English Department Faculty Update Statement of Principles – January 15, 2025
January 15th, 2025
The English Department faculty have elected to update their statement of principles on their home page:
The Department of English at Georgetown University stands united in its commitment to the…
Professor Jennifer Natalya Fink selected as a Fulbright Specialist Program Expert
October 18th, 2024
The Department of English is excited to announce that Professor Jennifer Natalya Fink has been selected as a Fulbright Specialist Program Expert. This is a very competitive Fulbright program…
Prof. O’Malley’s The Irish and the Imagination of Race Wins Honorable Mention for the North American Victorian Studies Association’s Best Book Prize
October 17th, 2024
Professor Patrick O’Malley’s most recent publication, The Irish and the Imagination of Race, was named as the North American Victorian Studies Association’s Honorable Mention for their Best…
Yamiche Alcindor (C’09) on Politics, the Media and All Things Georgetown
October 15th, 2024
On October 15, 2024, Georgetown University published an interview with English Department alumna, Yamiche Alcindor. Read the excerpt below, and check out the full article on the College of Arts…
The Department of English at Georgetown University has one of the largest undergraduate majors in the College of Arts and Sciences and houses one of the few stand-alone English Master’s programs at a nationally ranked university.
With its small classes, the Department of English at Georgetown University emphasizes close work with students and teaching excellence. Our faculty boasts a robust and diverse record of publication, and many have won major university teaching prizes. Reflecting a broadening of the field in recent years, our department offers courses in canonical and non-canonical literature and film in English. The Department is the home of the Lannan Center for Poetics and Social Practice and the University Writing Program.
Statement of Principles from the Faculty of English, Georgetown University
The Department of English at Georgetown University stands united in its commitment to the fundamental equality and inherent dignity of all human beings. These values are the foundation of our work in the humanities and transcend political affiliation. They are also embedded in our University’s mission and the Jesuit tradition of seeking social justice.
As humanists we are committed to the practices of principled argumentation, free inquiry, careful consideration of evidence and fact, and sustained, contemplative engagement. A prerequisite for those practices is respect.
We join together in opposition to those who would ignore, reject, or recast as debatable the principles of equality and justice that are the foundation of our work as educators.
We affirm this shared commitment publicly because the values of equality and human dignity continue to be under threat. We oppose instances of racist, misogynist, transphobic, ableist, anti-Muslim, anti-Jewish, anti-immigrant, homophobic, and caste-based harassment, bias, and discrimination and recognize that they occur at Georgetown. We understand that these are not the only threats to equality and human dignity. We affirm the dignity of all people independent of race, gender, gender identity, sexuality, class, religion, disability, and caste.
The climate for these acts has been substantively shaped by a rhetoric of divisive bigotry that has come to dominate our political discourse, even at the highest levels of government. This rhetoric has been institutionalized in legal statutes and public policies that affect our community directly. As teachers of English we know that words are powerful. We reject the language of division and affirm publicly our shared commitment to justice.
To our students: we stand in solidarity with you. We acknowledge your fears and affirm your right to pursue knowledge regardless of your identity or origin. Our task is to support, to encourage, and to challenge all of you. We commit to that task now and always.
Many courses are interdisciplinary and our faculty have played a major role in founding the Department of Black Studies and interdisciplinary programs of the College:
Department Leadership
Department Chair: Daniel Shore
Director of Graduate Studies: Lori Merish
Director of Undergraduate Studies: Nathan Hensley
Director of Honors: Kathryn Temple
Director of Creative Writing: Phil Sandick
If you are seeking information on English language courses, please contact the English Language Center.