Dear all,
Hello, everyone, and welcome back for Fall 2026! I hope everyone had a joyful summer. I am excited to share with you some recent exciting announcements and news!
Announcements
We have six new TAs (pictured below). They will be a welcome addition to the Composition Program!
Lauren Baljian, David Carr, Miguel Ceja, Shirley Guardado, Kamren Keith, Camryn Smart
I also want to, once again, give a warm welcome to Professor Marcos León! I hope everyone takes a moment to chat with Dr. León about his creative and scholarly work that bridges narrative form with social history. His current project, Fields of Blood: A Novel & Critical Introduction, reflects his interests in Latine Literature, Horror Studies, and Indigenous Studies. Come say hello!
Accomplishments
Dr. Dylan Altman, who received his MA in our department and was a Teaching Associate, has successfully defended his dissertation in the College of Education at CSUN. Dylan’s dissertation title is: “INSTRUCTORS, LEVEL UP!”: A Quantitative Study on Faculty Perceptions of Distance Education Training. Congratulations, Dylan!
In May of 2026, Professor Michael Bryson presented a paper titled “What Is Humanism in the Face of Artificial Intelligence?” at the Crossing Boundaries: Transdisciplinarity in the Humanities, MDPI Toronto Subject Workshop. The fully-developed version has now been published as “To Measure, or Be Measured Unto: What Is Humanism in the Face of Artificial Intelligence? Or: The Instructor Function.” Humanities 2026, 15(8), 116.
In addition, Professor Bryson’s chapter “’Did Heaven Look On and Would Not Take Their Part?’: Demonic Presence and Divine Absence in Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus and Shakespeare’s Macbeth” has been published in Thinking Monstrosity in Western and Global Literatures and Creative Media (Routledge, 2026, 116-141).
Finally, Professor Bryson is now teaching the first run of a new course on Middle Eastern Literature, offered this Fall as a Senior Seminar. Oh, and perhaps more in the realm of Arts than Humanities, he recently released an album of guitar-based covers of rock, soul, and blues music: String Theory.
Professor Irene Clark has a chapter in the recently published edited collection titled: Academic Writing and Integrity in the Age of Diversity: Perspectives from European and North American Higher Education Irene’s chapter is titled Imitation, Cultural Multiplicity, and Academic Integrity: Insights from Neuroscience Research
The book can be accessed here:
Professor Stephanie Lim continued her service on the Executive Team of Southwest Popular/American Culture Association (SWPACA) and co-led their virtual Summer Salon conference from June 25-27.
Professor Stephanie Lim was invited to share about her research on the So You Wanna Research Popular Culture? podcast, hosted by the George Mason University Pop Culture Lab. In her episode, “Acting it Out: How Theatre is Research,” Stephanie discusses her path to pop culture research and what sets theatre apart from other forms of popular culture.
Dr. Colette Meade has successfully defended their dissertation. Colette’s dissertation title is: California Community College English Faculty Perceptions of Generative Artificial Intelligence. Colette’s dissertation chair is Dr. Irene Clark. Congratulations, Colette!
Professor Sean Pessin presented at the first annual Research in Editing and Publishing Conference, held at Brigham Young University. He presented a paper titled “Self-Efficacy and Making Books in Higher Education Communities” along with CSUN English Alums Rebbecca Brown and Dustin Lehren.
Professor Sean Pessin delivered a keynote lecture at UCLA California Rare Book School on rare books, literary magazines, and the amplifying citation networks in anthologies on August 5, 2026.
Professor Colleen Tripp’s article, “Sui Sin Far and Comparative Racialization Across Media,” was accepted for publication in issue 27.2 of Pedagogy from Duke University Press. This article proposes an in-person pedagogical activity that asks students to close read historic newspapers, political cartoons, and fiction side by side. In doing so, students learn to recognize how meaning emerges not only within individual texts but also through their relationships to surrounding media and cultural discourses. Now, in an era shaped by algorithmic feeds, viral misinformation, and contested narratives about race and citizenship, this unit’s outcome–the ability to read across media forms– remains as essential as ever.
https://read.dukeupress.edu/pedagogy
Professor Vilma Villela served as director and dramaturg for two world-premiere solo plays featured in Stand in the Light: A Solo Show Festival at CASA 0101 Theater in Boyle Heights: Cascarones Vacíos/Empty Eggshells, about infertility, identity, and finding a sense of self beyond motherhood, and Madre¡ Mía!/My Good Grief!, a darkly funny story of a young mother confronting devastating loss and holding on to her faith. The festival runs on weekends in August and September.
