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Christy Cobb is an Associate Professor of Christianity in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Denver, with an affiliation in the Gender and Women's Studies Department. She holds a PhD from Drew University, an MA from Wake Forest University, and an MDiv from Campbell University Divinity School. Her research focuses on slavery, gender, and sexuality in antiquity, particularly in New Testament and early Christian texts. Her work includes analyzing kyriarchal relationships in biblical narratives and their ethical implications. She is the author of Slavery, Gender, Truth, and Power in Luke-Acts and Other Ancient Narratives (2019), which interrogates marginalized voices in biblical literature. Her scholarship bridges feminist hermeneutics, literary theory, and material culture. Education: PhD, Drew University (2016); MA, Wake Forest University (2010); MDiv, Campbell University Divinity School (2006); BA, Carson Newman University (2000). Research highlights include studies on enslaved women in Acts, feminist readings of ancient novels, and the intersection of gender and power in early Christian texts. She has contributed to journals like Journal for the Study of the New Testament and Gender and Sexuality , and her work has been reviewed in contexts like Marriage, Families & Spirituality . Affiliations include the Society of Biblical Literature and Feminist Studies in Religion.

• Christianity
• Gender Studies
• New Testament
• +4 more

Jonathan Highfield is an Associate Professor of English at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where he teaches a wide range of courses in colonial and postcolonial literatures within the Department of Literary Arts and Studies. He holds advanced degrees from the University of Iowa and maintains an active research profile focusing on the intersections of food, culture, and postcolonial identity. His educational background includes a BA from Transylvania University, followed by an MA and PhD from the University of Iowa, which provided the foundation for his scholarly work in postcolonial literary studies. Highfield's research interests center on the intersection of postcolonial studies, foodways, and ecocriticism. He examines how food functions as a cultural marker, community builder, and site of resistance in African narratives. His work explores how literary representations of food reveal complex relationships between colonialism, globalization, environmental sustainability, and cultural identity. He approaches texts like Moby Dick through the lens of global capitalist systems and social relations, demonstrating how literature reflects historical economic structures and social dynamics. His publications reveal a consistent focus on African literature and the ways food systems intersect with colonial histories and contemporary global dynamics. Highfield's work spans book-length studies, journal articles, and book chapters that examine food sovereignty, biopiracy, cultural heritage, and environmental justice through literary analysis. His scholarship demonstrates how food narratives serve as powerful vehicles for expressing cultural identity and resistance to neocolonial exploitation. As a creative writer himself, Highfield has published poetry in venues like The Innisfree Poetry Journal and The New Review, with his poem "PALETTE" exploring themes of memory, perception, and cultural change through the metaphor of childhood crayons. Highfield maintains an active research profile as a senior research member of Critical African Studies housed at the University of Pretoria, South Africa, demonstrating his international scholarly engagement. His publications appear in numerous academic journals including Antipodes, Atlantic Studies, Canadian Journal of Irish Studies, and The International Journal of Environmental, Cultural, Economic and Social Sustainability. Based in North Scituate, Rhode Island, Highfield integrates his scholarly work with personal interests in gardening and cooking, using vegetables from his own garden—a practice that reflects his academic interest in foodways and their connection to cultural identity and sustainability.

• Postcolonial Studies
• Foodways
• Ecocriticism
• +3 more

Omar Dieng is an Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at the College of Wooster. Previously, he served as a postdoctoral scholar at Case Western Reserve University in the Humanities in Leadership and Learning Series program. His academic journey includes degrees from Université Cheikh Anta Diop (Senegal), Miami University, and The Ohio State University (Ph.D. 2018). B.A., University Cheikh Anta Diop, 2012 M.A., University Cheikh Anta Diop, 2014 M.A., Miami University, 2016 M.A. & Ph.D., Ohio State University, 2018 His research explores cultural relations between Africa, Europe, and America with a focus on race theory, identity politics, and migration. Key interests include citizenship dynamics in France, Black diaspora mobilizations, and representations of Blackness in literature and film. Selected publications include analyses of Afro-European literature and Black subjectivities in diasporic contexts. Presentations at conferences like the African Literature Association and Northeast Modern Language Association highlight his engagement with transnational cultural studies.

• Race Theory
• Cultural Studies
• Identity Politics
• +4 more

Lowery McClendon is a Professor in the Department of English at Lehman College, City University of New York (CUNY). He holds a B.A. in English from the University of North Carolina at Asheville and an M.A. in English from Hunter College. His teaching and research focus on African American literature, British literature, American writers in Paris, New York City fiction, and literary theory. He is based in Carman Hall 399 and can be contacted via email at lowery.mcclendon@lehman.cuny.edu or phone: 718-960-8530.

• African American literature
• British literature
• American writers in Paris
• +2 more

Dr. Catherine Gander is an Associate Professor in American Literature and Visual Culture at Maynooth University’s Faculty of Arts and Humanities. She holds a PhD from King’s College London and previously lectured at Queen’s University Belfast, where she founded the Research Centre for the Americas. Her research bridges modern/contemporary American literature with visual studies, focusing on intersections between poetry, art, and social justice. She is a poet, editor, and award-winning scholar with works like Mixed Messages (2016) and Muriel Rukeyser and Documentary (2013). Key affiliations include Chair roles in the Irish Association for American Studies (2019-2024) and co-Associate Dean for EDI (2021-2023). She led the IRC-funded Diversifying Irish Poetry project (2021-2022), advancing equity in literary reviewing. Her current projects include a monograph on transmedial poetics (Cambridge UP) and co-editing Beyond Ourselves: Contemporary Poets on Muriel Rukeyser (2026). Her teaching spans American literature modules like Picturing America and The Political is Personal , earning awards including the 2025 SPARK Teaching Award. She mentors postdocs on topics such as sleep studies and ecofeminism, and her creative works include poetry collections like Matches (2024) and Sea Between Us (2022). She has delivered keynote lectures globally, including the inaugural Max Nänny Lecture (2025).

• Modern and Contemporary American Literature
• Word-Image Studies
• Poetry and Transmediality
• +5 more

Jennifer O’Reilly is an Assistant Professor in the Department of African American Studies at Syracuse University, part of the College of Arts and Sciences. Her research focuses on Black spiritualities in ethnography, fiction, and poetry, with expertise in 20th and 21st century African American literature, Black women writers, and the Harlem Renaissance. She holds a Ph.D. in English from Liverpool John Moores University (2019), an M.A. in Cultural History from the University of Liverpool (2014), and a B.A. in English and History from Manchester Metropolitan University (2012). Her teaching emphasizes African American literature and writing about Black culture. Notable presentations include discussions of Ntozake Shange’s choreotexts, Gloria Naylor’s ecologies, and Toni Morrison’s ethnographic fiction. She has received grants such as the Stuart A. Rose Fellowship and awards like the Writing Across the Curriculum Faculty Fellowship. Professionally, she serves on the Arts and Sciences Faculty Council, organizes events like the Symposium on “Repair,” and reviews for Meridians: feminisms, race, transnationalism . Her work bridges literary analysis with historical and cultural studies of Black spiritual practices.

• African American literature
• Black women’s writing
• Black spirituality in literature
• +3 more

Herbert G. Ruffin II is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of African American Studies at Syracuse University, part of the College of Arts and Sciences. His academic focus centers on African American History, Africana Studies, and the Black Freedom Movement, with specialties in California, Texas, and U.S. Western history. Ruffin holds a Ph.D. in American History from Claremont Graduate University (2007) and has authored or edited multiple books, including Uninvited Neighbors: African Americans in Silicon Valley, 1769–1990 (2014) and Freedom's Racial Frontier (2018). He has received honors such as the Enhanced Research Subsidy from Syracuse's College of Arts and Sciences (2016–2020). His research explores themes like racial dynamics in urban development, African American presence in the American West, and the intersection of sport and race. Ruffin has served as Director of African American Studies and leads initiatives like the annual departmental field trip. His media engagements include discussions on the Tulsa Race Massacre and Harriet Tubman's legacy. Current courses include African American History post-19th century and the sociology of African American experience. Ruffin's recent work includes a forthcoming book chapter on Golden Gate National Recreation Area history and a major manuscript on African American urban history in the West. His grants include a National Parks Service-funded project on historic resource studies.

• African American History
• Africana Studies
• Black Freedom Movement
• +9 more

Jonathan Judaken is the Gloria M. Goldstein Professor of Jewish History & Thought and Chair of the Department of Jewish, Islamic, and Middle Eastern Studies at Washington University in St. Louis. He holds a PhD in History from the University of California-Irvine and has held prestigious fellowships including Senior Fulbright Specialist roles in Israel and South Africa, and a National Endowment for the Humanities fellowship. His research focuses on anti-Semitism, critical theory, existentialism, and post-Holocaust Jewish thought. Notable works include Critical Theories of Anti-Semitism (2024), which challenges conventional approaches to Judeophobia studies, and Jean-Paul Sartre and the Jewish Question (2006), redefining Sartre's intellectual legacy. He co-edited foundational texts like Race After Sartre (2008) and The Albert Memmi Reader (2020). Judaken served as a scholar-in-residence at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and has contributed to public discourse through his NPR radio show Counterpoint . He currently holds editorial roles with journals like Patterns of Prejudice and chairs international research consortia on racism and anti-Semitism.

• Anti-Semitism Studies
• Critical Theory
• Existentialism
• +7 more

Elizabeth Hewitt is a Professor and Chair in the Department of English at The Ohio State University. A scholar of pre-1900 American and African American literature, she holds a PhD in English from Johns Hopkins University (1995), an MA from Johns Hopkins (1991), and a BA from Amherst College (1988). Her research explores intersections between literature, economics, and speculative fiction. Education: PhD, Johns Hopkins University, 1995 MA, Johns Hopkins University, 1991 BA, Amherst College, 1988 Hewitt’s work spans economic debates in early American literature, epistolary writing, and the evolution of science fiction. She is the editor of multiple volumes in the Collected Writings of Charles Brockden Brown series and has published extensively on Emily Dickinson, Herman Melville, and Judith Sergeant Murray. Recent research trends include analyses of speculative fiction, fiscal theory in literature, and nineteenth-century utopian experiments. She has contributed to critical discussions on textual editing, literary partnerships, and the cultural impact of antebellum periodicals.

• African American Literature
• American Literature before 1900
• Economics and Literature
• +3 more

Amr Aljowaily is a Strategic Advisor to the Deputy Chairperson of the African Union Commission (Partnerships and Stakeholder Engagement) in Addis Ababa. He concurrently serves as a Visiting Professor at the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and DiploFoundation since 2007. His academic focus spans multilateral diplomacy, international peace and security, and digital governance. Aljowaily holds advanced degrees from the American University in Cairo (Political Science, Middle East Studies), the London School of Economics (International Relations), and the University of Malta (Contemporary Diplomacy). Professionally, he has held senior diplomatic roles in Egypt’s Foreign Ministry, including postings in Belgrade, New York, Geneva, and Washington, D.C. He contributed to multilateral negotiations at the UN, AU, and LAS, and coordinated international relations for Egypt’s Ministry of Communications (2001–2003). His research emphasizes ICTs in diplomacy and peacekeeping, with publications analyzing Egypt’s multilateral engagement, R2P frameworks, and UN Security Council reform. Aljowaily’s writings include Serbia by Egyptian Eyes (2018/2019) and Quote Unquote (2020/2022), exploring diplomacy through literature and prose. He designs diplomatic training programs globally, addressing AI in diplomacy, conflict mediation, and digital diplomacy strategies, as seen in events like the Abu Dhabi Diplomatic Protocol training and Malta’s Tech Diplomacy workshops.

• Multilateral Diplomacy
• International Relations
• Conflict Resolution
• +4 more

R. Mark Hall is a Professor of English at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he holds a PhD from the University of Louisville. His academic journey includes roles as Chair of the Writing, Rhetoric, & Digital Studies Department (2020-2023) and Director of multiple Writing Centers at institutions such as University of Central Florida and California State University, Chico. His research focuses on literacy practices in pop culture, teacher/tutor education, writing program administration, and transfer of learning. Education: PhD in Rhetoric, Composition & Literacy Studies, University of Louisville M.A. in English Language & Literature, University of Alabama B.A. in English & Sociology, Emory University Research Interests: Hall explores how literacy interacts with cultural phenomena, emphasizing practical applications in writing center education and program assessment. His work often bridges theory and practice, addressing how educators can foster critical thinking and adaptability in students. Awards: His book Around the texts of writing center work won the 2018 IWCA Outstanding Book Award, highlighting its impact on writing center pedagogy. Teaching & Grants: Over 20 years of experience includes directing writing centers and developing writing programs. While specific grants are not detailed, his administrative roles suggest involvement in institutional funding initiatives for writing education. Labs/Teams: Active in writing center networks and collaborative research projects, though no named labs are specified in the text.

• Literacy practices in popular culture
• Teacher and tutor education
• Writing program administration
• +2 more

Mireille Miller-Young is an Associate Professor in the Department of Feminist Studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Her work focuses on race, gender, and sexuality in US history, popular culture, and the sex industries. She holds affiliations with Film and Media Studies, Black Studies, History, and Comparative Literature departments. Dr. Miller-Young earned her PhD and MA from New York University and a BA from Emory University. Her research explores Black cultural studies, the history of sexuality, and pornography/sex work studies. Notable publications include A Taste for Brown Sugar: Black Women in Pornography (2014), which won major awards, and co-edited volumes like Black Sexual Economies (2019). She leads initiatives like the Black Sexuality Studies Collective and the New Sexualities Research Initiative at UCSB. Her recent work includes a visiting fellowship at the Institute for Cultural Inquiry Berlin for her upcoming book Hoe Theory , and projects such as The Black Erotic Archive and Sex Worker Oral History Project. Awards include the Sara A. Whaley Prize, John Hope Franklin Prize, and UCSB’s Distinguished Teaching Award. Dr. Miller-Young serves on editorial boards for Porn Studies and Signs , and her public engagement includes media contributions to The New York Times, Netflix’s Explained , and podcasts like Marketplace . Her interdisciplinary approach bridges academia, activism, and cultural critique.

• Black Cultural Studies
• History of Sexuality
• Pornography and Sex Work
• +7 more

Vaughn Rasberry is an Associate Professor at Stanford University , affiliated with the Department of English , the Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity (CCSRE) , and programs in Modern Thought and Literature , African and African American Studies , and American Studies . His research bridges African American literature, postcolonial theory, and geopolitical analysis. Ph.D., University of Chicago, English Language and Literature (2009) M.A., University of Chicago, Humanities (2001) B.A., Howard University, English Language and Literature (2000) Rasberry's work examines how black writers engaged with totalitarianism during WWII and the Cold War. His book Race and the Totalitarian Century challenges narratives of African American acquiescence to postwar liberalism, emphasizing instead their independent critiques of U.S. imperialism and alignment with global decolonization movements. He has published on James Baldwin , the Harlem Renaissance , and intersections of literature and political theory. Awards include the 2017 Ralph Bunche Award and a 2012 Annenberg Faculty Fellowship . His teaching spans topics like Language Politics and the Literary Imagination in Africa and collaborations with interdisciplinary programs. Ralph Bunche Award (2017) American Book Award (2017) Christian Gauss Award shortlist Annenberg Faculty Fellowship (2012-14) Schomburg Center Fellowship University of Pittsburgh Humanities Center Fellowship

• African American Literature
• African Diaspora Literature
• Twentieth-Century American Fiction
• +2 more

SaraEllen Strongman is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Afroamerican and African Studies (DAAS) at the University of Michigan. Before joining DAAS, she held an LSA Collegiate Postdoctoral Fellowship in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA). Her work bridges Black Studies and Gender and Sexuality Studies, emphasizing interdisciplinary scholarship. Dr. Strongman earned her Ph.D. in Africana Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. Her research examines Black feminisms, Black women’s historical and cultural contributions, and African American literature. A central project is her manuscript The Sisterhood: Black Women, Black Feminism, and the Women's Liberation Movement , which analyzes how Black feminists redefined the feminist movement in the 1970s–1980s while establishing foundational frameworks for Black feminist thought. Her publications appear in Feminist Theory , Feminist Studies , Sinister Wisdom , and The Washington Post . These works reflect a focus on intersectionality, institutional critiques, and the legacies of Black feminist activism. Recent scholarly activities include reviews and analyses of foundational texts in feminist theory. No scientific awards are explicitly mentioned, and specific advising or grant details are not provided. She contributes to DAAS initiatives and collaborates across disciplines, as seen in her cross-listed courses.

• Black Feminisms
• Black Women's Political and Cultural History
• African American Literature
• +3 more

John T. Matthews is a Professor in the Department of English at Boston University's College of Arts & Sciences. His research focuses on American literature, modernist studies, and Southern literary traditions, with a specialization in William Faulkner's works. He has published extensively on Faulkner's linguistic experimentation, regional imagination, and historical context. Professor, Boston University Editor: The Faulkner Journal , New Cambridge Companion to William Faulkner Interdisciplinary collaboration with historian Nina Silber His research explores how 19th- and 20th-century American fiction confronts racial capitalism and plantation economies. He has written influential books including The Play of Faulkner's Language (1982) and William Faulkner: Seeing Through the South (2009). Recent work examines cultural disavowal in Faulkner and Jesmyn Ward. Publications reveal a focus on Faulkner's modernist techniques, media ecologies, and temporal experimentation. Articles span from 1980s analyses of Sanctuary to 2020s studies of racial capitalism, with recurring themes of economic critique and cultural memory. Scientific Awards NEH Senior Research Fellow (1984–85, 1995–96) Henderson Senior Research Fellow (2006-7, 2014-15) Fulbright Lecturer (Charles University, 2010-11) Metcalf Award for Teaching Excellence (2006) President, The Faulkner Society (2006–2009) President, Society for the Study of Southern Literature (2014-2016) Matthews has received multiple research fellowships and maintains an active teaching role while contributing to global Faulkner scholarship through editorial leadership and interdisciplinary collaborations.

• American literature
• Modernist studies
• Literary theory
• +5 more