbosky

Summer Reading: Majors list their favorite books By Tabitha Fisher and Tyler Tallmadge

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Don’t Let Me Go – J.H. Trumble • Two Boys Kissing – David

Levithan • The Zookeeper’s Wife – Diane

Ackerman • Psycho – Robert Bloch • The Stand – Stephen King • Sarah’s Key – Tatiana de Rosnay • Looking For Alaska – John Green • Excavation – Wendy Ortiz • 13 Reasons Why – Jay Asher • Kaffir Boy – Mark Mathabane • The Pact – Jodie Picoult • Nineteen Minutes – Jodie Picoult • Will Grayson, Will Grayson –

John Green & David Levithan • The Book of David – Anonymous • Scythe – Neal Shusterman • The Curious Incident of the Dog in

the Night-Time – Mark Haddon • Speak – Laurie Halse Anderson • Frankenstein – Mary Shelley

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This year's volume of The Crucible, subtitled Facing Home, is unique in that both the writers and artists whose work is featured chose to focus on negotiating who they are and wish to become based on where they have come from. Even more than usual, the literary and art pieces that appear together seem to be in conversation with each other. The result is a publication that is both extraordinarily beautiful and meaningful.

For many of us, college is a time to separate ourselves from the past, to examine our lives on our own terms, and to define the persons we are trying to become. A college campus is a fitting environment for this type of examination. It is a place to explore new ideas, to develop new interests, and to connect with new people from

diverse backgrounds and experiences. But distance from the past is not an escape from its formative contributions. Each of us comes from somewhere, and whatever the details, our origin is woven into our identity. The places, people, and experiences that shape us are integrally and inexorably a part of us.

In reading the great submissions for the 2016-2017 edition of The Crucible, we came to realize that many of them were origin stories and negotiations with identity. In showing glimpses of the formative spaces and people in their lives, these writers were demonstrating who they are, or who they are hoping to become.

Facing Home: The Crucible 2017

Editors Michael Eubanks and Joel Williamson at the Crucible Live event for Celebration of Scholarship

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Of course, not all origin stories are the same. Some stories are uplifting or humorous, while others are complex and challenging. Our title “Facing Home” reflects this diversity. If you'd like a copy, there is always a stack available outside Raub 403, or you may contact Prof. Dana Washington atdwashing@lockhaven.edu.

Central Pennsylvania Area High School Students Competed at Lock Haven University for the Regional Title of English-Speaking Union’s (Central PA chapter) Shakespeare Winner.

On February 19, 2017 Nicholas Bowman from Carlisle High School in Carlisle, PA earned first place at the English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition Central Pennsylvania Branch heat held at Lock Haven University, Lock Haven PA.

Nicholas will travel to New York City along with 55 other contestants from around the country to participate in the ESU National Shakespeare Competition at Lincoln Center

Theater on May 1, 2017.

Participants: Standing: Ryan Babb, Elizabeth Tesler ,Grace Wilson, Gillian Letson, Alexis Soto; Kneeling: Kodiak Thompson, Maxwell Babcock, Nicholas Bowman; Not pictured: Eva Olofson

In Other News: Shakespeare Competition at Lock Haven University

By Dr. Alyce Baker

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The Department of Literature and Language and the Fine Arts Department of Saint Francis University, Loretto PA are the sponsors underwriting the Central PA Region winner's trip to compete in the National Shakespeare Competition.

Gillian Letson, from Phillipsburg-Osceola High School, won second place, and two students, Ryann Babb and Alexis Soto from The Delta Program and State College Area High School, respectively, were awarded third place in the Central Pennsylvania competition.

Each student performed a Shakespearean monologue of their choice and recited a sonnet. Competitors were judged on their understanding of their selected texts and on their ability to communicate that understanding to the audience.

Judges for the Branch Competition included Charles Dumas, Professor of Theatre Emeritus, Penn State University; Mary (MG) Gainer and Jessica Hylton, Professors from Lock Haven University; Clark Nicholson, Artistic Director of GAMUT Theatre, Harrisburg, PA; and John Woznak, Professor from Saint Francis University, Loretto, PA.

The competition was attended by Peter Hambridge, the ESU Walter Hines Page Scholar from Hertfordshire UK, currently engaged in researching aspects of the American educational system. His visit to conduct research in the United States was granted by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. Peter shared how Shakespeare stories and plays had been a curricular part of his school days from age five.

Key organizers of the event were Bonnie Resinski, Shakespeare Coordinator and Board Member of the Central PA chapter and Dr. Alyce Baker, Associate Professor of English at LHU, and Treasurer and Board Member of the Chapter PA chapter.

[English professors do much more than teach, grade and keep office hours. Often English professors lead several campus-wide initiatives associated with bettering student life. English majors Megan McKenna and Kealy Wassil sat down with Dr. Nicole Burkholder-Mosco, Dr. Lisette Schillig, and Dr. Gayatri Devi to discuss their work outside the classroom, in particular, their efforts towards making the campus a more gender inclusive and safe space for all students.]

In Conversation: Engaging Student Life

By Megan McKenna and Kealy Wassil

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Dr. Burkholder-Mosco, Dr. Schillig and Dr. Devi are English faculty members in the interdisciplinary Women and Gender Studies minor where Dr. Devi has served an elected term as the Coordinator. All three are founding members of the HOPE Center with Dr. Schillig serving as the current Director. They also serve on the President’s Commission on the Status of Women, where Dr. Burkholder-Mosco is the reelected chair.

Because of their involvement in so many gender equality groups on campus, it seemed appropriate to find out where this passion came from. Dr. Burkholder-Mosco emphasized growing up in the 1980s and the role that her mother played in her life. Dr. Burkholder-Mosco’s parents were divorced, and she said that that was uncommon when she was growing up. “I saw a single mother who was college educated and working outside the home,” said Dr. Burkholder-Mosco. As she got older and began to read literature, she began to see strong female characters who felt a similar displacement to what she was feeling in her own life. This allowed her to realize that this was not a singular experience and that there were probably more women around her that felt a displacement similar to her own. Because of this discovery, Dr. Burkholder-Mosco has realized that she has the ability to connect with women and help women that are struggling in their everyday lives. She concluded by saying that she can never stop being an advocate for women’s rights now, and hopes to do more in the future.

“My interest in gender issues stems from numerous influences, but probably the biggest was simply growing up in the 1960s and 70s during the second wave of feminism,” Dr. Schillig said. “I grew up watching and hearing about women standing and fighting for their right to work in professions of their choosing. Igrew up in an era when women were truly coming together, and marching together, working with and through their differences, to realize their political power and sexual freedom with the help of leaders like Angela Davis and Gloria Steinem. When I was in college as an undergraduate student, I worked for Planned Parenthood and that is where I truly awakened to how politicized women’s reproductive health care is, and how vocal and vigilant we have to be to protect our access to it. I also became very aware of how women’s health and well-being is violated because of domestic abuse and sexual assault, and I saw these forms of violence as extensions of patriarchal power. Being at the Women’s March this past January in D.C. was like reliving the power I felt as a woman in my 20s, the power that women have when they join together to fight for their rights. “

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Dr. Devi focused on her culture in developing an interest in gender issues. “India is a very patriarchal country, and I have always been very aware of my role and place as a woman. Because of the strong segregation of sexes in India, I grew up in the company of women and I have always loved the company of women; some of the brightest and most intellectual people I have ever met are women.” The final element that fuels her desire to push for the equality of women in all spheres of life is her own daughter. Dr. Devi hopes that her daughter will have the chance to grow up in a world that gives her far more equality than it has given the generations of women who have come before her. She concluded by saying that there is not a day that goes by that she does not think of women’s issues, and she knows that she could never stop now.

On top of their commitment to working to improve the way women are treated on campus, they are dedicated to making student lives even better. Dr. Schillig, Dr. Devi and Dr. Burkholder-Mosco along with their colleagues in English and other departments oversee and participate in several gender-centered activities and events on campus such as March and Women’s History month events, Let Her Voice Be Heard program, Take Back the Night rally in April, the Domestic Violence Awareness month activities in October, the Clothesline Project, Denim Day observation etc. All three of them work together to select and sponsor LHU students to attend the PASSHE Women’s Consortium’s Undergraduate Women’s Leadership Institute held each summer at the McKeever Environmental Center in Sandy Lake, PA. Dr. Devi directs the leadership institute attended by students from all fourteen campuses of the state system. Dr. Devi is also the president-elect of the PASSHE Women’s Consortium.

Dr. Schillig and Dr. Devi also serve on the President’s Commission for LGBTQ Affairs and work on several programs dealing with the intersectionality of gender, race and other identity factors, including hosting the fall and spring Lavender Graduation events. In addition to leading the HOPE Center, Dr. Schillig does sexual assault awareness training for students. Dr. Schillig and Dr. Devi also serve on the Title IX Advisory Board.

All three professors noted that there is a vast group of people on this campus that could be better served through a continued emphasis on expanding the services and resources available to them and establishing other needed services.

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Chris Grouzes is Director, Executive Function Coach, Writing Tutor, Resume Coach, and Speaking Coach at Advanced Tutoring Network in the Greater Philadelphia Area. Chris earned his B.S in English/Language Arts Teacher Education from Lock Haven University, and completed his M.A. in Communication and Media Studies at West Chester University. Jacqueline Malloy is a Grant Writer for the Lehigh Valley Zoo where she was hired two weeks after her 2016 graduation. Jackie is also a full-time graduate student doing an M.A. in Nonprofit Administration (Lindenwood University) and working with her degree to create her own nonprofit supporting adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder Vanessa Peterson is a Social Media Specialist (client was Campbell's Soup Company), where she handled and engaged with consumer comments, questions, concerns, etc. on Campbell's various social media pages, like Facebook and Twitter. Currently, Vanessa is doing similar work on a Digital Team (client is PepsiCo), but also doing more emails in addition to social media engagement. Vanessa is pursing her Master of Arts in English and Master of Fine Arts in Poetry at Arcadia University. Her poem Okay, Cupid? was published at Unlost Journal http://unlostjournal.com/okay-cupid/. She was also an invited reader at The Spiral Bookcase in Manayuk, PA on April 7th. Susan Pogorzelski has variously worked as a Communications Specialist for a global company, and International Wire Processor, and International Services Specialist in a mid-sized bank's foreign exchange department where she took the lead on marketing and training initiatives, as well as maintaining internal communications and developing website copy. Susan also provided support for sales representatives through report-writing and customer correspondence. While working at this corporate job, Susan started her own publishing company, Brown Beagle Books, for which she is an indie author. Susan’s company has since expanded into a creative consultancy, including

News from Alums Dr. Gayatri Devi

“The skills I gained from my English degree helped me not only land these positions, but also to be offered positions as an Assistant Editor, Marketing Coordinator, Human Resources Assistant, and a Recruiter. “ --Vanessa Peterson

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writing, coaching, editorial development, and publishing consultation. Susan’s first book, Gold in the Days of Summer, was published in 2013 and was the winner of the International Rubery Book Award's Children's category and a finalist in the International Book Awards. Susan’s latest book, The Last Letter, was published in September 2016 and was recently featured on ABC27's Good Day PA's Author Spotlight. Susan is also a personal blogger and a paid contributor for Global Lyme Alliance and was an invited speaker as a guest panelist at the University of Delaware on her experiences as a Lyme patient. Ryan Rose is a freelance copywriter based in Lock Haven. He started his business while at Lock Haven University to earn extra money, and he has helped sell millions of dollars in products and services.

Erin Tierney resides in Eugene, Oregon and is the editor for The Creswell Chronicle, as well as creative director at Emerald Valley Magazine, a local lifestyles magazine.

“English classes at LHU nourished my soul, improved my cognitive thinking, and expanded my emotional intelligence. . . I wasn’t taught what to think; I was taught to THINK. I learned what it was like to expand my mind, to be excited about my own ideas. I have been chasing down my own personal growth —that mental expansion, that thirst for knowledge, ever since. . . Looking to flourish somewhere new, I moved to Oregon in July 2016 on a whim, landing in Eugene after spending two months frolicking across the country (also highly recommended). I didn’t have a job lined up or a plan moving forward, but had confidence my education and experience would serve as my support beams of dreams.” --Erin Tierney

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Thank you for reading!

For inquiries about the English major or minor, please contact Dr. David Russell, Chair, English department at drussel2@lhup.edu or (570) 484-2555.

Visit us on our Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/lhuenglishalum/

You can support the English department by making a financial contribution of your choice. For details, please contact Dr. David Russell at drussel2@lhup.edu or (570) 484-2555.

This newsletter was written, edited, and compiled by Dr. Gayatri Devi with student editorial assistance from Tabitha Fisher, Megan McKenna, Kaylee Myers, Tyler Tallmadge, and Kealy Wassil who contributed individual articles as part of their Experiential Learning competency requirements for Dr. Nicole Burkholder-Mosco’s English 315 Composition Usage and Editing course. All articles were edited for form, style and content. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced without the permission of Dr. Devi.

News From Raub Hall 2017 (Copyright LHU English 2017)