Susan Donaldson

Susan Donaldson is a Professor of English and American Studies at William & Mary, where she has been teaching since 1985. She currently serves as the Chair of the Department of English within the Faculty of Arts & Sciences. Her academic career spans over three decades at this prestigious institution.

Her educational background includes:

• Bachelor of Arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Master of Arts and Ph.D. from Brown University

Professor Donaldson specializes in American literary and cultural studies with particular expertise in southern literature and visual culture. Her research focuses on representations of race, gender, and identity in American literature from the late nineteenth through the twentieth centuries. She has established herself as a leading scholar on William Faulkner, Eudora Welty, and Richard Wright, with numerous publications exploring their works through interdisciplinary lenses that connect literature with visual culture, race studies, and gender theory.

Her scholarly publications reveal a consistent trajectory examining the intersections of literature, race, and gender in American cultural production. Donaldson's work often centers on southern writers and the complex ways they engage with issues of identity, memory, and historical trauma. She has made significant contributions to Faulkner studies through multiple special journal issues, and her research on lynching and American culture represents an important intervention in understanding racial violence through cultural representation.

As an academic leader, Professor Donaldson has served as department chair, mentoring faculty and shaping the direction of English studies at William & Mary. Her editorial work on numerous special journal issues demonstrates her commitment to advancing scholarly conversations in her fields of expertise. While specific grant information isn't detailed in available sources, her extensive publication record suggests successful research support throughout her career.