Tracey L. Weldon

Tracey L. Weldon is a Professor of English and Linguistics at the University of South Carolina, concurrently serving as Dean of the Graduate School and Vice Provost of Graduate Education. She holds appointments in the Department of English Language and Literature within the McCausland College of Arts and Sciences.

Her educational background:

• Ph.D. in Linguistics, The Ohio State University, 1998
• B.A. in English and French (cum laude), Furman University, 1991

Weldon's research examines language through intersecting lenses of race, class, and geography. Her work centers on:

• Quantitative Sociolinguistics
• Language Variation
• African American English
• Gullah
• Language and Gender

Her scholarship reveals how middle-class African Americans strategically navigate linguistic identity, challenging monolithic views of Black language. The 2021 monograph Middle Class African American English (Cambridge University Press) establishes her as a leading authority, while her editorial work on The Language Files and contributions to the Oxford Dictionary of African American English demonstrate field leadership.

No scientific awards are explicitly documented in the source materials.

Weldon mentors graduate students in sociolinguistics through courses like Seminar on Language Variation and African-American English. Her documentary production and editorial roles constitute significant scholarly contributions beyond traditional grant-funded research.

She co-produced the 2017 documentary Talking Black in America with the Language and Life Project and currently serves on the Oxford Dictionary of African American English editorial board (2023-2025), shaping foundational resources for the discipline.