Thomas Dai

Thomas Dai is an Assistant Professor in the English Department at the University of Idaho, affiliated with the College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences. His work bridges creative nonfiction, critical theory, and interdisciplinary scholarship. He holds a Ph.D. in American Studies (2024) from Brown University, an M.F.A. in Creative Nonfiction (2017) from the University of Arizona, and an A.B. in Organismic & Evolutionary Biology (2014) from Harvard University.

His research focuses on travel writing, race, queer theory, and animal studies. His debut essay collection Take My Name but Say It Slow (2025) explores identity, migration, and ecology. His essays appear in The Georgia Review, Guernica, and GLQ, blending personal narrative with scholarly critique.

• Awards: Marie J. Langlois Dissertation Prize (2024), Lambda Literary Fellowship (2019)
• Teaching: Creative nonfiction workshops, special topics in literature
• Editorial Role: Associate Editor at differences: A Journal of Feminist Cultural Studies

His recent work integrates visual media and ecological critique, examining how marginalized identities intersect with environmental narratives.