teaching

Pictureserving as Siegel Middle History Day advisor in 2012

​WHY I TEACH

   I became a professor because we can all do better to understand, care for, respect, and communicate with one another, and developing effective critical thinking skills as adults is central to this pursuit.
   I study and teach literature because humans seem overwhelmingly to be creatures of narrative. We live and love and even loathe with and through stories and storytelling. Literature is a means of presenting and contemplating self and world that feeds both head and heart: at its best it can make us both think and feel, deeply. That combination has the potential to encourage compassionate growth and to inspire change, positive change to make the world a better place for each and all of us.
   I teach film and popular culture because understanding how the media shapes our world and worldview is vital to challenging negative impact and enhancing resistance, again to help us create positive change in the world.

   Education is a slow process involving interaction with individuals at various stages of growth and self-awareness. I value my own ongoing education, which I strive to attain in various "classrooms" in my life, both formal and informal. Education is an adventure, a journey, and important work -- for all of us. Learning nourishes and frustrates, builds and tears down. I value the journey my students take with me and do all I can to help them value the the experience.

My favorite comment from a student in 2017: "This class will definitely be one I will regularly reflect on. You helped open my eyes to situations I was unaware of. You made me WOKE! Thank you :)"
AREAS OF SPECIALIZATION:
  • Gender, Feminist, and Queer Studies
  • Film and Popular Culture
  • Jewish American and Holocaust Studies

COURSES REGULARLY AND/OR RECENTLY TAUGHT (as of 2017):

ENGL 2020        Themes in Literature and Culture
  •  Holocaust Survivor Literature
  • Jewish American Identity in Literature and Culture
ENGL 3815        Survey of Popular Culture
ENGL 3885        Topics in Gender and Film
  • Gender, Race, & Sexuality in Hollywood Film
  • Women and Film (Feminist Film Studies)
  • Women Film Pioneers
ENGL 4780        War and Literature: The Holocaust
ENGL 4860        Special Topics in Film: Film Noir
ENGL 6/7310    Popular Culture Studies
ENGL 6/7760    Special Topics in Film: Women and Film (online)
JHS 3020           The Holocaust
WGST 2100       Introduction to Women's Studies (online)
WGST 3500       Women in the Media