Nicole Morse

Nicole Morse is a Professor in the Language Literacy & Culture (LLC) Doctoral Program at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), within the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. Her research focuses on the intersection of LGBTQ+ identities and media culture, examining how queer individuals engage with cinema, television, digital media, and popular culture through formal analysis, oral history, and videographic criticism.

Dr. Morse's scholarly contributions include her book Selfie Aesthetics: Seeing Trans Feminist Futures in Self-Representational Art (Duke University Press, 2022), which explores how trans feminine artists navigate identity through digital media. Her forthcoming work, Bending the Bars: Queer Conspirators Against Carcerality, investigates LGBTQ+ art collectives challenging carceral systems. She regularly publishes in journals like Porn Studies and Feminist Media Studies, and her research is informed by commitments to social justice and public engagement.

Key research areas include:

• Queer media representations and activism
• Trans feminist aesthetics and digital self-representation
• Critical discourse analysis of LGBTQ+ issues in education and policy
• Intersection of media, identity, and social justice

Her scholarship bridges academic rigor with community-oriented activism, collaborating with organizations to advance LGBTQ+ justice. As an educator, she emphasizes collaborative learning and empowering students to communicate research to broader audiences through writing and media.