Sarah Hae-In Idzik

Sarah Hae-In Idzik serves as Assistant Professor of Rhetoric in the Department of English at Carnegie Mellon University's Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences, where her work centers on race, racialization, and Asian American/ethnic studies through critical rhetorical analysis of transnational adoption discourses.

She holds a Ph.D. in Communication Studies - Rhetoric and Public Culture from Northwestern University, an M.A. from Carnegie Mellon University, and a B.A. from The University of Chicago.

Idzik's research investigates how dominant narratives frame transnational adoption as charitable rescue, perpetuating adoptee marginalization while connecting these discourses to American imperialism, colonialism, and war. Her scholarship validates adoptee perspectives and examines community-building rhetorics that challenge systemic oppression, with particular focus on Asian American experiences and the intersection of race with colonial legacies.

Her publications (2018-2022) reveal consistent engagement with race and marginalization across diverse contexts—from adoption history to NFL protests—using critical discourse analysis to demonstrate how language constructs belonging and identity for Asian American and adoptee communities.

As an educator, Idzik creates inclusive spaces for critical discussions on race, colonialism, and racialization through courses on race/rhetoric, Asian American studies, and adoption studies. She actively advocates for institutional protections supporting scholars of color facing structural disadvantages and burnout in academia.