Graduate Faculty

Thomas Anderson

Professor

Director, Office of Prestigious External Scholarships,
Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College

Associate Dean for Undergraduate Affairs,
College of Arts & Sciences

Ph.D. 2002 Vanderbilt University
M.A. 2000 Vanderbilt University
M.A. 1998 Pennsylvania State University
B.A. 1990 English Literature, History, Vanderbilt University

Shakespeare, Critical Theory, Early Modern British Literature

Thomas Anderson specializes in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century British literature, especially drama from Shakespeare and his contemporaries. He teaches undergraduate and... more

Ted Atkinson

Associate Professor

Editor of the Mississippi Quarterly

2010 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2001 Louisiana State University
M.A. 1996 Mississippi College
B.A. 1990 University of Mississippi

Southern studies; U.S. literature, 1900-present

Ted Atkinson joined the MSU faculty in 2009 and has served as editor of Mississippi Quarterly since 2012. His areas of research and teaching interest include southern studies... more

Shalyn Claggett

Associate Professor

Director of Graduate Studies

2505 Lee Hall

662-325-2357

Ph.D. 2005 Vanderbilt University
M.A. 2001 Vanderbilt University
B.A. 2000 Truman State University

Nineteenth-century British literature, literary theory, science and literature

Shalyn Claggett teaches courses on nineteenth-century British literature and literary theory. She is the co-editor (with Lara Karpenko) of Strange Science: Investigating the... more

Peter DeGabriele

Associate Professor

2003 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2009 The University at Buffalo-SUNY
M.A. 2006 The University at Buffalo-SUNY
B.A. 2002 The Australian National University

Eighteenth-Century British Literature; Literary Theory

Peter DeGabriele specialises in the study of eighteenth century literature and culture, with a particular emphasis on the relation between literary texts and the political... more

Lara Dodds

Professor

2304 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2004 Brown University
A.M. 1999 Brown University
B.A. 1997 DePauw University

Milton, Early Modern British Literature, Early Modern Women’s Writing, Research Methods

Lara Dodds specializes in seventeenth-century literature, with a particular focus on Milton and on early modern women’s writing. She teaches undergraduate and graduate... more

Becky Hagenston

Professor

2006 Lee Hall

M.F.A., University of Arizona, 1997
M.A., New Mexico State University, 2000
B.A., Elizabethtown College, 1989

Creative writing, fiction

Becky Hagenston grew up in Maryland and received her MFA from the University of Arizona and her MA from New Mexico State. She is the author of three award-winning story... more

Wendy Herd

Associate Professor

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Ph.D.   2011    University of Kansas
M.A.    2007    University of Kansas
M.A.    2004    Missouri State University
B.A.    1995    University of Missouri

Linguistics, phonetics, phonology, psycholinguistics, second language acquisition, research methods in linguistics

Dr. Wendy Herd passed away August 11, 2020. Wendy Herd is a linguist with research interests in phonetics, psycholinguistics, neurolinguistics, and second language... more

Holly Johnson

Professor

2005 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2001 The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
M.A. 1989 The University of Maryland
B.A. 1987 The University of Maryland

Old and Middle English Literature

Holly Johnson teaches courses in medieval English literature and specializes in late medieval sermons. Her recent volume, The Grammar of Good Friday: Macaronic Sermons of... more

Michael Kardos

Professor

Co-Director of Creative Writing

Editor of Jabberwock Review

2308 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2007 University of Missouri
M.F.A. 2003 The Ohio State University
B.A. 1992 Princeton University

Creative writing, fiction, 20th/21st century American literature

Michael Kardos co-directs the creative writing program at Mississippi State. He is the author of the novels Bluff, Before He Finds Her and The Three-Day Affair , an Esquire... more

Matthew Little

Associate Professor

2510 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 1975 University of Chicago
M.A. 1972 University of Chicago
B.A. 1971 University of California at Berkeley

American literature, Legal writing

Matthew Little received his B.A. from the University of California at Berkeley in 1971, his M.A. from the University of Chicago in 1972, and his Ph.D. from the University of... more

Kelly Marsh

Professor

Faculty Associate, Center for Teaching and Learning Mississippi State University

2504 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 1997 The Pennsylvania State University
M.A. 1993 The Pennsylvania State University
B.A. 1990 Dartmouth College

Contemporary literature, the British and Irish novel since 1900, women and literature, narrative theory

Kelly Marsh teaches courses on British and Irish literature since 1900, contemporary literature, women’s literature, and narrative theory. She is a Faculty Associate with... more

Elizabeth Miller

Assistant Professor

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Ph.D. University of Maryland, College Park. 2016.
M.A. University of Alabama. 2011.
B.A. Mississippi College. 2009.

Rhetorical history and theory, digital rhetoric, and academic writing.

Elizabeth Miller’s research interests include rhetorical history and theory, public writing, and genre studies. Her current book project examines civil rights mass meetings,... more

Bonnie O'Neill

Associate Professor

2508 Lee Hall

Ph. D., 2003, Washington University in St. Louis
MA, 1997, Washington University in St. Louis
BA, 1995, Hamilton College

Early American literature, nineteenth-century American literature, American women writers, American culture studies

Dr. Bonnie Carr O’Neill teaches early American literature and nineteenth-century American literature. Her research focuses on nineteenth-century American literature and... more

Catherine Pierce

Professor

Co-Director of Creative Writing

2310 Lee Hall

Ph.D., University of Missouri, 2007
M.F.A., The Ohio State University, 2003
B.A., Susquehanna University, 2000

Creative Writing, poetry, 20th and 21st Century American literature

Catherine Pierce co-directs MSU's creative writing program, and teaches classes in creative writing and American literature. She is the author of three books of poems: The... more

Ginger Pizer

Associate Professor

Director of Undergraduate Studies

2305 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2008 University of Texas at Austin
M.A. 2002 University of Texas at Austin
B.A. 1994 Brown University

Linguistics, sociolinguistics, linguistic anthropology

Ginger Pizer teaches courses in linguistics and linguistic anthropology. Her research combines approaches from sociolinguistics and first language acquisition to investigate... more

Daniel Punday

Professor

Head of the Department of English

2004 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 1995 The Pennsylvania State University
M.A. 1990 The Pennsylvania State University
B.A. 1988 University of Pittsburgh

contemporary American Literature, literary theory

Dan Punday began his service as Head of the Department of English at Mississippi State University in July, 2016. He has previously served as Head of the Department of English... more

Donald Shaffer

Associate Professor

Director, African American Studies

Mentor, Shackouls Honors College Presidential Scholars

2311 Lee Hall

Ph.D. The University of Chicago

African American literature

Dr. Donald Shaffer holds a joint appointment to the English Department and the African American Studies Program. more

Megan Smith

Assistant Professor

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Ph.D. Second Language Studies, Michigan State University, 2016
M.A. Applied Linguistics, Texas Tech University, 2012
B.A. New York University, Linguistics and East Asian Studies, 2007

Second language acquisition, linguistics, psycholinguistics, language teaching methods

Megan Smith is a linguist with an interest in second language (L2) acquisition, and particularly in L2 syntax and psycholinguistics. Her research focuses on whether non-... more

Ph.D. 2009 University at Buffalo, Comparative Literature
M.A. 2004 University at Buffalo, Comparative Literature
M.A. 2000 Colorado State University, English
B.A. 1994 Colorado State University, English

Postcolonial Literature, World Literature, Critical Theory, Film

Andrea Spain specializes in late twentieth-century and contemporary postcolonial literature, with a focus on post-apartheid South African Literature and culture. She teaches... more

Dhanashree Thorat

Assistant Professor

2011 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2017 University of Florida
M.A. 2013 University of Florida
B.A. 2011 Kennesaw State University
Post-doctoral research: Institute for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Kansas.

Ethnic Literature and Digital Humanities

Dhanashree Thorat situates her research at the intersection of Asian American Studies, Postcolonial Studies, and Digital Humanities. Broadly, she examines how colonial and... more

Eric Vivier

Associate Professor

Faculty Fellow, Shackouls Honors College

2002 Lee Hall

Ph.D. 2014 University of Wisconsin-Madison
MA 2007 University of Wisconsin-Madison
AB 2005 Duke University

Shakespeare, Early Modern Literature, Satire

Eric Vivier specializes in early modern English literature, with a particular focus on satire. He teaches classes on Shakespeare, early British literature, and the Honors “... more

Jervette Ward

Associate Professor

PhD University of Memphis

African American Literature, Contemporary Cultural Studies, Media Studies, and Women’s Literature

Dr. Jervette R. Ward is the editor of Real Sister: Stereotypes, Respectability, and Black Women in Reality TV (Rutgers University Press, November 2015). Her research and... more

Robert West

Professor

2008 Lee Hall

Ph.D. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
M.A. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
B.A. Wake Forest University

American, British, and Irish literature after 1900

Robert West is the editor of The Complete Poems of A. R. Ammons, published by Norton.Robert West (B.A., Wake Forest; M.A., Ph.D., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill... more