English Department
Go English!
Here at the ECU Department of English, we are a vibrant and energetic collection of teachers, scholars, researchers, and writers. Our department offers four degrees: a B.A. in English; a B.S. in Professional Writing and Information Design; an M.A. in English; a Ph.D. in Rhetoric, Writing, and Professional Communication as well as various minors and certificates. The diversity of this department is one of its strengths: you can take coursework in literature, creative writing, technical and professional communication, rhetoric and composition, multicultural and transnational literatures, linguistics, theory and criticism, folklore, children’s literature, teaching English to speakers of other languages, and film studies. In addition, you can expect to benefit from a breadth of faculty expertise across many areas of study. Above all, your success as a student is our first priority.
English News
Abigail Fletcher, a BS-PWID student, is featured in the most recent issue of Harriot College’s Cornerstone newsletter.
Flecther is not only a BS-PWID major but also a creative writing minor, and has taken courses across the English curriculum from more than a dozen English faculty. She was among the students featured in the NCLR-partnered ENGL 2885: Writing and Document Design class taught by Desiree Dighton in fall 2023.
Dr. Rebecca Bernard’s “Standard X-Ray Precautions,” won The Baltimore Review’s Flash Creative Nonfiction Contest judged by Mandy Moe Pwint Tu.
The Baltimore Review was founded by Barbara Westwood Diehl in 1996 as a literary journal publishing short stories and poems, with a mission to showcase the best writing from the Baltimore area, from across the U.S., and beyond.
Alina Hernandez Patlan, one of Dr. Kim Thompson’s former English 3880 students, nominated them as an influential figure in their academic journey. Alina is a Marketing major who is considering a minor in Professional Writing and Design. Thompson says, “Alina is an outstanding student who is dedicated to growing as a professional communicator, writer, and researcher! I am proud of Alina’s growth!”
Dr. Thomas Herron presented a public lecture on “Edmund Spenser and the medieval Irish landscape: old and new approaches” at the Centre d’études supérieures de la civilisation médiévale (CESCM) in Poitiers, France.
Also, Herron just published an article on a related topic, on teaching Renaissance poetry using VR in the classroom: “The Place of Reading in VR: Pedagogy, Spenser’s Kilcolman Castle and Amoretti 65,” in New Technologies in Medieval and Renaissance Studies IV: the Changing Shape of Digital Early Modern Studies. Ed. Randa El Khatib and Caroline Winter (Toronto: Iter, 2025). Both the talk and the article feature recent work on the website Centering Spenser: A Digital Resource for Kilcolman Castle, which has been built and is supported at ECU. The website was recently reviewed positively in the online publication Reviews in Digital Humanities.
Dr. Kirstin Squint was recently elected Vice President of the Association for the Study of American Indian Literatures (ASAIL), her term beginning in the fall of 2026. As noted on the organization’s website, “ASAIL’s current membership includes leading scholars, creatives, and activists committed to the interdisciplinary study and continuance of Native American and Indigenous languages, cultures, and aesthetics, and aesthetic traditions.” The organization’s official scholarly journal is SAIL, Studies in American Indian Literatures, the only journal in the U.S. focused entirely on American Indian literary subjects.
John Hoppenthaler has two new poems in Crab Orchard Review. “Epistrophe” and “Spring Peepers” are featured in the Fall/Winter edition. Crab Orchard Review is “a literary journey that delves into the heart of storytelling,” and is published by Southern Illinois University. It is a biannual (spring and fall) literary journal of prose, poetry, book reviews, and author interviews.
Sophronia Knott was featured in the Graduate School News – December 2025 email. She discussed her experience as the 2016 3MT Grand Champion Winner.
When advising students considering the 3MT, Knott stresses the importance of showmanship as much as scholarship. She encourages participants to watch previous winners and engaging TED Talks, noting that strong content alone isn’t enough—you need a little “razzle dazzle” to stand out. Memorization, practice, and intentional movement all play a crucial role in delivering a polished and memorable performance.