English

Book Review: Sugar Birds

When Agate “Aggie” Hayes, a spirited and outdoorsy 10-year-old who sketches birds and climbs trees too high, unintentionally causes a devastating fire, she flees in an inflatable boat and hides out in the backwoods, riddled with guilt, dodging bird dogs, and evading rescue. She survives on cattails, salmonberries, and her own instincts and resourcefulness⁠—until someone […]

Nature restoration project unites community, arts, science

In a narrow patch of land beside Missouri Flat Creek near downtown Pullman and the Washington State University campus, a new set of creatively designed signs celebrates a decade of ecological restoration efforts and a unique town–gown partnership combining environmental science and the arts.

Q&A with alumna Michelle McArthur Allman

A high school teacher earlier in her career, Michelle McArthur Allman (’98 English & Secondary Education) currently is the Director of Special Education for the Laurel School District in Laurel, Delaware. Her department serves students from preschool through 12th grade and ages 3 through 21 who have an IEP or a 504 plan, as well […]

Faculty veterans lead training

On WSU’s Pullman campus, two English department faculty members, who happen to be veterans themselves, are building awareness and understanding of a unique student population through their Student Veterans Awareness. “Veterans, military members, and their families are a vital and vibrant part of the WSU Cougar community,” said Mike Edwards, an assistant professor of English. […]

NEH essay sheds light on 1921 Tulsa Massacre

Shock, horror, shame, disgust, sadness, inspiration, appreciation… Thabiti Lewis’ essay on the 1921 Tulsa Massacre elicits a gamut of emotions throughout its 3,500 gripping words. The WSU Vancouver professor of English and associate vice chancellor for academic affairs co-authored the piece on an overlooked series of historic tragedies that he hopes can help spur change […]

The power of poetry to advance social change

When America’s first youth poet laureate, Amanda Gorman, presents another of her original poems during Super Bowl LV events on Sunday, WSU campus civic poet Allyson Pang will be among the millions of people cheering her on. Like Gorman, Pang wants to use her education and creative writing skills to make the world a better […]

Student, faculty serve on artist jury

Mikayla Makle, an English major and president of the WSU Black Student Union—and a College of Arts and Sciences student ambassador—served alongside three CAS faculty to help select recipients of the recent Black Lives Matter Artist Grant program offered by the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art WSU and the Jordan Schnitzer Family Foundation.

How to be a poet

Poetry is art: uniting words with “a form to hold anything you want to say.” “[We all] have a unique way of seeing the work and being in it. I’m intrigued by how different our perceptions are,” said Cameron McGill, teaching assistant professor in the Department of English and assistant editor for the online journal […]

Q&A with Ashley Boyd

Working at the intersection of educational theory, literacy, and minoritized communities, Associate Professor Ashley Boyd is reshaping English education and helping to transform the lives of high school students across the nation. She is the director of undergraduate studies in the Department of English.