The YAWP: Villanova's Graduate English Program Blog

On Saturday, May 17, the Graduate English faculty and students gathered in the English department suite to honor the students who received their degree that day. For most, the academic stress of the semester was over, and the mood was light. The students who graduated that day had just wrapped up theses and field exams, although several students who had extended their thesis deadlines were also in attendance. Future plans were explained, goodbyes were said, and two years generally determined to be not quite enough time. We will miss all of our graduates, and we wish them the best.

This post by guest blogger Dr. Heather Hicks. Our very own Dr. Jean Lutes was interviewed on NPR's national radio program Morning Edition this morning about the 150th anniversary of the birth of Nellie Bly, the famous female reporter. Dr. Lutes has recently edited a Penguin Classics edition of Bly's news stories. The new edition can be found on  Pengun's website. And here's the link to the interview.

The Thesis and Field Exam Symposium took place on Saturday, April 26th. Seven presenters explained either completed or ongoing projects to an audience of Graduate English faculty and fellow first- and second-year students. The Symposium is designed as a format for thesis-writing students to present their work to the rest of the department. The environment was relaxed but thoughtful, as many students and professors expressed interest in the students' arguments and posed questions to clarify or expand their points. The presenters and their work are listed below: Adam Hembree: "Creating Negation: 'Playing the Villain' with Iago and Richard III" Teddi Hermes: "(In)Visible Women: The Visual in Black Women's Literature" Katie Parks: "Rediscovering Teresa Deevy"    Caroline Blasi: Solving Mysteries: Where the Gothic and Detective Story Meet"   Susan Peders...

The Second Lady of the United States will be speaking at this year's commencement ceremony. She has ties with the Villanova Graduate English department, as she received her master's degree here in 1991. She went on to get her doctorate in Education at the University of Deleware. She currently teaches at a community college and advocates for recognition of community colleges as an important means of educating America's workforce. You can read the official article  in the Villanovan  for more details.