Program Overview

English Program

The English program aims to inspire students in the pursuit of their intellectual and professional passions through the teaching of literature, literary history, and creative and professional writing. Through encounters with diverse literatures and literary traditions, and through practice in deep reading, critical interpretation, and rigorous research, students learn to contribute meaningfully to a complex and changing world.

At W&J, our students engage personally with distinguished scholars, journalists, fiction writers, and poets through visits sponsored by the Maxwell Lecture Series, the Branton Lecture Series, the Visiting Writers Series, and the Enid Parker Keen Poetry Fund. Upon graduation, our students have achieved success in education, law, journalism, marketing, social media strategy, technology, medicine, entertainment, healthcare, and management.

English Snapshot

• Advanced Fiction Writing
• Advanced Poetry Writing
• Advanced Writing and Research Skills
• African American Literature
• American Literature 1
• American Literature 2
• American Literature since 1900
• Asian American Literature
• British Literature 1
• British Literature 2
• British Literature since 1900
• Creative Writing
• Criticism and Theory
• Early American Literature
• Early English Literature
• Editing and Print Design
• English Composition
• Faith in Poetry
• Gender and Sexuality in Literature
• History of the English Language
• Honors Composition
• Independent Study
• Intl Science Fiction & Fantasy
• Introduction to Genres
• Introduction to Literature
• Jane Austen Adapted
• Literary Editing Practicum
• Literary Pathways
• Literature and the Environment
• Literature and the Mind
• Literature of Sport
• Nature
• Nineteenth-Century American Literature
• Nineteenth-Century British Literature
• Professional Writing
• Purgatory
• Renaissance Literature
• Seminar
• Shakespeare
• Shakespeare for Everyone
• Special Topics in Literature
• Studies in African American Literature
• Studies in Form and Genre
• Studies in Literary Perspectives
• The Long Eighteenth Century
• Topics in Advanced Professional Writing
• Topics in Professional Writing
• World Literature
• Writing Creative Non-Fiction
• Writing for Online Platforms
• Zombies in Film

Research and Internships

Our students have applied their knowledge during internships as:

• editors
• writers and researchers
• social-media managers
• in businesses and law firms
• in non-profit corporations
• in the U.S. and abroad

Careers After W&J

With the demand for strong communicators and skilled technical writers across many fields, our graduates find employment in areas that excite and motivate them. English alumni are uniquely positioned for success in careers ranging from teaching and education to editing, marketing, law, business, and even entrepreneurship.

English Faculty

• Carolyn Kyler, Ph.D.
• Michael Lewis, Ph.D.
• Lauryn Mayer, Ph.D.
• Kathleen McEvoy, Ph.D.
• Tara Russey, Ph.D.
• Dana Shiller, Ph.D.
• Linda Troost, Ph.D.
• Todd D. Verdun, Ph.D.
• Lyasha Bishop-Gaines
• George Clark, Ph.D.
• Annette Drew-Bear, Ph.D.
• Marcus Gaines-Cherry
• Jonathan Gottschall
• Pax Gutierrez-Neal, Ph.D.
• Jennifer Harding, Ph.D.
• Ryan Hart

English News

• Sterk '17 named 2024 ACLS Leading Edge Fellow
• ­­­Magellan Project takes political science major on historic journey

English Events

More content coming soon! See our full event calendar for more events.

Explore Other Areas of Study

• Professional Writing
• Creative Writing
• Public Relations