Asha Rogers

Dr Asha Rogers is a Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Postcolonial Literature at the Department of English Literature, University of Birmingham, within the College of Arts and Law. A Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, she was nominated for a College of Arts and Law Outstanding Teaching Award in 2019 and actively contributes to postcolonial literary scholarship and pedagogy.

Her educational background includes:

• BA English Literature (University of Sheffield)
• MA English Literature (University of Sheffield)
• DPhil English Literature (University of Oxford)

Rogers' research examines twentieth and twenty-first century literature through the lens of cultural, state, educational, and publishing institutions, with emphasis on postcolonial and global contexts. She employs archival methodologies to explore state sponsorship, linguistic imperialism, and literary diversity, challenging monolithic narratives of cultural power while centering social difference and institutional contradictions in literary history.

Her publications reveal consistent engagement with postcolonial literary history, African literature, and global book trade dynamics. Key thematic threads include state intervention in literary markets, decolonization of curricula, linguistic hegemony, and Cold War cultural politics, demonstrating an interdisciplinary approach that bridges literary studies, history, and cultural policy across diverse geopolitical contexts.

Scientific awards include:

• Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
• 2021 University English Book Prize for State Sponsored Literature: Britain and Cultural Diversity after 1945

Rogers supervises research on literature and the modern state, cultural institutions, and state sponsorship. She directs the Contemporary Literature and Culture research group and co-curated the Uncovering Hidden Histories project. As Director of Awards for SHARP and external examiner for City, University of London's BA English, she shapes academic standards while securing collaborative projects like the Stuart Hall Archive Project.

She leads the Contemporary Literature and Culture research group, co-curated the Uncovering Hidden Histories project at the Barber Institute, and co-programmed the Stuart Hall Archive Project 'Readings' seminar, fostering interdisciplinary engagement with postcolonial archives and cultural heritage through institutional partnerships.