معرفی
Cassia Hayward-Fitch serves as an Associate Tutor and Postgraduate Researcher at the University of East Anglia within the School of Politics, Philosophy and Area Studies (Faculty of Arts and Humanities), where she is completing her PhD in American Studies examining queer comic strip cultures of the 1980s-90s.
Her academic credentials include:
- PhD in Art, Media and American Studies, University of East Anglia (2021-Present)
- MA in Linguistics, Vrije Universiteit Brussel (2020-2021, Distinction)
- MA in Interests in Modern Culture, University College London (2019-2020, Distinction)
- BA in English and American Literature, University of Kent (2016-2019, First Class Honours)
Her research centers on Comics, Queer Theory, and LGBTQ+ Literature, analyzing how Alison Bechdel's Dykes to Watch Out For and Howard Cruse's Wendel created communal spaces for activism during the AIDS crisis through archival materials and reception studies.
Her 2023 publications collectively explore paratextual elements, format transitions from comic strips to books, and crisis representation in queer comics, establishing foundational work in LGBTQ+ comic historiography and reception theory.
Key recognitions include:
- 2023 John A. Lent Scholarship in Comics Studies
- 2024 HUM Graduate School Prize for Research Community Engagement
- UCL John Hobbes Memorial Prize for MA dissertation
Funded by a UEA Doctoral Studentship, she serves as CHASE EDI PGR Ambassador for Humanities and taught the LGBT and Beyond module (2023-2024). Her conference presentations span MLA 2023 (San Francisco) and 2024's International Graphic Novel and Comics Conference at UEA.
