Shari Evans

Shari Evans, PhD is a Professor and Chairperson of the English & Communication Department at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth's College of Arts & Sciences. She joined the English Department in 2005 and teaches courses including ENL 388: Literary Methods, a topics-based research and writing methods course that develops students' skills in literary analysis, argument, and research-based writing with focus on writing, revision, and original inquiry.

Education:

• PhD from University of New Mexico
• MA from University of New Mexico
• BA from University of Pennsylvania

Professor Evans' research focuses on African American and Multicultural American Literature, Contemporary Women Writers, and Feminist and Critical Race Theory. Her scholarship examines comparative ethnic literatures (particularly African American and Native American) alongside women writers and literary theory. Her recent work theorizes 'home' through the works of Toni Morrison, Octavia Butler, and Margaret Atwood, and she is currently investigating the space of memory in contemporary multicultural American writers. She has presented and written extensively on authors including Octavia Butler, Brenda Marie Osbey, Joy Harjo, and Toni Morrison.

Scientific Awards:

• American Society of Eighteenth Century Studies Teaching Award
• University of New Mexico's Gunter Starkey Award for Teaching Excellence

As Department Chair, Professor Evans oversees academic programs including Black Studies, Creative and Professional Writing, Literature and Criticism, Religious Studies, Urban Studies, and Writing, Rhetoric & Communication. She has mentored numerous students through their academic journeys, with recent features on students like Kamryn Kobel ('24) who was 'Prepared for anything' and Kathryn Grande ('23), a 'Comeback Corsair.' Her leadership shapes the department's commitment to diverse literary traditions and critical approaches to literature and communication.