Paula Eckard

Dr. Paula Eckard is a Professor of English and Chair of the Department of English at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. She previously served as Director of American Studies, Women’s and Gender Studies, and Graduate Liberal Studies (MALS). Her education includes a Ph.D. in English from the University of South Carolina, alongside multiple degrees from UNC Charlotte, including a B.A., B.S.N., M.A., and M.H.D.L.

Her research focuses on American and Southern literature, maternal studies, and literature and medicine. Key interests include Thomas Wolfe’s works, queer and non-binary narratives in dystopian literature, and the intersection of race, gender, and language in Southern texts. She has published extensively, including monographs like Thomas Wolfe and Lost Children in Southern Literature (2016) and The Maternal Body and Voice in Toni Morrison, Bobbie Ann Mason, and Lee Smith (2002).

Dr. Eckard has received the Zelda and Paul Gitlin Literary Prize for her 2010 article on Thomas Wolfe. Professionally, she leads the Thomas Wolfe Society and edits The Thomas Wolfe Review. She is also active in community service, including lobbying for diabetes research funding and advocating for school policies supporting children with diabetes through her role with JDRF.

Her teaching spans courses such as North Carolina Writers, American Literature, and Contemporary Southern Women Writers. Current research explores medical narratives in Thomas Wolfe’s works. She has contributed to multiple journals and edited volumes, with a focus on interdisciplinary approaches to literature and culture.